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Robert Michael Citino
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Quest for Decisive Victory: From Stalemate to Blitzkrieg in Europe, 1899-1940 Hardcover – January 1, 2002

by Robert M. Citino (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 28 ratings
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Since the earliest days of warfare, military operations have followed a predictable formula: after a decisive battle, an army must pursue the enemy and destroy its organization in order to achieve a victorious campaign. But by the mid–nineteenth century, the emergence of massive armies and advanced weaponry--and the concomitant decline in the effectiveness of cavalry--had diminished the practicality of pursuit, producing campaigns that bogged down short of decisive victory. Great battles had become curiously indecisive, decisive campaigns virtually impossible.

Robert Citino now tells how European military leaders analyzed and eventually overcame this problem by restoring pursuit to its rightful place in combat and resurrecting the possibility of decisive warfare on the operational level.

A study of war at the operational level, Quest for Decisive Victory demonstrates the interplay and tension between technology and doctrine in warfare and reveals how problems surrounding mobility--including such factors as supply lines, command and control, and prewar campaign planning--forced armies to find new ways of fighting.

Citino focuses on key campaigns of both major and minor conflicts. Minor wars before 1914 (Boer, Russo-Japanese, and the Balkan Wars of 1912-13) featured instructive examples of operational maneuver; the First World War witnessed the collapse of operations and the rise of attrition warfare; the Italo-Ethiopian and Spanish Civil Wars held some promise for breaking out of stalemate by incorporating such innovations as air and tank warfare. Ultimately, it was Germany's opening blitzkrieg of World War II that resurrected the decisive campaign as an operational possibility. By grafting new technologies--tanks, aircraft, and radio--onto a long tradition of maneuver warfare, the Wehrmacht won decisive victories in the first year of the war and in the process transformed modern military doctrine.

Citino's study is important for shifting the focus from military theory and doctrine to detailed operational analyses of actual campaigns that formed the basis for the revival of military doctrine. Quest for Decisive Victory gives scholars of military history a better grasp of that elusive concept and a more complete understanding of modern warfare.

This book is part of the Modern War Studies series.

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  1. Print length
    368 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Univ Pr of Kansas
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2002
  5. Dimensions
    6.25 x 1.5 x 9.25 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0700611762
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0700611768
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

"An excellent and important contribution to our understanding of twentieth-century Western warfare. Citino's narrative skill and insightful analysis of military battles, operations, and campaigns are especially strong. . . . Should have broad appeal."--James S. Corum, author of The Roots of Blitzkrieg and The Luftwaffe

"Citino's provocative work--with its broad-spectrum coverage and unique time frame--makes a strong case for a continuity of thought and action from the turn of the century to 1940. . . . A fine work from a master scholar."--Dennis E. Showalter, author of Tannenberg: Clash of Empires

About the Author

Robert M. Citino is professor of European history at Eastern Michigan University. Among his other books are The Path of Blitzkrieg: Doctrine and Training in the German Army, 1920–1939 and Armored Forces: A History and Sourcebook.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Univ Pr of Kansas (January 1, 2002)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0700611762
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0700611768
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.65 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.25 x 1.5 x 9.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 28 ratings

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Robert Michael Citino

Robert Michael Citino

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4.7 out of 5 stars
28 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Richard Peterson
5.0 out of 5 stars Quest for a solution
Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2008
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Robert Citino starts with a problem: from the middle of the 19th century, decisive battles, so common in the Napoleonic Wars, suddenly disappear. Although battles were still fought and won, they became increasingly sterile, deciding little. He shows that this had more to do with command, control and communication (C3) than increasing firepower or any imagined superiority of defense over attack. He then takes us through the campaigns of the early 20th century to see how the problem (and solutions) evolved. In the process, he gives us excellent operational histories of many little-known wars, such as the Russo-Japanese (1904-05) and Balkan (1912-13) wars, as well World War 1. This alone would make the book a "must-buy" for me. However, this is just a way to his goal of showing how battles once again became "decisive". His discussion of the inter-war period, which has been analyzed ad nauseum, still finds some new things to say. In particular, he shows how the radio was more important than the tank to Blitzkrieg. He winds up with the opening battles of world war 2, where mobility and decisiveness were restored to the battlefield.
9 people found this helpful
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Rev. Craig Price
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!
Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2021
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Great Book!!
Citino is the Best!!
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Bayard B.
4.0 out of 5 stars Very good. Discusses consequences of primitive communications of the era, how resolved in 1930s.
Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2023
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This is a very good book describing and explaining the reasons for military failure, or at least difficulties in attaining decisive military success, in late 19th century and early 20th century major wars. Author Robert Citino argues that it was primarily an issue of inadequate or just plain primitive command and control technologies of the era. That is, army generals could not control their very large armies, could not find out what was happening at the front, and could not issue correct orders to their corps and division commanders. Subordinates did not have the authority or experience to take advantage of any success in their area and pursue the enemy in a breakthrough. Commanders could not deploy reserves to the decisive point and make a breakthrough. In fact, they could not even get information from the front lines as to where the decisive point was and where a breakthrough might be achieved. As a result, battles were indecisive.

Citino discusses several wars as examples of this thesis: the British - Boer War of 1899 - 1902, the land campaigns of the Russo - Japanese War of 1904 - 1905, the Bulgarian - Turkish Balkan War of 1912 - 1913, and World War I on the western front. He then explores wars in the 1930s that eventually led to the restoration of decisive mobile warfare — Ethiopia and Spain in the 1930s — and the theoretical studies and field exercises in the 1920s and 1930s in Britain and Germany that led to the spectacular German successes of Poland in 1939 and France in 1940.

