Recent Themes in Military History: Historians in Conversation

by Donald A. Yerxa

Overview

An inviting survey of recent developments in military history from leading voices in the field

Described as "the New York Review of Books for history,"Historically Speaking has emerged as one of the most distinctive historical publications in recent years, actively seeking out contributions from a pantheon of leading voices in historical discourse from both inside and outside academia. Recent Themes in Military History represents some of the best writing on military history to appear in the past five years.

This collection of forums, interviews, and individual essays drawn from Historically Speaking provides contrasting views on such topics in military history as the existence and function of military revolutions in the past and present, the experience of soldiering and combat, the particularly violent and gruesome nature of twentieth-century warfare, and projections of the nature of future wars. The ebb and flow of discourse between contributors also illustrates how the study of history is an ongoing conversation wherein discovery and debate lead to deeper understanding and development of fresh opportunities for further inquiry.

Ideal as a companion text in military history courses, this reader will spark discussion among historians, students, policymakers, and enthusiasts.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781570037399
Publisher:	University of South Carolina Press
Publication date:	05/03/2008
Series:	Historians in Conversation
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	152
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.25(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Donald A. Yerxa is assistant director of the Historical Society and editor of Historically Speaking. A professor of history at Eastern Nazarene College in Quincy, Massachusetts, Yerxa is the author of The Burning of Falmouth, 1775 and Admirals and Empire: The United States Navy and the Caribbean, 1898–1945 and coauthor of Species of Origins: America's Search for a Creation Story.

Table of Contents

Series Editor's Preface     vii
Acknowledgments     ix
Introduction: The Curious State of Military History   Donald A. Yerxa     1
Military Revolutions, Then and Now
Military Revolutions, Past and Present   Geoffrey Parker     11
On Diversity and Military History   Jeremy Black     22
Thinking about Military Revolution   Dennis Showalter     26
On the Once and Future RMA   Jeffrey Clarke     30
Random Thoughts of a Hedgehog   Geoffrey Parker     37
War Made New: An Interview with Max Boot   Donald A. Yerxa     42
The Future of War
Been There! Done That! Blood in the Crystal Ball   Colin S. Gray     51
Comment on Gray   Peter Paret     58
The Crystal Ball Is Bloody but Still Clear   T. X. Hammes     62
Comment on Gray   Victor Davis Hanson     65
History and the Future of War   Antulio J. Echevarria II     69
Comment on "Been There! Done That!"   Andrew J. Bacevich     73
With Clausewitz to Eternity   Colin S. Gray     75
Soldiering and the Experience of War
The British Soldier Then and Now: An Interview with Richard Holmes   Donald A. Yerxa     85
No Quarter: The Pacific Battlefield   Eric Bergerud     96
War and the Human Condition
Armageddon: An Interview with Max Hastings   Donald A. Yerxa     107
The War of the World: An Interview with Niall Ferguson   Donald A. Yerxa     118
Afterword: Military History Today   Jeremy Black     127
Further Readings     129
Contributors     133
Index     137