Collision of Empires: Britain in Three World Wars, 1793-1945

Description

The only previous war to match the world wars of the twentieth century in scale and impact was the French War of 1793-1815. This book is the first book to compare these conflicts, which together shaped the history of the modern world. A.D. Harvey relates the causes, conduct and outcome of these wars to the fundamental nature of the societies which fought them. Political decisions, economic power and social attitudes interfaced with the demands of military technology to determine the outcome of each case. Britain is the centre of focus, but is seen against a background of the other combatants. Harvey's ability to make large-scale generalisations is backed up by a wealth of fascinating and carefully documented detail, making this outstanding and exceptionally well-written book a pleasure to read. The author has tackled a huge subject and has not been afraid to face up to either its complexities or its implications. By asking new questions and using a range of unfamiliar sources this book provides an unusually profound analysis not only of these wars but also of the nature of modern society and of our understanding of the past. Contents Introduction Part One. The Great War With France (1793-1945) Outline: 1793-1815 1 Britain at War with France I. Causes or Occasions II. The Occasion of War III. The Ideology of the War IV. The Objectives of the War in the 1790s V. The War against Napoleon VI. Unofficial War Aims 2 The Industrial Revolution at War L Assessing Britain's Wartime Economy IL Population and Wealth: Some International Comparisons Ill. The Evidence of Tax Statistics IV. Industrialization and Boom V. Mobilizing National Resources VI. The Contribution of Technology VII. The Contribution of Industrial Production VIIL International Comparisons: External Trade IX. A Key Resource: Money X. The Paper System 3 Britain at War with Europe I. The European Response to British Policy II. The Case for Action against Britain III. The Armed Neutrality of 1800 IV. Copenhagen, 1807 V. The Continental System VI. From Isolation to Triumph 4 Wellington’s War I. The Elusive Strategic Pattern IL The Problem of Strategic Control Ill. Command of the Sea IV. The British Army: A Profession of Amateurs V. Military-Naval Cooperation VI. The Continental Commitment VII. The Duke of Wellington VIIL Wellington's System: Logistics and Repression IX. Wellington's Logistics and the Logic of Success 5 Venetian Oligarchy or Vacuum I. The British Political System during the French Wars IL Government and Party in the 1800s IIL The Structure of Public Opinion IV. George III as National Symbol V. Alternative Symbols VI. The War and the Established Order VII. The War and National Consensus Part Two. The First World War (1914-1918) Outline: 1914-1918 6 Britain’s Entry into the First World War: A Study in Motives I. Problems of Agenda IL Views from the Other Side III. Voices of the People IV. The Standard Excuses: Belgium and the Entente V’ Parallel Cases: Turkey VI. Parallel Cases: Italy VII. Parallel Cases: Greece VIII. Parallel Cases: Portugal IX. Last Parallel Case: The United States X. The British Case XL Psychological Crisis and the Decision for War 7 The War against Militarism and Imperialism L The War against Prussianism //. The New Eastern Question Ill. The Cause of the Small Nationalities IV. Democracy versus Autocracy 8 Towards the Economics of Total War I. The Scale of the War IL The Failure of Forward Planning III. The Evolution of the British War Economy IV. Britain and the Allies V. Foreign Parallels: Russia and Austria-Hungary VI. The German War Economy 9 The War of the Generals /. Some Images of the Great War II. New Ideas and the Old Guard Ill. Careers Open to Talent IV. Left-Overs from Queen Victoria's Little Wars: Kitchener and Hamilton V. Sir John French VI. The New Professionalism VII. Sir Douglas Haig VIII. The New Warfare of the Industrial Era IX. Learning the Lessons of War X. The Military Mind Confronts Reality 10 Armageddon in the Machine Age I. Improved Ways of Killing IL The Machine Gun Ill. Gas IV. The Tank V. The Image and Achievements of Air Power VI. The Birth of Bombing VIL Aeroplanes and the War of the Trenches VIII. The Battle for Air Supremacy X. The Mind and the Machine 11 The War of the Transitional Dictatorships I. The Instability of the Old Order IL Opposition to War Governments Ill. The Case of Austria-Hungary IV. Civil and Military Rule in Germany and Austria-Hungary V. Civil and Military Rule in the West VI. Civil and Military Relations in Britain VII. National Leadership VIII. Lloyd George and the Generals IX. The Source of Political Authority Part Three. The Second World War (1939-1945) Outline: 1939-1945 12 Right against Right /. Cross-Currents II. The Question of Fascism and Anti-Fascism IIL Isolated Ideologues IV. Right against Right in Britain V. The Myth of the Master Race - Anglo-Saxon Version VI. The American Angle 13 The War of the Super-economies I. Learning from the Past //. The Blitzkrieg Economy in Germany III. Planning the German War Economy IV. The Pillage of Europe V. The Japanese War Economy VI. The British War Economy VII. Elements of Unbalance VIII. The US.A. as Arsenal of Democracy IX. Lend-Lease 14 The War of Technology II. German Science at War III. German Science and Nazi Organization IV. Technology and the Japanese War Effort V. Design and Engineering in Britain VI. The British Boffin at War 15 The Strategy of Long Views and Wide Margins I. Axis Underestimates IL Strategy as Fantasy: The Italian Case Ill. The Strategy of Wishful Thinking: Britain ana the Mediterranean IV. Sclerosis of the System 16 The Correct Use of Air Power I. Images of War in the Air Age IL The Air Weapon in Ground Warfare IIL The Battle of Britain and the Air Ministry V. The Empire Strikes Back VI. The New War of Attrition VII. The Cost to Germany VHL The Legacy of Sir Douglas Haig 17 The War of the Plebiscitary Dictatorships I. Social Cohesion in the Third Reich: Supervision IL Social Cohesion in the Third Reich: Seduction III. Wartime Leadership IV. Winston Churchill: His Finest Hour V. Churchill as War Leader VI. Civil and Military in Britain VII. Civil and Military in Germany and Japan Envoi Index