Product Description

Salamis, Agincourt, Lepanto, Trafalgar, Gettysburg, Isandlwana, the Somme, Stalingrad -Battlefield tells the stories of the most dramatic, memorable, and important conflicts in world history. It begins with the battle of Megiddo fought by the ancient Egyptians and takes the reader through to the Second Gulf war of 2003. On the way it encompasses almost 300 battles from around the world - from the Middle East, Asia, and Africa, as well as from Europe and the Americas. All the battles are grouped within chapters which tell the wider story of a particular era or region, for instance the ancient world, or the Americas. And each chapter includes an introduction that sets out the historical, tactical, and technological context, and looks at current debates. In addition, individual battles are placed clearly within the wars and campaigns of which they formed a part, making it possible for the reader to follow the details of the battle, and at the same time to understand its military and historical implications. Battlefield summarizes the best of contemporary scholarship on battles and war in an accessible, engaging narrative. Detailed maps portray the course of famous battles and campaigns, and a range of illustrations - many from contemporary sources - bring the narrative to life. An extensive index gives the reader quick access to historical figures, locations, battle formations, and much more.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #331250 in Books
• Published on: 2006-09-14
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 384 pages

Military History, 1 September 2006
'Highly recommended.'

Review
For the armchair general beleaguered by military history books, this arrives like blucher's army at Waterloo. Well presented and clear.

About the Author
Richard Holmes - the editor of The Companion to Military History - is a very prolific author and a well-known television presenter. He is Professor of Military and Security Studies at Cranfield University and the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom. He has written twenty books, including Acts of War, and his trilogy on the British soldier: Redcoat: The British Soldier in the Age of the Musket; Tommy: The British Soldier on the Western Front; and
Sahib: The British Soldier in India. Dusty Warriors: Modern Soldiers at War is publishing in Spring 06. He has presented seven BBC2 TV series, from 'War Walks' (1996) to 'In the Footsteps of Churchill' (2005). All these series have also been the topics of books.

Customer Reviews

An inclusive battlefield reference
Richard Holmes has a sure touch as an author of military history and this book sits well with its partner The Oxford Companion to Military History also edited by him.
To some extent the format and content are not new. The decisive battles of history are placed in their military, geographic and chronological context and we are given the latest interpretations of each battle. Excellent recent scholarly books on a number of battles, not least Crecy, Agincourt, The Somme, and Loos have added much to our understanding of these battles and are reflected in the battlefield explanations in this book. There should be few objections to the 300 battles chosen as `decisive'.

Each chapter is introduced with a summary of the military conditions that imposed on the battlefields of the era. The shift in technology and tactics is discussed and placed in the political context that the battles sought to solve.

Richard Holmes suggested that his intention was to produce more than just a dictionary of battles and the book succeeds in that respect due to the personal and incisive comment that we expect from him. It is primarily a reference book and the test of such a book is how often it is used. Within two hours of receiving it I was using it to cross reference, and suspect that will continue to happen. As with all such books a mark of success is the ability to enthuse the reader to seek out more detailed reading and research and in that context the excellent Further Reading list is a well constructed route map.

Previous similar books have concentrated on region (e.g. Chandler on Europe) or timescale (e.g. Calvert/Young 1715-1815 etc) but this book adds to the library by virtue of being inclusive. This book is a good resource and should also be a useful starting point for the general reader seeking a structured advance into military history.


Mike McCarthy
Editor, "The Battle Guide"
Guild of Battlefield Guides.

A Helpful Survey
This book is really helpful if, like me, you like to go off and visit battlefields. Many books of this type spend too much time trying to be a history book, whilst others try too hard at being tour guides - this book is just honestly a book about critical battles. Its importance, however, is its breadth and the ability to give the reader a feel for what it was like to be on that battlefield during the fighting. An easy, but illuminating read.