And the most popular blog post in 2022 was…
Since this site started in 2009, I’ve been tracking each year which was the most popular blog post. Let’s take a trip down memory lane. … Read the full post »
First World War
Read my posts about the First World War (1914-18), also known as The Great War.
Towards the Flame: Empire, War and the End of Tsarist Russia
Lieven’s basic argument is that the causes and course of the First World War were predominantly Eastern European, an emphasis which has been lost in previous concentrations on western tension over matters such as the British-German naval race. … Read the full post »
37 Days: the countdown to World War I – great drama and decent history
The drama is delivered courtesy of a great script and impressive acting, especially in scenes when many key people are in shot but only a handful talking. … Read the full post »
Merry Christmas 2014: Nick Clegg’s message
In 1914, a young soldier wrote home to tell his family and friends about Christmas spent in the trenches… … Read the full post »
Secret Warriors: key scientists, code-breakers and propagandists of the Great War
Taylor Downing’s book Secret Warriors promises much but in the end doesn’t quite deliver. The book’s impressive breadth means it is a little short of depth … Read the full post »
Why I’ll be enjoying, but not learning from, the First World War tweets
The problem with that lies with the inevitable over-emphasis on what foreign journalists often call the ‘kinetic stuff’. … Read the full post »
1918: A Very British Victory by Peter Hart
Peter Hart’s book 1918 is a fascinating account of the last year of fighting on the Western Front during World War One. … Read the full post »
What diaries tell us about the First World War – and whether Michael Gove was right
British soldiers on the western front were regularly rotated out of the front line, spending much of their time as a result complaining about being bored, miles away from the action and even being impatient to get back to it. … Read the full post »
Engines of War: how wars were won and lost on the railways by Christian Wolmar
Christian Wolmar’s expertise lies in the railways rather than military history and he is refreshingly frank about the limitations of his knowledge of the latter. … Read the full post »
Book review: The Zimmermann Telegram by Barbara Tuchman
America was finally tipped into declaring war against Germany in 1917 following the release of the Zimmermann Telegram, a message from the Germans proposing an anti-American alliance to Mexico which would see Mexico take back Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. … Read the full post »