50 Weapons That Changed Warfare

by William Weir

The book describes the effects of these weapons, and how and why they changed warfare. Taking them roughly in chronological order, Weir covers battle from the bloody carnage produced by hand weapons to the silent threat of the never-used but universally feared fusion bomb, the sole purpose of which is to destroy millions of people while leaving buildings intact. Each weapon is not only described but also illustrated to give a clear picture of its uses and effects. Also included are devices that, strictly speaking, are weapons carriers (tanks, bombers, missiles), but have had an enormous impact on warfare.

From the tip of the sword to the tip of the ICBM, 50 Weapons that Changed Warfare tells both a story of war and a story of human society in its most terrifying aspect.

William Weir, a combat correspondent with the 25th Infantry Division during the Korean War, is now a freelance writer specializing in military history and true crime. His other books include Soldiers in the Shadows and 50 Battles that Changed the World.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Military Fiction, War, Reference

261 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2005

Reviews

[Tintin]

Buku ini membahas perkembangan senjata-senjata yang digunakan dalam peperangan. Disusun secara sistematis mulai dari senjata paling awal, yaitu tombak, sampai dengan senjata yang saat ini masih dalam pengembangan.
Memang terdapat beberapa kekeliruan yang muncul di buku ini, seperti terlihat dalam pembahasan glider. Di situ disebutkan bahwa penerjunan pasukan lintas udara di Normandia pada Juni 1944 adalah yang terbesar dalam sejarah karena dilaksanakan oleh empat divisi lintas udara, dua Inggris dan dua Amerika. Padahal kita tahu bahwa yang terlibat dalam penerjunan di Normandia hanya tiga divisi, dan itu pun tidak full. Sesungguhnya penerjunan lintas udara terbesar itu terjadi di Belanda, di tahun yang sama namun bulan yang berbeda, yaitu September, dan dilaksanakan oleh tiga divisi lintas udara, dua Amerika dan satu Inggris.
Penulis buku juga menyertakan daftar senjata-senjata yang tidak termasuk dalam limapuluh senjata yang mengubah jalannya peperangan, salah satunya adalah battleship.
Untuk para penggemar senjata...mmm, maksud saya penggemar kemiliteran, buku ini cukup baik sebagai penambah wawasan. Isinya mudah dimengerti dengan bahasa yang populer, jarang menggunakan istilah-istilah resmi militer, meskipun beberapa di antaranya diperkenalkan juga.

[Xan]

Nada en particular que lo haga sobresalir sobre otros libros de la misma temática. Me gustó el capítulo sobre el arco largo inglés y las ballestas, muy interesante.

[Richard]

Minus one star because I would have liked to see some diagrams. Otherwise it was interesting. Dip in and out.

[Dale Pearl]

I had high hopes for this book, sadly it is all over the place and I for one question the selection of weapons.
I think what would have made for a more delightful book would have been a sequential order and how the newer weapon/technology advanced the previous causing a military advantage.

[Sarah]

This book was so interesting i really hated that I couldn't love it more! It was all over the place -- I wish the author had set up a systematic way to compose this work whether it be a chronological order or perhaps categorized them better

[Roberta]

Nice and neat summary of weapons that impacted the history of the World. Generally written in chronological order.

[Nanto]

Seru neh kayaknya!

[Nrtashi]

Would have been better with pictures. I had to google a lot of stuff, just to visualize what the author was writing about. But don't get the wrong impression-it's not a bad book.