Hew Strachan is one of the world's foremost experts on the Great War of 1914-18. His ongoing three-volume history of the conflict, the first of which was published in 2001, is likely to become the standard academic reference work: Max Hastings called it 'one of the most impressive books of modern history in a generation', while Richard Holmes hailed it as a 'towering achievement'. Now, Hew Strachan brings his immense knowledge to a one-volume work aimed squarely at the general reader. The inspiration behind the major Channel 4 series of the same name, to which Hew was chief consultant, THE FIRST WORLD WAR is a significant addition to the literature on this subject, taking as it does a uniquely global view of what is often misconceived as a prolonged skirmish on the Western Front. Exploring such theatres as the Balkans, Africa and the Ottoman Empire, Strachan assesses Britain's participation in the light of what became a struggle for the defence of liberalism, and show how the war shaped the 'short' twentieth century that followed it. Accessible, compelling and utterly convincing, this is a modern history writing at its finest.

Print length

368 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Free Press
Publication date

2 May 2006
Dimensions

13 x 2.7 x 19.7 cm
ISBN-10

074323961X
ISBN-13

978-0743239615
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Free Press; Reprint edition (2 May 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 074323961X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0743239615
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 13 x 2.7 x 19.7 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 1,529,064 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 7,070 in Military History of World War I
- 86,321 in History of Europe

Customer reviews:
337 ratings

Product description

Review

This serious, compact survey of the war's history stands out as the most well- informed, accessible work available. ("Los Angeles Times") What Strachan offers is history as only the professionals can do it, and rarely enough even then. (Adam Gopnik, "The New Yorker") Likely to be the most indispensable one-volume work on the subject since John Keegan's First World War. ("Publishers Weekly") A brilliant feat. (John Keegan) Quite simply the best short history of the war in print. (Dennis Showalter) This serious, compact survey of the wars history stands out as the most well- informed, accessible work available. ("Los Angeles Times") What Strachan offers is history as only the professionals can do it, and rarely enough even then. (Adam Gopnik, "The New Yorker") Likely to be the most indispensable one-volume work on the subject since John Keegans First World War. ("Publishers Weekly") A brilliant feat. (John Keegan) Quite simply the best short history of the war in print. (Dennis Showalter) This serious, compact survey of the waras history stands out as the most well- informed, accessible work available. ("Los Angeles Times") What Strachan offers is history as only the professionals can do it, and rarely enough even then. (Adam Gopnik, "The New Yorker") Likely to be the most indispensable one-volume work on the subject since John Keeganas First World War. ("Publishers Weekly") A brilliant feat. (John Keegan) Quite simply the best short history of the war in print. (Dennis Showalter) This serious, compact survey of the war s history stands out as the most well- informed, accessible work available. ("Los Angeles Times") What Strachan offers is history as only the professionals can do it, and rarely enough even then. (Adam Gopnik, "The New Yorker") Likely to be the most indispensable one-volume work on the subject since John Keegan s First World War. ("Publishers Weekly") A brilliant feat. (John Keegan) Quite simply the best short history of the war in print. (Dennis Showalter)

About the Author

Professor Hew Strachan is the Chichele Professor of the History of War at Oxford University, and the author of several highly acclaimed books on military history.

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4 star		26%
3 star		6%
2 star		1%
1 star		3%

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

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Ron A.

Makes an interesting subject desperately dull.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 5 November 2019

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Other reviewers have said this before; the author is without doubt a leading authority on the Great War but he’s never a writer. He has made a deeply interesting subject desperately dull. Unlike a wonderful book on Vietnam that I have just completed, there is no “human side” to his narrative. There is an abundance of why things happened but negligible commentary about how battles took place. He also fails to differentiate between injured and death. His statistics are very coldly presented and with little context.

It’s detached and clinical but I suspect that’s intended. Were I one of his students, I’d have great difficulty in remaining engaged with one of his lectures.

Also, it’s non-linear replete with grammatical errors; that’s puzzling. The editor has not covered himself in glory.

Any redeeming factors? Yup! I now know to avoid this author in the future. Stick to lecturing, not writing! This is a very hard read, strictly for academics.

3 people found this helpful

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Desert Orchid

Excellent mini view of WW1

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 December 2019

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Understanding the complex political system between the various empires of Europe in 1914 seemed boring and difficult and not clearly linked in my mind to the make up of today - this entertaining and well written book made it very clear for me and gets you away from the "overworked" western front to fully realize what a world war includes. Excellent framework for more detailed study of the various chapters.

