The War Chronicles: From Flintlocks to Machine Guns: From Flintlocks to Machine Guns - Hardcover

Cummins, Joseph

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1592333052 ISBN 13: 9781592333059

Publisher: Fair Winds Press, 2009

Synopsis

A Global Survey of Modern Warfare, from the First Fervid Days of the French Revolution of 1789 to the Bloody Stalemate that Ended the Iran-Iraq War in 1988

In the modern era, warfare entered a new phase. Technological innovation yielded evermore destructive weaponry, international communications and alliances greatly extended the reach of conflicts, and military strategists increasingly targeted infrastructure and civilians, while new media—first photography, then film and television—conveyed the horror and brutality of industrialized combat to those who had the good fortune to live beyond the battle zones.

The War Chronicles: From Flintlocks to Machine Guns adopts the innovative and accessible format of its predecessor, which spanned the period from 500 BC to the American Revolution, to chart the astonishingly rapid evolution of modern warfare. In doing so, it traces the transformation of battle tactics, from the prearranged set-piece encounters of the Napoleonic Wars to the massive naval landings and aerial bombardments of World War II, explains the scientific innovations that yielded the machine gun, the tank, and the atom bomb, and vividly renders the key victories that turned the tide of war, from Waterloo to Gettysburg and D-Day. At the same time, it reiterates the constants of conflict: the slaughters and massacres, including the Holocaust and the little-known Taiping Rebellion, which killed up to forty million Chinese; the personal sacrifices made by those battling tyranny, among them the rebels of revolutionary France, Greece, and Mexico; and the extraordinary influence of charismatic leaders, ranging from Napoleon and Pancho Villa to Mao Zedong and Hitler.

Sweeping in its scope, yet intimate in its insights into the motivations of politicians, strategists, commanders, and soldiers, this is a collection that will enhance your understanding of the modern world and your own place in it.

About this title

About the Author

Joseph Cummins' publications include a novel, The Snow Train, and numerous works of popular history, including The War Chronicles series; History's Great Untold Stories; Turn Around and Run Like Hell; Great Rivals in History; and Anything For A Vote: Dirty Tricks, Cheap Shots and October Surprises in U.S. Presidential Campaigns. Cummins lives in Maplewood, New Jersey.

 

Review

“The second half of Joe Cummins’s remarkable chronicle is as impressive as the first. Incorporating a staggering amount of research into a cleverly organized volume, he charts the evolution of modern war from the early modern era to our own. Fascinating and eminently accessible.” —Cormac O’Brien, author of The Forgotten History of America and Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents

There is great narrative here—really great narrative history—but readers of military history will especially appreciate the book's unique format which spotlights the salient facts of each conflict. Chronology, Combatants, Commanders, Theater of War, Casualties, and Turning Point, which recounts in gripping detail the battle in which the war was lost or won. —Thomas J. Craughwell, author of The Second Largest Empire in the World, Failures of the Presidents, and Stealing Lincoln’s Body

Praise for the first volume of The War Chronicles: From Chariots to Flintlocks:

“...Cummins offers short, chronological narratives of dozens of subjects, from the Greco-Persian Wars and King Leonidas through the American Revolution and Gentleman Johnny Burgoyne. Featuring strong color images, it is an easily navigated compilation with time lines and wide-ranging subpieces that add interest...it is also simply a fun book that you might pick up over and over to check your memory of, say, the Battle of Poltava.” —Library Journal

About this edition

• Publisher: Fair Winds Press
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1592333052
• ISBN 13: 9781592333059
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 400