Captain Staniland's Journey: The North Midland Territorials Go to War by Martin Middlebrook ISBN: 0850529964
Published by Pen & Sword Books on September 1st 2003
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, World War I
Pages: 224
The U-boats of World War I
The U-boats of World War I by Kelly K. Lydon ISBN: 0-9663091-0-3
on 2003
Pages: 125
Len's Summary: Dozens of excellent photos of such subjects as the GermanU-boat pens at Brugges, Belgium; details on the development of the Imperial German U-boat fleet and specifications of the several classes of early submarines,their armament including deck guns, torpedoes and mines, their manning and propulsion.
Nationalizing the Russian Empire: The Campaign against Enemy Aliens during World War I
Nationalizing the Russian Empire: The Campaign against Enemy Aliens during World War I by Eric Lohr ISBN: 0674010418
Published by Harvard University Press on May 15th 2003
Genres: History, Europe, General, Russia & the Former Soviet Union
Pages: 237
Len's Summary: Study of the treatment of “enemy” minorities during WWI. Mass deportations, property seizures, purges and popular violence impacted on millions of Russians of German and Jewish origin, as well as Muslims. Read in conjunction with A Whole Empire Walking by Peter Gatrell (Indiana, 1999) described elsewhere on these pages.
The Politics of War: The Story of Two Wars Which Altered Forever the Political Life of the American Republic
The Politics of War: The Story of Two Wars Which Altered Forever the Political Life of the American Republic by Walter Karp ISBN: 9781879957558
Published by Franklin Square Press on 2003
Pages: 384
Len's Summary: Reprint of a 1979 monograph which takes an unvarnished and unflattering look at how domestic politics shaped the foreign policy of the Progressive Era and America emergence after 1898 as a world power. Recommended by the editors of American Heritage.
Wielding the Dagger: The MarineKorps Flandern and the German War Effort, 1914-1918
Wielding the Dagger: The MarineKorps Flandern and the German War Effort, 1914-1918 by Mark D. Karau ISBN: 9780313324758
Published by Praeger on October 30th 2003
Genres: History, Europe, General, Germany, Military, World War I
Pages: 268
Len's Summary: Two divisions made up of naval reservists were formed and deployed as infantry and artillerymen on the Flanders coast in 1914. Many of them and their officers are buried at Vladslo and other German cemeteries in Belgium which we visited on our April 2003 tour of the Ypres Salient. // The little known story of a two-division-sized German submarine-destroyer and naval infantry-artillery group operating in Belgian Flanders.
Researching World War I: A Handbook
Researching World War I: A Handbook by Robin Higham, Dennis E. Showalter ISBN: 031328850X
Published by Greenwood Publishing Group on December 30th 2003
Genres: History, Military, General, World War I, Reference, Research
Pages: 496
The Casualty Issue in American Military Practice: The Impact of World War I
The Casualty Issue in American Military Practice: The Impact of World War I by Evan Andrew Huelfer ISBN: 9780275977603
Published by Greenwood Publishing Group on October 30th 2003
Pages: 244
Len's Summary: Tracing continuing aversion to battle casualties back to 1917-1918.
Hemingway on War
Hemingway on War by Ernest Hemingway ISBN: 0743243269
Published by Scribner on November 4th 2003
Pages: 384
Len's Summary: Includes Great War era short stories and an excerpt from A Farewell to Arms concerning the retreat from Caporetto, as well as Hemingway correspondence on WWI and its aftermath.
Harlem’s Hell Fighters: The African-American 369th Infantry in World War I
Harlem's Hell Fighters: The African-American 369th Infantry in World War I by Stephen L. Harris ISBN: 9781574883862
on June 6th 2003
Genres: History, Military, General, World War I, Social Science, Ethnic Studies
Pages: 302
Len's Summary: By the author of Duty, Honor, Privilege — New York City’s Silk Stocking Regiment and the Breaking of the Hindenburg Line. Look for a review by Doug Fisher in a future issue of ‘Stand To!’
