The Great War: A Combat History of the First World War

Oral Historian Peter Hart

ISBN 10: 0190227354 / ISBN 13: 9780190227357

Published by Oxford University Press Inc, 2015

About this Item

Named one of the Ten Best Books of 2013 by The EconomistWorld War I altered the landscape of the modern world in every conceivable arena. Millions died; empires collapsed; new ideologies and political movements arose; poison gas, warplanes, tanks, submarines, and other technologies appeared. "Total war" emerged as a grim, mature reality. In The Great War, Peter Hart provides a masterful combat history of this global conflict. Focusing on the decisive engagements, Hart explores the immense challenges faced by the commanders on all sides. He surveys the belligerent nations, analyzing their strengths, weaknesses, and strategic imperatives. Russia, for example, was obsessed with securing an exit from the Black Sea, while France - having lost to Prussia in 1871, before Germany united - constructed a network of defensive alliances, even as it held a grudge over the loss of Alsace-Lorraine. Hart offers deft portraits of the commanders, the prewar plans, and the unexpected obstacles and setbacks that upended the initial operations.

Seller Inventory # 00100319708

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Great War: A Combat History of the First World War
• Publisher: Oxford University Press Inc
• Publication Date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0190227354
• ISBN 13: 9780190227357
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: Fair

About this title

Synopsis

Named one of the Ten Best Books of 2013 by The Economist

World War I altered the landscape of the modern world in every conceivable arena. Millions died; empires collapsed; new ideologies and political movements arose; poison gas, warplanes, tanks, submarines, and other technologies appeared. "Total war" emerged as a grim, mature reality.

In The Great War, Peter Hart provides a masterful combat history of this global conflict. Focusing on the decisive engagements, Hart explores the immense challenges faced by the commanders on all sides. He surveys the belligerent nations, analyzing their strengths, weaknesses, and strategic imperatives. Russia, for example, was obsessed with securing an exit from the Black Sea, while France--having lost to Prussia in 1871, before Germany united--constructed a network of defensive alliances, even as it held a grudge over the loss of Alsace-Lorraine. Hart offers deft portraits of the commanders, the prewar plans, and the unexpected obstacles and setbacks that upended the initial operations.

About the Author

Peter Hart is Oral Historian of the Imperial War Museum in London. He is the author of The Somme: The Darkest Hour on the Western Front, 1918: A Very British Victory, Gallipoli, and Fire and Movement: The British Expeditionary Force and the Campaign of 1914.