John Keegan's groundbreaking portrayal of the common soldier in the heat of battle -- a masterpiece that explores the physical and mental aspects of warfare The Face of Battle is military history from the battlefield: a look at the direct experience of individuals at the "point of maximum danger." Without the myth-making elements of rhetoric and xenophobia, and breaking away from the stylized format of battle descriptions, John Keegan has written what is probably the definitive model for military historians. And in his scrupulous reassessment of three battles representative of three different time periods, he manages to convey what the experience of combat meant for the participants, whether they were facing the arrow cloud at the battle of Agincourt, the musket balls at Waterloo, or the steel rain of the Somme. The Face of Battle is a companion volume to John Keegan's classic study of the individual soldier, The Mask of Command: together they form a masterpiece of military and human history.

The Face of Battle is military history from the battlefield: an imperishable account of the direct experience of individuals at 'the point of maximum danger'. It examines the physical conditions of fighting, the particular emotions and behaviour generated by battle, as well as the motives that impel soldiers to stand and fight rather than run away. In this stunningly vivid reassessment of three battles, John Keegan conveys their reality for the participants, whether facing the arrow cloud of Agincourt, the levelled muskets of Waterloo or the steel rain of the Somme.

Taking its title from The Face of Battle, John Keegan's canonical book on the nature of warfare, The Other Face of Battle illuminates the American experience of fighting in "irregular" and "intercultural" wars over the centuries. Sometimes known as "forgotten" wars, in part because they lackedtriumphant clarity, they are the focus of the book. David Preston, David Silbey, and Anthony Carlson focus on, respectively, the Battle of Monongahela (1755), the Battle of Manila (1898), and the Battle of Makuan, Afghanistan (2020) - conflicts in which American soldiers were forced to engage in"irregular" warfare, confronting an enemy entirely alien to them. This enemy rejected the Western conventions of warfare and defined success and failure - victory and defeat - in entirely different ways. Symmetry of any kind is lost. Here was not ennobling engagement but atrocity, unanticipatedinsurgencies, and strategic stalemate.War is always hell. These wars, however, profoundly undermined any sense of purpose or proportion. Nightmarish and existentially bewildering, they nonetheless characterize how Americans have experienced combat and what its effects have been. They are therefore worth comparing for what they hold incommon as well as what they reveal about our attitude toward war itself. The Other Face of Battle reminds us that "irregular" or "asymmetrical" warfare is now not the exception but the rule. Understanding its roots seems more crucial than ever.

John Keegan, widely considered the greatest military historian of our time and the author of acclaimed volumes on ancient and modern warfare--including, most recently, The First World War, a national bestseller--distills what he knows about the why’s and how’s of armed conflict into a series of brilliantly concise essays. Is war a natural condition of humankind? What are the origins of war? Is the modern state dependent on warfare? How does war affect the individual, combatant or noncombatant? Can there be an end to war? Keegan addresses these questions with a breathtaking knowledge of history and the many other disciplines that have attempted to explain the phenomenon. The themes Keegan concentrates on in this short volume are essential to our understanding of why war remains the single greatest affliction of humanity in the twenty-first century, surpassing famine and disease, its traditional companions.

A masterly look at the value and limitations of intelligence in the conduct of war from the premier military historian of our time, John Keegan. Intelligence gathering is an immensely complicated and vulnerable endeavor. And it often fails. Until the invention of the telegraph and radio, information often traveled no faster than a horse could ride, yet intelligence helped defeat Napoleon. In the twentieth century, photo analysts didn’t recognize Germany’s V-2 rockets for what they were; on the other hand, intelligence helped lead to victory over the Japanese at Midway. In Intelligence in War, John Keegan illustrates that only when paired with force has military intelligence been an effective tool, as it may one day be in besting al-Qaeda.

Covering the major periods of military history, Neiberg details the evolution of technology in weaponry as well as the social, political, and cultural forces at the heart of these key conflicts. From the pre-gunpowder era to the wars of liberation fought across the Third World, this ... survey focuses not only on the famous and heroic, but also on the countless millions who have fought for these causes throughout history.

"Two armies face off across a sodden plateau in northeastern France, each waiting for the other to make the first move. On one side are the English, suffering from dysentery and starvation, their numbers devastated. Arrayed against them is a rested and well-fed French army, a sea of burnished armor and menacing weaponry primed to slaughter the foolish invaders. Nevertheless, the charismatic and brilliant English king, twenty-eight-year-old Henry V, defies conventional military wisdom and leads his "band of brothers" forward. His troops are outnumbered six to one." "What follows is one of the most remarkable battles in history, celebrated for almost six centuries as the classic triumph of the underdog in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. Immortalized by Shakespeare and by contemporary historians, the battle of Agincourt has been embellished and edited by the quill of unbridled nationalism. Now, drawing on a wide range of primary sources and original research, medievalist Juliet Barker casts aside the myth and shows us the truth behind Henry's invasion of France and the showdown at Agincourt. She paints a narrative of the entire campaign, from the preparations to the reaping of the spoils. We are there in the English camps as common men struggle to secure buckles and laces with numb fingers; in the French front lines as petulant noblemen squabble over positions in the vanguard; and in the deep mud as heavily armed knights stumble and struggle under a barrage of arrows so thick and fast that it darkens the skies." "Barker also takes us beyond the battlefield to bring into focus the dynamics of medieval life in peace and war. We meet ordinary and extraordinary people such as Margaret Merssh, a female blacksmith who forges arms in the Tower of London; Lord Grey of Codnor, who pawns his own armor to pay his soldiers' wages; and Raoul de Gaucourt, the gallant French knight who surrenders himself into English custody simply because the code of chivalry compels him to do so."--BOOK JACKET. Also includes information on archers, armour, chivalry, coats of arms, gunpowder, heralds, horses, knights, men at arms, prisoners, ships, tournaments, Tower of London, wine, women, etc.