A History of the Great War: World War One and the International Crisis of the Early Twentieth Century

by Eric Dorn Brose

Known as the "Great War," World War One was one of history's greatest tragedies. It eventually dragged most of Europe and the world into its bloody quagmire, inflicting more than four years of suffering, misery, maiming, and death on the belligerent nations. Ideal for undergraduate and graduate courses, A History of the Great World War One and the International Crisis of the Early Twentieth Century is a brief yet comprehensive study that distinguishes itself from other textbooks in significant ways. Providing broader coverage than most texts, it discusses the phenomenon of the war in its chronological entirety. Author Eric Dorn Brose analyzes the forces that generated international tension and made wars more prevalent before 1914; the causes and course of the Great War to 1918; and the violent and problematic aftermath of the struggle to 1926. Rather than focusing exclusively on military developments, Brose also examines the war's underlying causes, its political and
diplomatic dimensions, and its myriad consequences.
Explicitly global in scope, A History of the Great War offers a more extensive look at the worldwide side of the Great War than existing texts do, including coverage of the campaigns spanning Northeast Africa, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Central Asia, India, and the war at sea. In addition, the author incorporates and discusses recent groundbreaking research in the "Notes" section of each chapter, so that students can easily access it. The text is also enhanced by maps, photos, and an engaging vignette at the opening of each chapter that serves as an introduction.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War I, Military History, World History, European History

433 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Joseph Sparrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Second Industrial Revolution and its consequences have been a disaster for the human race.

[Eli · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me a bit to get through this it is definitely an academic read, not unnecessarily so, Brose writes clearly, the material just lends itself to lots of facts and figures and dates. Not the typical novel reading level I am used to but it gave me the information I was looking for. It is more of an overview of WWI then an exhaustive piece and the focus is more on the political then the battlefield as Born addresses the whys as much as the who’s and rarely gets into the details of individual battles and tactics. I came away with a far greater understanding of how the world looked prior to WWI (far more colonial than I understood) and how it looked after, just as colonial but not on paper. World history is rather depressing and the numbers of death and destruction are staggering. Overall informative and well written. Exactly what I was looking for to understand some of why WWI happened, how it played out, as I bonus I got a look at what the global landscape looked like post war.

[Giuseppe Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t imagine ever needing another WW1 book if you are trying to get all the facts and events in order. It’s dense but covers everything ( I mean, it’s a textbook). I feel like I have a great understanding about all the moving parts of WW1 after reading this book. It was surprisingly enjoyable to read but perhaps that’s just because I was interested in the topic. I can’t think of a reason to give this any less than 5 stars as it does exactly what you would expect from a textbook about the Great War.

[Tom Oman · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the very best history books I've ever read. Although it is used as a textbook it is very well organized and extremely well written. Easily accessible to readers with very little to no background about The Great War. It covers many if not most of the aspects of The Great War without getting bogged down into lists of names or technical writing. The text flows in a very coherent manner and moves quickly from subject to subject. It is well researched and comprehensive, it is not dry and flat prose. Brose keeps it very interesting throughout. I cannot recommend this book enough.

[Jeni Kirby]

Eric Dorn Brose did an excellent job writing about this time period. He describes and illustrates the European, African, Middle Eastern, and American campaigns, and how this war caused World War II and many global issues today. It's a fantastic and entertaining read. I recommend this book to anyone who loves or is interested in World War I or European history.