The Maritime Blockade of Germany in the Great War: The Northern Patrol, 1914-1928
The Maritime Blockade of Germany in the Great War: The Northern Patrol, 1914-1928 by John D. Grainger ISBN: 0754635368
Published by Ashgate Publishing on August 28th 2003
Genres: History, Military, World War I, Naval
Len's Summary: The little known story of enforcing the Royal Navy’s “distant blockade” largely employing thin-skinned armed merchant cruisers that become an increasingly effective force as the war wore on.
Trial by Fire: Command and the British Expeditionary Force in 1914
Trial by Fire: Command and the British Expeditionary Force in 1914 by Nikolas Gardner ISBN: 9780313324734
Published by Greenwood Publishing Group on August 30th 2003
Genres: History, Europe, General, Great Britain, Military, World War I
Pages: 259
Len's Summary: The small, regular British army faces unfamiliar warfare in Europe from August to November 1914. Breaks no new ground.
The War for Righteousness: Progressive Christianity, the Great War, and the Rise of the Messianic Nation
The War for Righteousness: Progressive Christianity, the Great War, and the Rise of the Messianic Nation by Richard M. Gamble ISBN: 1932236147
Published by Intercollegiate Studies Institute on March 4th 2004
Genres: History, United States, 20th Century, Religion, Christianity
Pages: 306
Len's Summary: How American progressive Christian leaders moved from pacifism to support for Mr. Wilson’s war and the League of Nations: war seen as redemption.
Europe’s Last Summer: Who Started the Great War in 1914?
Europe's Last Summer Who Started the Great War in 1914 by David Fromkin ISBN: 9780375411564
Published by Knopf on March 23rd 2004
Genres: History, Europe, General, Military, World War I, Political Science, Security (National & International)
Pages: 349
Len's Summary: By the author of A Peace to End all Peace on postwar redrawing of the map in the Mid East. Fromkin lays the blame for WWI on Germany. Little new here; the current work edited by Holger Herwig and Richard Hamilton, The Origins of World War I (Cambridge 2003) is far more enlightening.
Alfred Von Schlieffen’s Military Writings
Alfred Von Schlieffen's Military Writings by Robert Foley ISBN: 0714649996
Published by Frank Cass Publishers on October 31st 2002
Genres: History, Military, General, Political Science, Security (National & International)
Pages: 280
Illusion of Victory: America in World War I
The Illusion Of Victory: America In World War I by Thomas J. Fleming ISBN: 9780465024674
Published by Basic Books on May 28th 2003
Genres: History, Military, World War I
Pages: 543
Len's Summary: Touted by the publisher as revisionist history. Hard on Woodrow Wilson and perfidious Albion. Watch for a forthcoming review in Stand To!
Defeat in Detail: The Ottoman Army in the Balkans, 1912-1913
Defeat in Detail: The Ottoman Army in the Balkans, 1912-1913 by Edward J Erickson ISBN: 9780275978884
Published by Greenwood Publishing Group on February 28th 2003
Genres: History, Europe, Baltic States, Military, Other
Pages: 403
Len's Summary: Colonel Erickson is a retired Army officer who served in Turkey and speaks Turkish. He earlier book on the Ottoman Army in The Great War, Ordered to Die (Praeger 2002), was reviewed in Stand To!. Both books draws heavily on Turkish Army archives not routinely open to scholars. Colonel Erickson is scheduled to speak at our July 2004 WFA annual national seminar at SUNY, Plattsburgh.
Magnificent But Not War: The Second Battle of Ypres 1915
Magnificent But Not War: The Second Battle of Ypres 1915 by John Dixon ISBN: 9781844150021
Published by Casemate Publishers on September 1st 2003
Genres: History, Military, World War I
Pages: 370
Len's Summary: Order in the USA from Casemate Publishing.
The Great War: Perspectives on the First World War
The Great War: Perspectives on the First World War by Robert Cowley ISBN: 0375509097
Published by Random House (NY) on June 3rd 2003
Genres: History, Military, World War I
Pages: 509
Len's Summary: Article sreprinted from MHQ: The Journal of Military History, arguably America’s bestmilitary history magazine, which was founded and edited for many years by Mr.Cowley. Authors include Jan Morris on Admiral Sir John Fisher, Michael Howardwriting on the summer of 1914, Tim Travers on the Battle of the Somme, ThomasFleming on Quentin Roosevelt, Robert Cowley on German artist Kathe Kollwitz’efforts to create a memorial to her fallen son, and John Keegan on the mud andblood of Third Ypres. Recommended by Bob Denison.
