The Crimean War, 1853-1856 (Modern Wars) [Paperback]

Winfried Baumgart (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1999 | ISBN-10: 034061465X | ISBN-13: 978-0340614655

The Crimean War (1853-6) was the only conflict of European dimensions in the century between the Napoleonic Wars and World War I. There were not only the five great European powers that were directly or indirectly involved; all the smaller European states that had remained neutral sooner or later confronted the question of whether to join the fray or stay outside. This text considers the origins and diplomacy of the war; the war aims and general attitudes of the belligerent powers, Russia, France, and Britain, of the two non-belligerent German powers, Austria and Prussia, and of a selected number of neutral powers, among them the United States; and the nature and capacity of the armies of the belligerents, including Turkey and Sardinia. The central chapters describe the war on the Danube front 1853-4, in the Black Sea 1854-6, in the Baltic, on the Caucasian battlefield and in the minor theatres of war, the White Sea and the Pacific. A final chapter is devoted to the end of the war marked by the Paris peace congress of 1856, and to the significance of the war for international relations and for arms development.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This finest overview of [the Crimean War] yet synthesized... Tight integration of various diplomatic and political issues with the military and naval actions of all parties concerned. His approach puts the war into a woldwide perspective and this successfully supports his bold, but correct, conclusion that if the war had continued into 1856, the First World War would have been a nineteenth, not a twentieth century occurrence." The Journal of Slavic Military Studies

About the Author

Winfried Baumgart, Professor of History, Johannes-Gutenberg-Universitat, Mainz.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA (September 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 034061465X
• ISBN-13: 978-0340614655
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,270,382 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A world war?, October 18, 2002

By 

David Fallas-redondo "dfallas" (San José, Costa Rica) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Crimean War, 1853-1856 (Modern Wars) (Paperback)

The Crimean War was fought not just on the peninsula with that name. It extended deep in the European heart and fighting took place on the Pacific and the Baltic. Even in the Caribbean the clash of interest between the United States and the United Kingdom brought those nations close to a military engagement for the Mosquitia (Mosquito Coast in Central America, from Belize -formerly called British Honduras- passing through Honduras to Nicaragua). Wimfried Baumgart offers the best book I've read on the subject. Clear and concise, the text covers not only the military aspects of the war (where the famous charge of the British Light Brigade and the Russian defence of Sebastopol took place), but also the geopolitical factors that surrounded the conflict. British, French and Turkish fought the Russians, but American (who sided with the Russians) and Austrian, Swedish, Spanish and Prussian attitudes toward the conflict are also covered. A marvelous piece of history, this is an excelent read on a conflict which resembles a real World War.