Britain As A Military Power, 1688-1815 [Hardcover]

Professor Jeremy Black (Author), Jeremy Black (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1999 | ISBN-10: 185728772X | ISBN-13: 978-1857287721

In 1688, Britain was successfully invaded, its army and navy unable to prevent the overthrow of the government. 1815, Britain was the strongest power in the world with the most succesful navy and the largest empire. Britain had not only played a prominent role in the defeat of Napoleonic France, but had also established itself as a significant power in South Asia and was unsurpassed in her global reach. Her military strength was related to, and based on, one of the best systems of public finance in the world and held a strong trade position. This illustrated text assesses the military aspects of this shift, concentrating on the multi-faceted nature of the British military effort.; Topics covered include: the rise of Britain; an analysis of military infrastructure; warfare in the British Isles; conventional warfare in Europe; trans- oceanic warfare with European powers; the challenge of America; and the challenge of Revolutionary and Napoleonic France.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 332 pages
• Publisher: Routledge (February 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 185728772X
• ISBN-13: 978-1857287721
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,324,698 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars 332 pages for $120 bucks !!! Seriously !!! This is Black after all., January 31, 2012

By 

sgt_maddog "Military Historian and Sith Lord" (Middle of the USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Britain As A Military Power, 1688-1815 (Hardcover)

Jeremy Black's works are often thought provoking if not very carefully researched or documented. I own many of his books and reference them often, and to a point they are useful. However, this is definately an author whose reputation exceeds his accomplishments. He is very much a generalist and will be the backshelf J.C. Fuller or A.J.P. Taylor in a moldy used bookstore for $1.25 a decade from now. He turns out books faster than most professors turn out lectures, and the quantity is usually gained at a cost to quality. I have paid as much as $35.00 for paperback editions of some of his previous works because I needed to reference them and address his arguements in my historiographical discussions, but nothing he has ever written, including this (which I thankfully accessed via interlibrary loan) merits such an obnoxious price. Save your pounds stirling. If you have no choice but to buy this--I am sorry for you. The Kindle price (or for that matter rental) here is also obscene. I think if the Duke of Marlborough coauthored a work with the Duke of Wellington on the British Army, I wouldn't pay this kind of money for it. The pomposity of the price, however, goes well with the "We were once the greatest" Anglocentric tone of Black's previous work--so at least in that respect it is appropriate.

4.0 out of 5 stars Britain's Rise Not Pre-ordained, February 13, 2006

By 

John Hamill (Roanoke, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Britain As A Military Power, 1688-1815 (Hardcover)

Jeremy Black provides an excellent discussion of Britain's land and naval power, discussing the nation's strengths and weaknesses and the many wars and diplomatic crises of the period. Black convincing argues that Britain's rise to power was not preordained and cites a number of potential disasters. Although a great strength, Britain's financial system was also a vulnerability. Use of mercenaries and subsidy treaties was also a double edged sword, and the Jacobites were always a real threat to the regime. Refreshingly, he covers interesting but now obscure events like the 1770s Falklands squabble and the Nootka Sound incident, but his accounts of wars in India are a little confusing.