Paths of Glory: The French Army, 1914-1918
Paths of Glory: The French Army, 1914-1918 by Anthony Clayton ISBN: 0304359491
Published by Cassell on May 28th 2003
Genres: History, Military, World War I
Pages: 238
Len's Summary: Biographies of all major French military leaders and coverage of all campaigns involving French forces.
The Newfoundlanders in the Great War: The Western Front, 1916-1918: A Social History and Battlefield Tour
The Newfoundlanders in the Great War: The Western Front, 1916-1918: A Social History and Battlefield Tour by N. M. Christie ISBN: 9781896979236
Published by CEF Books on 2003
Pages: 130
Len's Summary: World War One bankrupted this small, isolated, and resource poor British dominion which joined Canada until 1949. Recommended by Glenn Kerr, the chairman of the Central Ontario Branch of WFA.
Tunnelmaster and Arsonist of the Great War: The Norton-Griffiths Story
Tunnelmaster and Arsonist of the Great War: The Norton-Griffiths Story by Tony Bridgland ISBN: 0850529956
Published by Pen & Sword Books on October 1st 2003
Genres: Biography & Autobiography, Historical, Military, History, World War I
Pages: 224
Len's Summary: In the United States, order from Casemate Publishing.
The Home Front in the Great War
The Home Front in the Great War by David Bilton ISBN: 1844150682
Published by Leo Cooper on December 2003
Pages: 256
Len's Summary: Available from Casemate Publishing.
Featured Review
Soldiers’ Song and Slang of the Great War is an update and enlargement of a book first published in 1931. The current book includes phrases that were deemed inappropriate in earlier editions. The slang is both mystifying and well known. For example, a “goo wallah” is the sanitary man. Other items such as a “flapper’s delight” for a young officer are self-explanatory even now.
The songs lack any musical notations and only the lyrics are printed. Many use melodies set to well-known tunes—those by Gilbert and Sullivan seem to be popular as are folk melodies from the British countryside. The lyrics are commentaries on life at the front, the memories of home, and patriotic themes. By war’s end parodies are widespread. Songs from America and France are included, even “Adieu la Vie” (Chanson of Craonne) which was banned in France until 1974. The English translation is buried in the appendix, but is worth finding. The song is an indictment by the soldiers in the field of their treatment by the French army and government.
The Home Front in the Great War covers the British home front and the Hull area in detail. There is a chronological section at the beginning that provides an overview of events back in “Blighty,” followed by short essays on the efforts by groups from the Royals to the YMCA to support of the war effort. The report on the Boy Scouts is especially laudatory.
Both books use a good variety of images and are entertaining to read. Unfortunately, neither book has an index, making it almost impossible to use them for reference purposes.
Anne Merritt
War Underground: The Tunnellers of the Great War
War Underground: The Tunnellers of the Great War by Alexander Barrie ISBN: 1862270813
Published by The History Press on 2003
Genres: History, Military, World War I
Pages: 272
Len's Summary: Available from Casemate Publishing, 2114 Darby Road, Havertown, PA 19083 www.casematepublishing.com Ph (610) 853-9131 Fax (610) 853-9146, E-mail casemate@casematepublishing.com.
The Burning Tigris: The Armenian Genocide and America’s Response
The Burning Tigris: The Armenian Genocide and America's Response by Peter Balakian ISBN: 9780060558703
Published by HarperCollins on September 30th 2003
Genres: History, United States, 20th Century, Modern, Political Science, International Relations, General
Pages: 528
Len's Summary: Covers the history of Turko-Armenian relations as well as the pogroms of 1915-16 with particular emphasis on American reactions and interventions. A History Book Club alternate selection.
World War I In Photographs
World War I In Photographs by Richard Holmes ISBN: 1842222775
Published by Carlton Publishing Group on October 28th 2002
Pages: 320
Len's Summary: Also published in French and Dutch.
