About the Book
War is a persistent, recurrent and tragic part of human history. Anyone who visits the battlefields of the First World War cannot fail to be struck by the poignancy of the cemeteries there. Row after row of white headstones, set in immaculate order, stand silent amongst the peaceful hedgerows and fields of France and Flanders. Walking beside them, one can read the names of individuals where they are known.
Often it is the ages, some just 19 years old, which strike home, reminding us that wars are fought by the younger generation, and sadly they are called to make the ultimate sacrifice when their life has barely begun. As the title suggests, this book is concerned with the changes that took place in warfare, and, as such, a certain emphasis will be placed on ‘turning points’ in organisation, technology, leadership, or in operations. The aim of this book is to be an introduction to an enormous subject.
Military history is a vast topic, and its study should be set within the context of the history of the period in question, and, in particular the question of its political purpose. Only by these means can a full appreciation of the military narrative be grasped. For example, the political upheavals of the French revolution set in motion the revolutionary wars, and these, in turn, assisted the career of Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon was as much a political animal as he was a military leader, and his strategic decision-making reflected his political aspirations to dominate Europe and suppress his rivals. This book will enable you to get straight to the main features of this subject. It will also help you to avoid the common pitfalls that have plagued histories of war for years, particularly the assumption that warfare followed a linear trend of development or that it was driven solely by changes in technology.
Given that war is a global phenomenon, this book also draws on some examples of warfare outside of the West (Europe and North America), and show influences between different modes of warfare. These examples also help to illustrate why certain tactics, especially in colonial warfare, survived amongst European forces long after their obsolescence in the west.
Compared with earlier epochs of history, the period between 1792 and 1918 was an era of rapid change in warfare. Weapons, tactics, and training were adapted to suit developments in gunpowder technology, but the professionalism of armies also reflected the modernisation of the European states. In the eighteenth century, the art of war had reached a sophisticated level. The co-ordination of infantry, cavalry and artillery on the battlefield and the adequate supply of food, ammunition and equipment had become something of a science.
The preparation for war, and the maintenance of an army in the field also required organisation of state finances for pay and administration, recruitment strategies, engineers and technicians to construct cannon and fortifications, and industries to support boot making, saddlery, and the manufacture of munitions, gun carriages and ships. In analysing warfare, one can identify certain principles, and recognise patterns of war and change. However, there are many examples where innovation and change brought military disaster. This reminds us that there are limitations in analyses of military history. Indeed, military history has itself evolved and developed, incorporating a far greater range of issues now than merely weapons, commanders and orders of battle.
That is why this book is so important.
Product details
Paperback: 160 pages
Publisher: Studymates
Language: English
ISBN 9781842850855
Product Dimensions: 13.5 x 1.4 x 21.6 cm
Table of Contents:
1. Introduction: Warfare 7 One minute overview 7 Change and continuity in war 7 Changing debates in military history 8 Terms and definitions 12 Themes 13 Tutorial 14 2. The Revolutionary Wars, 1792-1804 15 One minute overview Revolutionary War The French Revolutionary Army The Revolutionary War in 1793 The Recovery of the French Army The rise of Napoleon The limits of Napoleonic ambition The allied counter-offensive Napoleon's second campaign in Italy Understanding the Napoleonic system The technology of war Naval warfare Tutorial 3. The Napoleonic Wars, 1805-1815 29 One minute overview Strategy and alliances: Napoleon's campaign of 1805 Napoleonic offensive warfare The conflict in Spain and the Peninsular War Guerrilla War Napoleon conquered Central Europe Napoleon's organisation of the state for war Judging the quality of troops: the strengths and weaknesses of the British armed forces War of Nations: Napoleon's campaigns 1812-1814 Offensive warfare: the campaign of 1814 The Hundred Days campaign and the Battle of Waterloo Conclusions Historical Interpretations of Napoleon Tutorial 4. The Era of Peace, revolution and Reaction, 1815-1854 47 One minute overview The Vienna Peace Settlement and the Congress System Revolutionary Europe Baron de Jomini and Carl von Clausewitz The impact of industrialisation: technological change Tutorial 5. The Crimean War, 1854-1856 53 One minute overview The causes of the Crimean War Strategy: The problems encountered in the opening phases of the war Technology and logistics: innovations and problems The course of the Crimean War The effects of the war Conclusions Tutorial 6. The American Civil War, 1861-65 62 One minute overview The causes and the initial developments of the war The key battles of 1862-3 Developments in warfare Case Study: Gettysburg The last phase of the war Changes in warfare The long-term effects of the war on the South Tutorial 7. The Wars of Unification, 1859-71 70 One minute overview The Italian Wars The Franco-Austrian War of 1859 Garibaldi and the Risorgimento of 1860 Changes in the Prussian army and Bismarck's political objectives The Danish War and the origins of the Seven Weeks' War The Seven Weeks' War The developments in warfare in the Franco-Prussian War Case Study in leadership: Bezaine Case Study in leadership: Moltke Turning Point: The Battle of Sedan The Siege of Paris Conclusions o the Wars of Unification Tutorial 8. Warfare in China, Japan, the Ottoman Empire, Indian states and Africa 90 One minute overview Colonial warfare Chinese modes of warfare in the Chinese wars Japanese modernisation The armies of the Muslim world South Asia: The wars of the Indian states The Sikh Wars The Indian Mutiny The Zulu Mfecane and the Cape Frontier Wars Conclusions Tutorial 9. Minor Wars: Colonial Wars in Africa, America and Asia, 1873-1899 105 One minute overview Wolseley's campaigns: the importance of logistics The wars of imperial expansion in America The wars of imperial expansion in Russia The British wars of imperial expansion The Zulu War of 1879 The Second Afghan war and the North West Frontier Wars in Africa The First Anglo-Boer War Egypt and the Sudan French Colonial Wars Development and contrasts: Adowa and Omdurman Conclusions Tutorial 10. The South-African War, 1899-1902, and the Russo-Japanese War, 1904-5 118 One minute overview The problems the British faced at the beginning of the South African War The Boer strategy and its failure The success of the British offensive The guerrilla war Civilians and the war The effects of the war The Russo-Japanese War Changes in warfare by 1905 War Plans Tutorial 11. The First World War: Mobility and Defence 131 One minute overview The Western Front 1914-15 The fighting on the Eastern Front Attempts to break the stalemate on the Western Front Organisation of the state for war The alternatives to the Western Front: the other theatres of war War of attrition: Verdun The battle of the Somme Technology The Italian Front and Balkans theatre Tutorial 12.Total War 144 One minute overview The organisation of the state for total war The campaigns of 1917 Domestic morale: The collapse of Russia The Western Front The victory of 1918 Interpretations of the First World War Tutorial 13. Conclusions: Warfare and the experience of war 151 One minute overview The experience of war Tactics Weapons Conclusion: technology and linear development Change and continuity: Non-linear explanations of warfare Tutorial Glossary of terms
About the Author :
Dr Johnson is Director of the Changing Character of War Programme, at the Faculty of History at Oxford University where he is a Fellow of Pembroke College. Dr Johnson's primary research interests are in strategy, unconventional operations, insurgency and counter-insurgency. He conducts research on conflicts ‘amongst the people’ with particular reference to Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Middle East. He acts as a specialist advisor to the British, American, Danish, French, German and Afghan armed forces on security, stabilisation and transition. He is a former British Army officer.
