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A History Of Warfare
 
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A History Of Warfare (Paperback)

by John Keegan (Author)
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
List Price: CDN$ 22.00
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Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

In his sweeping new study, Keegan ( The Face of Battle ) examines the origins and nature of warfare, the ethos of the primitive and modern warrior and the development of weapons and defenses from the battle of Megiddo (1469 B.C.) into the nuclear age. Keegan offers a refreshingly original and challenging perspective. He characterizes warriors as the protectors of civilization rather than as its enemy and maintains that warfare is "entirely a masculine activity." Though warfare has become an ingrained practice over the course of 4000 years, he argues, its manifestation in the primitive world was circumscribed by ritual and ceremony that often embodied restraint, diplomacy and negotiation. Peacekeepers, he suggests, would benefit from studying primitive warmaking--especially now, "a time when the war of all against all already confronts us." A masterwork. Photos. 40,000 first printing; History Book Club main selection; BOMC alternate.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.


From Library Journal

Keegan adds to his reputation as a writer of military history ( The Second World War , LJ 11/1/89, among others) with this wide-ranging and provocative volume. While he believes that humankind is not doomed to make war, he recognizes that the world's written history is largely a history of warfare. Warfare in turn reflects culture. For instance, Asian war making is characterized by patterns of delay, evasion, and indirection and an ethic of limitation based on Confucian and Islamic ideals. Western culture, on the other hand, incorporates a moral element of face-to-face battle to the death and a technological bias toward constant innovations in weaponry. These factors have combined to generate the total wars that are often considered the norm of conflict. Keegan's emphases on restraint and ritual in war, and on the importance of separating it from politics, challenge conventional wisdom in a way that makes this work essential for all public and private collections on the subject.
- D.E. Showalter, Colorado Coll., Colorado Springs
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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A History Of Warfare
58% buy the item featured on this page:
A History Of Warfare 4.0 out of 5 stars (42)
CDN$ 16.06
The Face of Battle
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The Face of Battle 4.7 out of 5 stars (48)
CDN$ 17.48
The First World War
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The First World War 3.6 out of 5 stars (145)
CDN$ 16.75
On War
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Customer Reviews

42 Reviews
5 star:
 (22)
4 star:
 (9)
3 star:
 (3)
2 star:
 (5)
1 star:
 (3)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.0 out of 5 stars (42 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most helpful customer reviews

 
4.0 out of 5 stars Quite Good, Jun 9 2009
By Patrick Sullivan (Kingston, Ont. Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I found this book to be about the evolution of warfare. Keegan starts off by describing primitive warfare from the days of the stone age. He explains how different methods of warfare reflect the culture of the groups in battle. As the time line moves forward, one can identify the changes that have taken place. War seems to be an essential part of the human experience. The history of warfare is as fascinating, as any other aspect of human history. This book was a great over view of military history.
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4.0 out of 5 stars Great as historical narrative, less compelling as analysis, Feb 14 2002
By John Doe (Bloomsbery, MO, USA) - See all my reviews
Others down there made a point I want to make better than I feel I could, so I'll just reiterate it briefly, as an extra witness, so to say. This book is choke-full of historical information, and that is its strong point. However, the logical line connecting all sections is something else: an imaginary argument with Clausewitz's "war is extention of politics by other means" idea. I must say I didn't find the argument terribly compelling, and what's more, relevant. On one hand, not being a competent historian, I'm not in a position to criticize this work specifically, but on the other hand, the author's argument doesn't persuade and seems artificial, out of place. Again, it may be me.

Purely historically, this is a great book, and if you ignore the attendant philosophising, you'll find it quite enlightening, entertaining, and well written.

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3.0 out of 5 stars Keegan goes beyond his Expertise, Jan 26 2002
By Fred M. Blum (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: A History of Warfare (Hardcover)
A History of Warfare by John Keegan is a quality history as far as it goes. Keegan does a fine job describing the ins and outs of warfare as well as its evolutionary process. As always Keegan writes well in a very readable manner. His description of the warfare on Easter Island and its resulting destruction of the Polynesian civilization was especially appealing. However, Keegan falters when he attempts to move from historian to anthropologist or psychologist. While his attempts to explain differences in warfare by referring to cultural or psychological differences certainly have a place in understanding a history of warfare, Keegan as an historian probably isn't the person to make the argument. His explanations at times seem simplistic and border on arm chair psychology.
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Most recent customer reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Gross misinterpretation of Clausewitz
Keegan sets out on a bold crusade to discredit Carl von Clausewitz and fails - miserably. Two major problems:

1) Keegan is oblivious of the fact that Clausewitz's... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Bjorn Hansson

5.0 out of 5 stars Love him or hate him, he'll fascinate you
Keegan seems to be a polarizing author. His central point is about Clauzewitz. But the best reason to read the book is not about larger historical themes. Read more
Published on Jan 24 2002 by Joshua M. Moss

5.0 out of 5 stars Serious lessons re: how warfare is integral to history
A fine retort to those who try to ignore warfare's impact on history and culture.

Whether we like it or not, warfare is clearly integral to history, and to every aspect of... Read more

Published on Jan 2 2002 by samuelgrant

5.0 out of 5 stars Super Cover
The cover is super. I have not read the book. I want to read the book. Mr. Keegan is my idol. I like him. Did he design the cover?
Published on Nov 12 2001 by Bennett

5.0 out of 5 stars Broad and powerful...
This book is a fantastic piece of military history: it is well written and researched, thoughtful, but not overdone. Read more
Published on Oct 24 2001

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweeping in scope, excellent in presentation
The book deserves a place among Keegan's other classics, "The Face of Battle" and "The Mask of Command". Read more
Published on Aug 4 2001 by T. Parry

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating but dry
4000 years of warfare compressed to 400 pages. This is the strength and the weakness of the book. Ancient (and prehistoric) warfare is covered in detail, but, as every century... Read more
Published on Mar 14 2001

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, but not great
Keegan's reputation is well-deserved, and this book is a good example why. However, the book seems to serve less as a historical analysis of warfare than a philosophical... Read more
Published on Oct 13 2000 by Michael F. Maddox

2.0 out of 5 stars Here I may tread lightly
This is probably a polarizing work of military history. Either you will love or hate it. I applaud the author for his unique "chronology" of warfare, but his emphasis... Read more
Published on Oct 3 2000 by Bryan Gibby

2.0 out of 5 stars Living Historian Attacks Dead Solider
Keagan spends 400 pages to attack that old dictum - War is a continuation of politics by other means - and fails. Read more
Published on Sep 17 2000 by Richard La Fianza

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