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The German Wars: A Concise History, 1859–1945 Kindle Edition

by Michael A. Palmer (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 out of 5 stars 15 ratings
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“A fine survey of how a nation came to be recognized for its military supremacy—despite losing two world wars.” —Midwest Book Review

In the decades leading up to World War II, the world was in awe of the Prussian-German military, seeking to emulate what esteemed German military history scholar Robert M. Citino has termed “the German Way of War.” Military professionals around the globe became fluent in the tactical jargon: bewegungskrieg, schwerpunckt, auftragstaktik, fingerspitzengefuhl, and of course, blitzkrieg. At the same time, German warfare would become closely associated with the bloodiest and cruelest era in the history of mankind. The German Wars: A Concise History, 1859–1945 outlines the history of European warfare from the Wars of German Unification to the end of World War II. Author Michael A. Palmer looks at political, social, economic, and military developments across Europe and the United States during this crucial period in world history in order to demonstrate the lasting impact of the German Wars on the modern age.

“Palmer has succeeded in creating an outstanding short history of the German wars that influenced the development of Europe and the world in the 19th and 20th centuries. It’s a terrific introduction and overview of the subject.” —Armchair General

“A provocative look at the methods that Germany used to wage war, and why ultimately they failed.” —Military Heritage

“This is an excellent book . . . highly readable. It would be an excellent addition to the library of any military historian, public library, university library as well as personal collection of persons with interest in European or Trans-Atlantic History.” —Kepler’s Military History Book Reviews
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  1. Print length
    256 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Zenith Press
  4. Publication date
    November 15, 2010
  5. File size
    19.6 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
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  8. Enhanced typesetting
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Kepler's Military History Book Reviews
"This is an excellent book...It is highly readable. It would be an excellent addition to the library of any military historian, public library, university library as well as personal collection of persons with interest in European or Trans-Atlantic History."



Armchair General
"Palmer has succeeded in creating an outstanding short history of the German wars that influenced the development of Europe and the world in the 19th and 20th centuries. It’s a terrific introduction and overview of the subject."



Midwest Book Review
"The German Wars provides a fine survey of how a nation came to be recognized for its military supremacy - despite losing two world wars. Michael Palmer provides an analysis of German military might that discusses their strategic failures, bad assumptions, and how their method of superior warfare became outdated. Chapters describe major battles of Germans and offer fine strategic analysis perfect for military history holdings."



Bookviews by Alan Caruba
"The German Wars provides both detail and insight regarding a nation called “the Huns” by those it attacked. Feared for its excellence on the battlefield, the irony is that it lost both wars it initiated in the last century, but its full history is filled with a warning for a new generation that faces off against new potential enemies, not the least of which is Iran these days."



Military Heritage
"...a provocative look at the methods that Germany used to wage war, and why ultimately they failed."

From the Inside Flap


What was it about the German Way of War that has resulted in a near universal acceptance of that nation s battlefield excellence? How did a nation recognized for its military supremacy end up on the losing side of two world wars? Author Michael Palmer offers his two-part thesis: First, the Germans, unlike the Americans, failed to mature strategically as their nation grew and became more powerful. Second, the Germans, along with virtually everyone else, misinterpreted the lessons of their own successes against Denmark (1864), Austria (1866), and France (1870) and concluded that they had to and could successfully wage short, decisive wars in the age of industrial warfare. Reality caught up with them during the years of 1914 to 1918 and 1939 to 1945, and the world, the Germans included, paid a horribly steep price for that mistake. Palmer describes the major battles and events of every major German war during this period, offering insight and analysis to help the reader sort out the causes and effects of each war, including:



The Franco-Prussian War: France, an empire, became a republic. The Prussian king became the emperor of a new national German empire. The destruction of French power allowed the Italians to complete the unification of their country.



World War I: When peace finally came, the Versailles treaty restricted the Weimar Republic, which had replaced the kaiser s Second Reich, to an army of 100,000 men, a force easily outnumbered by the Poles. They even had to dismantle their infamous general staff.


World War II: Tactically, the Germans retained their superiority until the end of the war. But here, too, the German advantage declined as the war progressed, and Allied tactics improved as their armies learned from experience much of what the Germans had learned from study during the 1920s.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B004MME0P8
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Zenith Press; First edition (November 15, 2010)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 15, 2010
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 19.6 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 out of 5 stars 15 ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars My military historian son enjoyed it immensely
    Reviewed in the United States on January 23, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Well written scholarly work. My military historian son enjoyed it immensely.
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  • Oliver L.
    4.0 out of 5 stars Very good with minor flaws
    Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2011
    In general an excellent work that I found to be thought-provoking and broad-minded in its perspective. Provides a lot of detail from political, military and economic realms to explain events (as should be done), also the importance of lesser-known events which often influence the thinking of actors at the time, but which get forgotten about later for example the "minor" Balkan Wars in the years that preceded the outbreak of World War One, generally unknown to many Western readers I would guess.)

