Why did Napoleon succeed in 1805 but fail in 1812? Were the railways vital to Prussia's victory over France in 1870? Was the famous Schlieffen Plan militarily sound? Could the European half of World War II have been ended in 1944? These are only a few of the questions that form the subject-matter of this meticulously researched, lively book. Drawing on a very wide range of unpublished and previously unexploited sources, Martin van Creveld examines the 'nuts and bolts' of war: namely, those formidable problems of movement and supply, transportation and administration, so often mentioned - but rarely explored - by the vast majority of books on military history. In doing so he casts his net far and wide, from Gustavus Adolphus to Rommel, from Marlborough to Patton, subjecting the operations of each to a thorough analysis from a fresh and unusual point of view. The result is a fascinating book that has something new to say about virtually every one of the most important campaigns waged in Europe during the last two centuries.

Supplying War: Logistics from Wallenstein to Patton

History

Creveld, Martin Van

Europe

Cambridge University Press

Drawing on a very wide range of unpublished and previously unexploited sources, Martin van Creveld examines the "nuts and bolts" of war. He considers the formidable problems of movement and supply, transportation and administration, often mentioned (but rarely explored) by the vast majority of books on military history. By concentrating on logistics rather than on the more traditional tactics and strategy, van Creveld is also able to offer an original reinterpretation of military history. First Edition Hb (1977): 0-521-21730-X FIrst Edition Pb (1979): 0-521-29793-1

The Rise and Decline of the State

The state, which since the middle of the seventeenth century has been the most important of all modern institutions, is in decline. From Western Europe to Africa, many existing states are either combining into larger communities or falling apart. Many of their functions are likely to be taken over by a variety of organizations that, whatever their precise nature, are not states. In this unique volume Martin van Creveld traces the story of the state from its beginnings to its end. Starting with the simplest political organizations that ever existed, he guides the reader through the origins of the state, its development, its apotheosis during the two World Wars, and its spread from its original home in Western Europe to cover the globe. In doing so, he provides a fascinating history of government from its origins to the present day. This original book will of interest to historians, political scientists and sociologists.

World

Many books have been written about strategy, tactics, and great commanders. This is the first book to deal exclusively with the nature of command itself, and to trace its development over two thousand years from ancient Greece to Vietnam. It treats historically the whole variety of problems involved in commanding armies, including staff organization and administration, communications methods and technologies, weaponry, and logistics. And it analyzes the relationship between these problems and military strategy. 
 In vivid descriptions of key battles and campaigns--among others, Napoleon at Jena, Moltke's Königgrätz campaign, the Arab-Israeli war of 1973, and the Americans in Vietnam--van Creveld focuses on the means of command and shows how those means worked in practice. He finds that technological advances such as the railroad, breech-loading rifles, the telegraph and later the radio, tanks, and helicopters all brought commanders not only new tactical possibilities but also new limitations. 
 Although vast changes have occurred in military thinking and technology, the one constant has been an endless search for certainty--certainty about the state and intentions of the enemy's forces; certainty about the manifold factors that together constitute the environment in which war is fought, from the weather and terrain to radioactivity and the presence of chemical warfare agents; and certainty about the state, intentions, and activities of one's own forces. The book concludes that progress in command has usually been achieved less by employing more advanced technologies than by finding ways to transcend the limitations of existing ones.

COMMAND In WAR.

Military

Harvard

How did we get from clubs and spears to machine guns and drone missiles? What led to the human race firing projectiles across a no-man’s land, from straightforward warfare to spies and insurgency? Here renowned military historian Martin van Creveld has compiled a concise guide to the history of war in 100 key events: Stone Age "wars;" Vikings raids; battling medieval monarchs in the East and West; the American Revolutionary Wars; Napoleonic Wars; World Wars; Iraq War; and much more. With intriguing facts and wide-ranging content, this is an immensely entertaining volume for military buffs and laypeople alike.

War in 100 Events

Historical Study & Educational Resources

The History Press

Fighting Power: German and United States Army Performance, 1939-45

Engineering & Transportation

Engineering

Arms & Armour P

The authors identify and discuss the fundamental concepts and principles of maneuver warfare, compare and contrast it to attrition-style warfare, and trace its origins and history. They examine the role of airpower in enhancing maneuver during the early German campaigns of World War II, in Germany's 1941 Russian campaigns, and in the Soviet version of maneuver warfare in World War II. They analyze the importance of airpower in maneuver warfare employed by Israel in the 1967 and 1973 wars and by coalition forces in the Gulf War. Dr. van Creveld forecasts what the role of airpower will be in warfare during the coming years.

Airpower and Maneuver Warfare

AIR UNIVERSITY PRESS

Canby, Steven L.

Brower, Kenneth S.

Independently published

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