Strategy And Tactics Of The Great Commanders Of World War Ii And Their Battles

Focuses on seventeen commanders and their most famous battles by land, sea and air during World War II.

"Great Generals of World War II" presents a captivating account that reveals the strategic genius and unwavering determination of the twelve most prominent military commanders of the Second World War. This book chronicles the events and changes that occurred during the turbulent years of 1939-1945, a time characterised by widespread international war and profound development. The generals portrayed in this text are not only individuals of historical importance but also influential people who had a pivotal role in shaping the globe during and after the war through their strategic choices and actions. The selection of these twelve generals is determined by a stringent set of criteria, including the quantity of fights they engaged in, the adversity they encountered in those conflicts, the extent of risk they undertook, and the equilibrium between their utilisation of deceit and their genuine strategic or military excellence. This method offers a thorough assessment of their abilities to lead and strategize, providing valuable insights into their achievements despite daunting obstacles. This book mostly centres around military affairs; however, it duly recognises the extensively documented acts of atrocity that took place during World War 2. Nevertheless, the primary focus lies in comprehending the tactical tactics and choices that resulted in crucial turning points during the battle. This emphasis enables readers, particularly the younger generation and intellectually curious individuals who desire to swiftly comprehend historical facts in the present age of immediate access to knowledge, to get a lucid and succinct comprehension of these military commanders and their influence on the progression of the conflict. "Great Generals of World War II" is a concise and precise resource designed to provide essential knowledge about this pivotal period in history. It functions as a portal for comprehending the intricacies of World War II by examining its prominent military personalities. As we explore their narratives, let us pause to commemorate the immense impact these generals exerted on one of the most momentous occurrences in the annals of humanity. This work is indispensable for those seeking to promptly comprehend the core of Planet War II's military leadership and their lasting impact on building the contemporary planet.

​*** OVER 210,000 WEST POINT MILITARY HISTORY SERIES SETS IN PRINT ​*** World War I marked the end of the old military order and the beginning of the era of mechanized warfare. This is a thorough examination of the campaigns of the “war to end all wars.” It analyzes the development of military theory and practice from the prewar period of Bismark’s Prussia to the creation of the League of Nations.

"This volume is not a study of the 'greatest' commanders; rather, it is an examination of commanders who should be considered great. The seven leaders examined, in various domains of ground, sea, and air, each in their own way successfully addressed the challenges of military endeavor in their time and changed the world in which they lived"--Foreword.

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—Martin 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.

Military commanders turn tactics into strategic victory by means of "operational art," the knowledge and creative imagination commanders and staff employ in designing, synchronizing, and conducting battles and major operations to achieve strategic goals. Until now, historians of military theory have generally agreed that modern operational art developed between the first and second world wars, not in the United States but in Germany and the Soviet Union. Michael R. Matheny believes previous studies have not appreciated the evolution of U.S. military thinking at the operational level. In his revealing account, Matheny shows that it was at the operational level, particularly in mounting joint and combined operations, that senior American commanders excelled--and laid a foundation for their country's victory in World War II.