World War 1: A History (Oxford Illustrated Histories) [Hardcover]

Hew Strachan (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0198206143 | ISBN-13: 978-0198206149 | Publication Date: February 4, 1999

The First World War has shaped the history of the twentieth century. It was the first conflict in which airplanes, submarines, and tanks played a significant role, the first in which casualties on the battlefield outnumbered those from disease. It precipitated the collapse of the empires of Austria-Hungary and Turkey, and it promoted revolution in that of Russia. The USA's entry into the war and the part it played in the peace settlement signalled the arrival on the world stage of a new great power. The victors at Versailles took nationalism as one of their guiding principles; they also aimed at instituting their vision of liberalism and even democracy; the political consequences are still being played out.
In this extensively illustrated book, an international team of experts explores the war in all its different aspects. From its causes to its consequences, from the strategy of the politicians to the tactics of the generals, the course of the war is charted and its political and human consequences assessed. Chapters on economic mobilization, the impact on women, the role of propaganda, and the rise of socialism establish the wider social context of fighting which took place at sea and in the air and which ranged on land from the Flanders trenches to the Balkan mountains and the deserts of the Middle East.
The legacy of 'the war to end wars'--in poetry and prose, in collective memory and political culture--is with us still, eighty years after that first Armistice Day. This remarkable book helps us understand that legacy.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This illustrated history is an outstanding summary of current scholarship on the war that was supposed to end all wars. Nearly two dozen contributors write smart and accessible essays on a range of subjects, including the military strategies of the Allies and the Central Powers, the war at sea, economic mobilization, politics on the home front, and the peace settlement. The chapters are full of intelligent insights. John Morrow, writing on the air war, notes that fighter pilots became "the ultimate heroes of the First World War" because their feats of individual combat could be easily romanticized, in contrast to the mass slaughter taking place in the trenches below.

The collection of essays isn't a narrative of what happened, even though its material is presented in roughly chronological order. Rather, it approaches the conflict from several angles and studies them up close. Readers who aren't familiar with the fundamentals of the conflict may want to look elsewhere for basic information--one writer, for instance, refers to the Zimmerman Telegram without explaining what it is. Those who know the basics, however, will find this book quickly rewarding. Good reading for armchair generals. --John J. Miller

From Library Journal

Strachan (modern history, Univ. of Glasgow; The Politics of the British Army, Oxford Univ., 1997), most familiar from his work in the London Times, has collected a remarkable series of essays on a variety of issues raised by the Great War. Although the essays are often difficult to read without a deep understanding of the period, they illuminate complex and often misunderstood territory. Gail Braybon's take on women's roles enormously complicates the idea of women as a monolithic class. Strachan's economic approach to mobilization and B.J. McKercher's discussion of economic warfare considerably expand and complement the more familiar tactical and strategic summaries. Many of the essayists take care to place the greatest event of that generation in the context of future events, both in the tactical and in the larger social sphere. Highly recommended for most libraries.AEdwin B. Burgess, U.S. Army Combined Arms Research Lib., Fort Leavenworth, KS
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 356 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (February 4, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198206143
• ISBN-13: 978-0198206149
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #193,949 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not for the Beginner, July 26, 2002

By 

John G. Hilliard (Toronto Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: World War 1: A History (Oxford Illustrated Histories) (Hardcover)

Let me add a disclaimer to this review, I am only moderately interested in the First World War and was hoping to get an easy to read and complete history of the conflict to aid my understanding. I thought this would be a good book to accomplish this task and cover the basics. What I found was that I had made a mistake. The book is a collection of essays written by some very competent and well thought of British historians. It appeared to me that each of them was very familiar with the topic chosen and the essays really were good, well thought out and written documents. The issue I had is that I was looking for more of a overview of the war, these essays left a lot of the basic information out, thus many times I felt that I was not getting the full story or even that I was lost.

I also have a hang up with books that are written in this method - a different author does each chapter. I tend to be bothered by the different writing styles and sometimes not complete follow through of the subject / topic. With these statements made, the book is a well-written document on the war. The illustrations are very interesting and bring a good deal of life to the topic. The editor places the pictures and illustrations though out the book. I found the chapters on the Eastern / Western fronts and the entry of the American's to be the most interesting.

So if you are like me with a marginal interest in the war and are looking for a well-written overview this is not the book for you. But if you are a WW 1 history buff then you will probably get a lot of enjoyment out of this book and you should disregard my review.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Economic analysis essays excellent, June 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: World War 1: A History (Oxford Illustrated Histories) (Hardcover)

The essays dealing with economics were excellent. The writers pointed out that the US was holding much of the allies' treasury bills, especially England's; in fact, the Federal Reserve Board warned US banks in 1918 of holding too many of the Allies' securites. The discussion on the peace negotiations and treaties was also excellent, pointing out the problem was not placing harsh terms on the Germans, but not enforcing the treaty. The writers also correctly linked both World Wars together into a 30 year war, and pointed out that Germany never accepted that it had lost the War. I also agreed with the book's premise that the US retreating into isolationism was the first domino sending the world to the 2nd world war. They logically portrayed how the belligerents' ending positioned set up World War II.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good but not for beginers, July 15, 2005

By 

D. Stell "dfstell" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Oxford Illustrated History of the First World War (Paperback)

I bought this book because I was hoping for more of a overview of WWI. I've read a lot about WWII and always have found it useful to read something general first, then identify the elements you found really intersting and go buy a focused book on those aspects.

This is not really a beginers overview at all. It is a collection of writings by some apparantly well qualified scholars. Some parts are still very interesting from a beginers point of view, but the fact that it isn't really chronological is a little annoying. There is a chapter on the Central Powers strategy, a chapter on the war on the western front, a chapter on the effect on women, a chapter on the economic impact of the war, etc.

I think it is probably a really good book, it is just a tad advanced for a beginner like me. I probably should have paid more attention before buying it.

One other minor complaint is that that although the book has a ton of pictures (which is good), the captions are not great. For example, there will be a picture of 8 people standing there and the caption will tell you that one is an Italian general, who is talking to his king, but it won't tell you who is who (e.g. the King is the 3rd from the left). You just kinda have to guess who is who based on how old/important they look.