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CMK

Comprehensive but ultimately untouching account of WWI

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 March 2015

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Until recently my knowledge of the First World War was pretty minimal, but buoyed on by the various centenary commemorations and the knowledge that one of my relatives died fighting in Belgium, I decided to seek out a readable yet comprehensive history of the conflict. Compared to some of the longer tomes on WWI, Hew Strachan's account is a snip at just over 300 pages and is divided into 10 chapters that are almost self contained essays on different aspects of the war. Despite this relative brevity, the narrative is awash with detail. If this type comprehensive approach is what you are after, then look no further. If, like myself, you have little or no prior knowledge on the war, this can be overwhelming at times (not least due to the complex reasons that lead to the outbreak of war in 1914 and the conflicting agendas within the two alliances throughout). For my own purposes, I felt that this highbrow political narrative and military strategy was too far removed from the personal experiences of those affected by the war. I would have preferred more anecdotal evidence, personal accounts that would have fleshed out Strachan's thoroughly researched detail. In fairness to the author, it was probably not his intention to get side-tracked from the major events of the war and the men who dictated its path, but for me this resulted in a fairly aloof account that fails to touch the reader with the experiences of the millions who either died or were affected by this conflict.

6 people found this helpful

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A new view on 1WW history

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 3 November 2014

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This is a another, albeit recent, volume in the already crowded range of books about the First World War. What marks it out from the rest is that Strachan takes something of a revisionist line on the conflict - the 'new' of the title - and also writes extremely openly for an academic historian making the text accessible and lively whilst being incisive and rigorous with his sources and arguments. One early example of the 'new' approach is that Strachan problematises the figures usually given for deaths during the 1WW, not to challenge the fact that very many people were of course killed, but to illustrate the ways in which historians and others have 'constructed' the history of the 1WW, including the mortality figures. I am enjoying reading this book but, as Strachan points out, our understanding of the 1WW will continue to develop and be disputed - there is no 'true' history of it.
An added benefit in the Kindle version is that one can quickly move to and from maps and see the illustrations very clearly without excessive leafing through what is a large book

3 people found this helpful

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Ahmed E.

Great informative book - highly recommend

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 April 2021

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It's is usually difficult to teach and help someone grasp the complex political system between the empires of Europe in 1914. This book however does it perfectly. Very informative and goes into plenty of detail.

My only critique is that occasionally, the statistics are very coldly presented and with little context.

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Roddy Bailey

Excellent. The Evacuation Story Holds Up - Just!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 April 2015

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An excellent WW1 overview. The author suggests that the much vaunted evacuation story was to some extent told to salvage the reputation of the Allies. Whilst he rightly concludes it was hardly in the Turks' interest to prolong the departure of the Allies there is no suggestion in the diaries of the Ottoman Commanders (including Von Sanders) that the Allied deception plan was not as successful as claimed. Indeed some Ottoman artillery engagements on the Allies did take place within two weeks of the Allies' final departure. Maybe the Turks did realise towards the end but it would be wrong to conclude from Prof Strachan's wording that the Turks sat back and allowed the Allies to withdraw unhindered.

2 people found this helpful

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Leopold

A VERY WELL WRITTEN MILITARY AND POLITICAL HISTORY OF THE FIRST WAR, ITS CAUSES AND ITS CONSEQUENCES

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 July 2014

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A thorough, non- partisan factual history of the events which led to war and a bird's -eye view of the strategic, tactical and political decisions that shaped the outcome. In The final chapter on the conflicting attitudes in Germany, and in the victorious Entente allies to the Armistice Huw Strachan makes a strong case for how far these led to subsequent conflicts , not only the Second World War but the divisions and hatreds that are still making headlines in 2014. Palestine, Israel, Syria, Iraq , the Balkans and Easternj Europe's problems are the children of the attempts to settle the world's maps. political systems in 1919.

One person found this helpful

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Andy Wood

Ambitious and detailed

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 August 2020

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Having read a recent bio of Churchill I became aware of my lack of knowledge about the Great War.

This book is ambitious and has detailed analysis of the causes and build up to the wall through to its legacy. It also challenges some of the received wisdom about the war.

It’s not an easy read but is well worth sticking with

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