    Basic thesis is that Prussia's success in its German Wars of Unification (against Austria, Denmark, and France) led it to overemphasize its offensive doctrines and the belief in its ability to wage short decisive wars (leading in part to the two world wars).

    Very good about not demonizing any of the players, and generally describing the policies of governments as more or less rational and driven by self-interest (i.e. no rhetoric about a bloodthirsty Kaiser, insanity of the Nazis, and so on).

    Has a tendency to engage in excessive "flyover" perspectives however, as when he describes Austria-Hungary's demands on the Serbs after the assassination of the archduke as consisting of two articles, both of which the Serbs rejected (there were at least a dozen conditions, and the document itself was designed to be so unacceptable that the Serbs would be forced to reject it making the Austrians seem like the aggrieved party). Also makes periodic slight errors of fact, as when he describes Riga as being in Lithuania (it's in Latvia), and many German words are misspelled (Schwerpunkt, Fingerspitzengefuehl, and so on [at one point the text refers to "Alder Tag"), and usually don't have their first letter capitalized as should be done.

    If author had taken time to develop some of his arguments more fully and had the book been edited better could give this one five stars.
    11 people found this helpful
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  • Frank Devones
    3.0 out of 5 stars very general
    Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    Only for an introduction.useless otherwise, almost. Military history for college r.o.t.c class would be good. No real reason for anyone else to read it.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Joel R.
    5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent survey of two centuries of German warfare
    Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2011
    "The German Wars: A Concise History, 1859-1945", by Michael A. Palmer, is a book you can definitely judge by its cover. It is literally a concise history lesson on the wars that Germany has fought in the last two centuries. What readers cannot judge from the cover, is the quality of analysis that Palmer put into the book.

    Watching military history documentaries over the last twenty years, the German Blitzkrieg tactics of World War II took on an almost mythical standard of how to conduct warfare. US military combined arms doctrine that is the teaching standard for the current generation of military officers is based on these tactics developed over 50 years ago. In this book, Palmer highlights the paradox of how other militaries have tried to emulate German tactics yet failed to appreciate that Germany managed to lose two World Wars in the last century. Certainly, Germany couldn't have been doing everything correctly.

    The book covers the Wars of Italian and German Unification; the interwar period leading up to World War I; and the two World Wars. Palmer provides the readers with a historical context of what led to the conflict, and also overviews the national strategies for each of the belligerents. He then highlights the warfare, with applicable back stories interrupting the narrative. At the conclusion of each chapter, Palmer provides his analysis of what each of the combatants had learned and how they applied those lessons to plan for the next war.

    Casual history readers, like me, will enjoy this book because it provides a basic background of the major wars, and the importance of many of the major decisions that occurred prior to and during these wars. I found the book to be absolutely fascinating - especially Palmer's analysis of how these lessons still apply today.
    11 people found this helpful
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  • david l. poremba
    5.0 out of 5 stars great overview
    Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2011
    Almost two centuries of warfare involving the Germans covered in less than three hundred pages? Definitely concise and perhaps not very deep in any one spot; never judge a book by its cover is the old adage and this book is a good example. Concise, yes, but lacking in quality analysis - definitely not.
    Author Palmer looks at the political, economic, social and military developments across the European continent and the United States, always keeping Germany as the central player in the story. He begins with the Wars of German Unification against Denmark (1864), Austria (1866) and France (1870-71), covers the interwar period, including the Balkan Wars and, finally, the two World Wars. He discusses the national strategies of each combatant, the warfare and analyzes the lessons each learned (or nopt) at the end of each chapter. His treatment of the major personalities throughout the book is very even-handed, with no ranting about the Hohenzollerns or Hitler either. His thesis that Prussia's success lad it to assume (incorrectly), its supremacy at warfare is thought provoking.
    Great reading for the casual history buff as well as armchair strategists and military historians of all stripes.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Sam Adams
    5.0 out of 5 stars The German Wars : A Concise History, 1850 - 1945
    Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2013
    This is an outstanding overview of Germany at war during the period 1850 to 1945. Palmer focuses on military doctrine, strategy and tactics, and on changes arising from advances in weapons technology.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Historian
    3.0 out of 5 stars Dull
    Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    Yes, it is consice. It is good for an overview. It is dull. There must be some better book out there on same field.
    2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Tinchley21
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for beginners
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 27, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    This book is excellent for beginners who are new to the changes of war between 1864 to 1945. Highly recommend, although some people who have read more into the topic may find it a bit too simple.
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