Historic Battlefields in 500 Walks

by Steve Fallon

Tour hundreds of historic battlefields across the world with this captivating guide to exploring the sites where empires rose and fell.

Stretching across the millennia from prehistoric times to the 20th century and covering every continent except Antarctica,  Historic Battlefields in 500 Walks  is a guide to exploring hundreds of trails, paths, and landscapes on foot, with insightful commentary on the significance of each battle in world history. Whether you’re looking to travel to far-off lands from the comfort of your armchair or planning a trip that includes tours of these historic sites, you’ll find plenty of captivating facts about the places where the fates of nations and empires were decided, including the Battle of Hastings, the Fall of Constantinople, the Battle of Antietam, the Battle of the Somme, the Liberation of Europe, and more. Full-color photos and maps are included, making this a handy guidebook for anyone who is planning their next expedition.

Genres: History, Military History

400 pages, Hardcover

Published April 11, 2023

Reviews

[Joe Krakovsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

HISTORIC BATTLEFIELDS IN 500 WALKS is a great book for history buffs going on vacation. Although most of the sites mentioned seem to be located in the British Isles and western Europe, there are locations listed on every continent other than Antarctica. Some of the entries are a mere paragraph touching on the historical facts of the site and what one may see there. Others dedicate a whole page, have a small map, and state the following such as was listed for The Cathar Castles of Lastours, Aude, France.
Distance: 4 miles of trail.
Start: Lastours campsite.
Type of walk: Half-day strenuous walk.
When to go: April - October.

Most of these walks are like a walk through the park while others require a little exertion, such as climbing hills. At most of the sites you can take your time and enjoy the view. There is one entry, however, I had to wonder if it was added as a joke. It is the Liberation of Europe, Liberation Route, Europe. The distance is over 6,200 miles and the map shows it running from London to Berlin! I don't think I have enough time to see it all,even in retirement.

Some interesting facts are as follows.

A peace treaty was never signed at the 'end' of the Korean War, so technically the war is still going on.
After the partition of India a war broke out between India and Pakistan. At the end of every day there is a dramatic closing of the border ceremony.
The Burma Death Railway, of THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI, built by pressed civilians and Allied POWs is still in use today.
Tours of the Nazi death camps at Dachau and Auschwitz are available.
The Chemin de la Liberte is a four day long hiking trail that crosses the Pyrenees from France into Spain. It was used by the French Resistance during WWII to smuggle weapons, Jews, and allied airmen across the border.
Tigray in Ethiopia was one of the initial battle sites of the Second Italian-Ethiopian War in 1935. This is the legendary home of the queen of Sheba and final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant.
At the liberation of Mons in WWI, Canadian soldier George Lawrence Price was killed just two minutes before the Armistice went into effect.
Troy, in Turkey, had nine cities built on the same site from about 3000 BC to 500 AD. Troy VI may have been the one mentioned in the Trojan War.
The Magadha and Vajji War of 484 to 468 BC in India may have been fought because a king wanted a certain necklace that another man had for his queen.
Ancient Australian Aborigines made rock paintings in Arnhem Land about 10,000 years ago that show warriors in combat.
The Talheim Death Pit in Talheim, Germany is a mass grave of men, women, and children who died violently about 7,000 years ago.
A civil war broke out between two sons of the dead Inca emperor. Due to the emperor's many wives and concubines there were hundreds of other brothers, but only the two were fighting over the throne.
The Native American Adena culture from 500 BC built burial mounts containing skeletons with battle wounds as well as captives who were buried alive.

Sadly, it seems that no culture from Kenya to Tibet was exempt from war.

The color photos in this book are great!

[Phil Curme · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of the 500 battlefield walks described in this book, I've completed 132. It strikes me, therefore, that there is still a lot of ground to cover notwithstanding the fact that many of the places described in this book are in problematic locations. Indeed one of the impressive features of this guide, is the holistic approach taken in choosing the 500. Whilst their is a little bias towards one or two countries, generally speaking the spread is excellent - picking up battlefields across every continent. The author has called upon the expertise of a number of travel writers and military historians to produce an excellent selection. The result of this careful forethought is a very pleasing blend of fascinating locations and meaningful history. To add to the mix, the entries are enriched with beautiful colour photographs. All in all, this is beautifully produced book which will potentially do much to stimulate interest in visiting historic battlefields. As a seasoned battlefield walker, it has certainly presented me with some new ideas and prompted me to consider revisiting some of the walks that I have completed in the past. Recommended.

[Jozsef · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting idea - but execution with limited success as it has too many sites with superficial information - instead of less locations with more details - as usual in many things: less is more