My only real criticism of the book is the scarcity of maps. The text constantly references cities, geographical features such as hills and rivers, and army or unit movements that are not depicted in any associated maps. There are nine maps throughout the book but they are very simplistic, showing the routes of major unit or army movements. For the most part, I did not find them very useful.

Chapter 8 “Operational Art Reborn: The Opening Battles” discusses the German concept of combined arms warfare and the creation of the Panzer division. It then discusses the Polish campaign of 1939 and the campaign against France in 1940. Citino is positively enthralled with what the German army and the associated leadership developed and accomplished.

There are several short summaries of interesting topics (my opinion, anyway):

* Pages 3 - 8: Napoleon’s method of waging war;

* Pages 18 - 25: the influence of Field Marshall von Moltke and the development of the Prussian / German general staff;

* Page 254: the origin of and thinking behind the Italian binary or two-regiment division.

In page 283 Citino summarizes the accomplishments and weaknesses of the German method of war: “… they are responsible for the greatest battlefield revolution in the history of modern warfare: the restoration of true operational mobility… and the return of decision to military operations. Winning a campaign was the role of the panzer division, and it played it so well that the entire world was soon copying the concept. Winning a war was something else again, requiring sensible (or at least sane) political leadership, skilled diplomacy, and efficient mobilization of national resources — all of which the Nazi state lacked.”

An excellent book on how the German army was able to expand and develop its command leadership, tactics, and operational concepts so rapidly in the 1930s is “Faustian Bargain: The Soviet - German Partnership and the Origins of the Second World War” by Ian Johnson (2021). It was at Lipetsk and Kazan in the USSR that the German army leadership experimented with and developed concepts such as radio communications in the field, combined armor / infantry / air tactics, and tank and motor vehicle technology that led to mobile warfare on an unprecedented scale.
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Miguel A. Agreda Gamarra
5.0 out of 5 stars Very Readable and autorized work
Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2009
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This book offer a very interesting work, (as Mr. Citino has offered before)with an added "plus" of readability that makes a Scholar book as an interesting Novel. Highly recommended.
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Lukasz Przybylo
5.0 out of 5 stars Very good book
Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2008
There are not many books which treat comprehensively the period of 1899-1941 i.e. from Boer War till Fall of France. Especially books which consider with some length with russo-japanese or Balkan Wars.
Besides book is very good written with good flaw - you won't get bored.
Citino is also author of many more books - and all of them are of very good standard.
"The quest for decesive victory" is of course not definitive history but a starter - but very good starter. You won't regret buying it.
3 people found this helpful
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Christopher M. Pierson
5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Work on the Formulation of German Military Doctrine
Reviewed in the United States on June 22, 2002
In Quest for Decisive Victory, Dr. Citino analyzes the progression of warfare from the age of Napoleon to the opening battles of the Second World War. The study consists of the numerous military leaders in the period looking for methods of winning a decisive victory in Napoleonic style despite the great technological advances of the time. Dr. Citino puts to rest the abundance of myths that have risen about the period, especially the military doctrine of all commanders in the opening stages of the First World War. In the period following the end of World War I, Citino is at his best, providing a tremendous amount of information about the great debate of the "interwar period," and the opening battles of World War II, which proved some analyists to be correct in their debates, and others to look like fools. Overall, Dr. Citino's narrative style makes the work enjoyable to read and easy to understand.
15 people found this helpful
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Brent M. Zarza
5.0 out of 5 stars Another Hit for Dr. Citino
Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2002
Dr Citino's newest book is a must read for anyone interested in expanding their knowledge of modern military history. I anticipated this books publication for over a year and was not disappointed. The focus of the Quest For Decisive Victory is the evolution of tactics and strategy to deal with the innovations in technology and the changing battlefield. From the rise of the "invisible battlefield" due to smokeless powder in the Boer War to the simple introduction of the wireless radio set to the tank intended as a replacement for hand flags as the main form of communication among tank commanders , a weapon system or technical innovation is only as good as the commanding Generals understanding of its capabilities and how best to employ it in war. Dr. Citino Traces this process from 1899-1940 showing how the static stalemate of war first appearing in the Boer War and the Russo Japanese war was finally overcome by the "War of Movement" as practiced and envisioned by Guderian, Rommel, Fuller, and Von Seckt.
4 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Alan Melnyk
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on June 16, 2016
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Very well written and informative.
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michal stefanczak
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book. Citino takes you through some of the ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 1, 2015
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Great book. Citino takes you through some of the less known wars of the 20th century. If you are for instance interested in russo-japanese war or the balkan wars this is a good starting point. The most important part - the stalemate is well covered too. Although there are some things lacking like the polish-russian war, which is only mentioned in a paragraph.
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E. W. Sharman
4.0 out of 5 stars panzerkampfwagen
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 6, 2011
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An interesting veiw of a period of change in the conduct of War. The Balkans and Russian Japanese conflicts are little know in the English speaking world but flagged up some of the changes in the conduct of Military affairs more so than the blanketing image of stalemate in the First world war. Worth getting for any one interested in the coduct of warfare in the eary 20th century.His veiw on the Spanish civil war is fresh to me and does challange the view that the only reason that Francos forces won was the presence of German forces.
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