100 Decisive Battles: From Ancient Times to the Present
By:
Paul K. Davis
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Average Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Description:
From the ancient Egyptian battle at Megiddo in 1469 BC to the recent military actions in Iraq, great battles have had an enormous impact on the shaping of history. Now, in this fully illustrated book, one hundred of the world's most important military confrontations are described in detail. 100 Decisive Battles gives us the facts about the battle and also explains where it fits in to the scope of world history.
In each entry we are given the name and date of the battle, the commanders, the size of the opposing forces, and casualties. An account of the battle plan and the military action are strategically discussed, and each description closes with a valuable consideration of how history was affected by the outcome of the conflict. Among the battles presented are the Battle of Thymbra (546 BC), the Battle of Chalons (451 AD), the Battle of Cajamarca (1532), the Battle of Dien Bien Phu (1954), and the Tet Offensive (1968). Accompanying maps and sidebars help further orient us with each military action.
Global in scope, with excellent coverage of American, Central American, European, Asian, and Middle Eastern battles, and with its stirring accounts of familiar battles and many lesser known military conflicts, 100 Decisive Battles is essential reading for military buffs and anyone interested in how the modern world came to be.
Description:
Sometimes a battle, such as the one that raged along France's Marne River in 1918, involves hundreds of thousands of soldiers and costs many lives. Sometimes, as in the case of Tippecanoe, a battle involves only a few hundred fighters. Great or small, as historian Paul Davis notes, history has turned on clashes such as these. In this well-researched compendium, Davis examines battles that have had far-reaching historical consequences. The first entry covers the Battle of Megiddo, which delivered unto the Egyptian pharaoh Thutmose III an uneasy dominion over Palestine and broadened his empire into Asia; the final entry, set not far from the first, describes the Allied victory over Iraq in Desert Storm, which "denied control of a large portion of the Middle East oil reserves to dictator Saddam Hussein and showed the ability of a multinational coalition to succeed in the post-Cold War world, perhaps setting an example of future international military action." In between Davis considers similarly fateful but often forgotten contests, such as the Battle of Chalons, when another coalition--this one of Visigoths, Romans, and Gallic and Germanic tribes--turned back the huge Mongol army of Attila in A.D. 451, and the Battle of Shanhaikuan, when, in the spring of 1644, China's Ming dynasty fell to Manchu invaders. Davis sometimes prefers sweeping themes to mundane realities (the fact, for instance, that the Battle of Adrianople turned on the recent invention of the stirrup), and his compendium tends heavily toward Europe at the expense of other parts of the world. The illustrations are also of uneven quality and usefulness. Still, readers with an interest in military history will find this to be a handy reference and overview, and they'll enjoy second-guessing the author, nominating battles that didn't make his hundred while learning from the obscure, but nonetheless critical, ones that he does address. --Gregory McNamee
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Customer Review: 4 out of 5
Great Reference, Very Interesting Book, Bought Two... - I learned quite a bit while reading this book, and still go back to it on a regular basis. This book is an excellent reference guide, I highly recommend it.
The author does a good job of outlining the historical significance of each battle with concise, yet detailed descriptions. The illustrations are spare, but adequate. My only complaint: The author does spoil the ending by naming the victor at the beginning, rather than the end of each battle. A well placed thumb while reading each description will remedy this problem.
I lent this book to my father-in-law. He loved it so much, I told him to keep it and I ordered another. As an aside: I bought used copies from Amazon resellers. The books were in "like new" condition at about half the cost of new. I recommend purchasing like this if not in a "big" hurry to get the book.
Customer Review: 5 out of 5
Great book! What an exciting read! - I bought this book for my son's spiritual birthday because he loves military history. He carries it around with him all the time and is on the second time all the way through, since receiving it in April. Not only is it thorough in its coverage, but it is written in such a way as to encourage critical dialogue.
Customer Review: 5 out of 5
The Best of Both Worlds... - There are basically two types of non-fiction military history books: general and specific. General books might offer an overview of Viet Nam, while a specific book would address the Tet Offensive or tunnel rats.
If you're an avid historian, general books are usually too...well...general! They provide a gloss-over in order to cram the entire subject into the confines of the book. Specific books, on the other hand, can bore you with an overkill of details. They are also limited in their focus to the subject of the book, often not addressing outside contributing factors.
I initially began reading this book because I figured it would be something light I could skim over when I had 10-15 minutes of time here and there. I didn't expect much; after all, if a book trying to cover WWII in it's entirety was too general, how could the author hope to cover 100 different battles, over thousands of years, with any justice?
Davis found just the right combination. The battles are covered concisely, but still offer important details (such as the French's mindset towards warfare...independent barons each seeking their own glory and not having the discipline to unite before attacking...being their downfall at Crece). Even if you're well-read, you will learn from this book. To top it off, the battles are presented in chronological order, so you can see similarities in strategies, intended by the leaders or not.
My only ding on the book is that there are a few battles the author could have omitted for more-decisive ones. But hey, put 100 different historians in a room, and everyone's top 100 would probably be different! Check this book out. It's a great read.
Customer Review: 4 out of 5
Provocative (and frustrating) evaluation of great battles - Paul Davis undertakes an effort to identify the 100 most decisive battles in history. The three criteria that he uses to select key battles:
"1. The outcome of the battle brought about a major political or social change. . . .
2. Had the outcome of the battle been reversed, major political or social changes would
have ensued. . . .
3. The battle marks the introduction of a major change in warfare."
There follows the enumeration, with each battle covered in 4-5 pages, with (sometimes) maps, with a brief preface that outlines what happened and why the battles was important.
The book reads pretty well and provokes a lot of thinking about the subject. However, there is some idiosyncrasy in the selection of battles. Of course, honorable people will differ, but some of the choices are strange indeed.
Inchon is selected as a decisive battle; yet the Korean War was something of a draw. Hard for me to see how a long, bloody, and indecisive conflict could have a battle conceived as one of the world's most decisive combats. "Desert Storm"? A third rate power (Iraq) against the most powerful nation on earth? A one-sided conflict. Further, the invasion of Iraq in the 21st century suggests that there was nothing decisive about Desert Storm. Otherwise, why a revisitation of the conflict between the United States and Iraq? The fact that four of the hundred were from the Pacific Theater in World War II suggests a real imbalance. Further, the author uses a strange logic to argue that Pearl Harbor was decisive. A great loss led to the US entering the war. An awkward logic by which to label this decisive. Midway was much more important, since it wrecked much of the Japanese carrier capability. Another query: Why both Leipzig and Waterloo? How often does Napoleon need to be defeated for a decisive victory? And if those were decisive, why include Napoleon's great victories, since he was fated to lose (e.g., Jena)? Why Jena rather than his masterpiece at Austerlitz? The rationale for Jena is pretty weak.
As other reviewers note, there is a heavy emphasis on Western battles.
In the end, even though one can disagree with many of the selections, this is a good read and does lead to some thinking about what were the most decisive battles. The fact that such questions emerge suggests the utility of the volume.
Customer Review: 4 out of 5
A must If You Like Military History - Ever since I was in high school long, long, ago, I have always wanted to learn about the history of the world, especially about why wars and battles were fought. Although my favorite time and study is the Civil War period and the Confederacy, other periods of history appeal to me. I love military strategy and in this book i found just what I wanted. Mr. Davis does not just explain the battle but before he describes it, he gives to you a background of events and then after a description of the battle, he gives to you all the important results. Then he gives to the reader some important references which I have very much used. You can't go wrong with the purchase of this valuable book. Buy-Read-Enjoy.
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