Kitchener’s Army: The Raising of the New Armies 1914 – 1916
Kitchener's Army: The Raising of the New Armies 1914 - 1916 by Peter Simkins ISBN: 1473821282
Published by Pen & Sword Books on October 19th 2014
Pages: 384
Len's Summary: Examines the main political, economic and social effects of raising tens of thousands of volunteers, as well as their training, feeding, housing and equipment. Written by the author of several well-received WWI histories. // A million volunteers…by a premier WWI historian. These were the men who fought on the Somme.
Rommel and Caporetto
Rommel and Caporetto by John Wilks, Eileen Wilks ISBN: 9781848848832
on June 30th 2012
Genres: Biography & Autobiography, Military, Political, History, World War I
Pages: 224
Len's Summary: First examination in English of Rommel’s leadership in this resounding defeat of Italian arms. Written by two British historians specializing in the Italian Front.
The Rules of the Game: Jutland and British Naval Command
The Rules of the Game: Jutland and British Naval Command by Andrew Gordon ISBN: 9781591143369
Published by Naval Institute Press on February 1st 2013
Genres: History, Military, Strategy, World War I, Naval
Pages: 708
Len's Summary: First published in 2000; a re-examination of the major fleet confrontation of WWI. // A fresh analysis of Royal Navy command and tactics.
The Origins of World War I
The Origins of World War I by Richard F. Hamilton, Holger H. Herwig ISBN: 0521102189
Published by Cambridge University Press on December 11th 2008
Genres: World War I
Pages: 552
Len's Summary: Summary examination of the motivations of the leadership of 12 major and minor powers in going to war. // An abridged version of the collection of essays published by Cambridge as The Origins of World War I and edited by the same scholars. This version concentrates on the handful of men who made the decisions for war. The abridgement is even more readable than the original. The authors cut through the fog of nationalism and ex post facto justifications to the roots of the conflict. Affordable and highly recommended.
The First World War Volume I: To Arms
The First World War: Volume I: To Arms by Hew Strachan ISBN: 9780191608346
on April 26th 2001
Genres: History, World, Military, World War I, Europe, General
Pages: 1248
Len's Summary: This book won WFA’s Norman B.Tomlinson, Jr. Annual Book Prize for 2001.
German Atrocities, 1914: A History of Denial
German Atrocities, 1914 by John N. Horne, Alan Kramer ISBN: 9780300107913
Published by Yale University Press on 2001
Genres: History, Military, World War I
Pages: 608
Len's Summary: Winner of the Fraenkel Prize for Contemporary History, this is a carefully researched, but densely drafted volume establishing that stories of German atrocities in Belgium and France were not just Entente propaganda. Winner of the 2002 Tomlinson Prize.
A Fraternity of Arms: America and France in the Great War
A Fraternity of Arms by Robert Bowman Bruce ISBN: 9780700612536
Published by University Press of Kansas on 2003
Genres: History, Europe, France, Military, Strategy, World War I, Political Science, International Relations, General
Pages: 380
Len's Summary: Thanks in large measure to expert (and often bilingual) French instructors a core of four 28,000-man divisions of the American army was ready to join the French in blunting and then reversing the final German push on Paris at the Marne in July 1918. It is in the resounding German setback on the Marne of July 18, 1918 – not their August 8th defeat by the British at Amiens – that Bruce finds the beginning of the end for German arms on the Western Front.
President’s Quarterly Update—April 2024
Dear Members and Friends,
I’m extremely pleased with the level of WW1HA’s activities, some of which may be unseen by you.
Our Journal, “World War One Illustrated,” is now published three times a year with an average length of 48 pages. Each issue is filled with high-quality articles covering a variety of topics, including the popular “My Kin in the Great War” series.
Our electronic newsletter, “Here and There with the WW1HA” is published monthly, with an assortment of Association events and articles covering WW1 topics.
Sal Compagno’s San Francisco Bay Area Chapter continues to hold monthly meetings via Zoom, while Mark Benbow’s Eastern Chapter is holding quarterly meetings.
As President, I am also hosting a quarterly “Fireside Chat” online. The last one emphasized WW1 poetry. The next one will emphasize WW1-era music.
If you’re already a member, I thank you for your membership and encourage you to take part in these activities. If you’re not a member, I ask you to join and participate in these activities. Participate in the events and consider submitting an article for the journal or newsletter.
Reach out to me with your comments: lavarennes@meuse-argonne.com.
Regards,
Randy Gaulke
