Chris_Baker Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 The Great War by Peter Hart published by Profile Books, 2013 ISBN 978 1 84668 246 9 cover price – £25.00 Hardback, 476pp plus notes, acknowledgements and index. Illustrated. I suppose we could call this the first single-volume post-revisionist history of the First World War. Its author Peter Hart will be known to many readers thanks to his many previous and well-received works on the subject, most notably recently on “Gallipoli” and “1918: A very British victory”. Attendees at Western Front Association and Great War Forum conferences will also know him as an entertaining, knowledgeable speaker who is not afraid to voice his opinions. In the main, these opinions hark back to the way the men of 1914-1918 saw the war – necessary, hard fought, bloody, wasteful and with respect for their leadership – rather than that of the revisionist school – of blunder, of lions led by donkeys and of futility – which later emerged and has become so entrenched. In “The Great War”, Hart takes on the ambitious task of narrating the whole war from his viewpoint and succeeds in producing an engaging and pacy work that is enjoyable to read and may open many eyes to the realities of the conflict. It is good to see (and given Hart’s previous work, perhaps unsurprising) that the war beyond the Western Front receives fine coverage. The military operations in the key theatres of war are explained, for as the author says you cannot understand the Western Front without understanding the Eastern, and so on, although almost inevitably it is France and Flanders which receives most attention. Gallipoli, Salonika, Palestine, the ‘white war’ in Italy and the war at sea all come into scope and it is really only the fighting in Africa which is an engagement of any scale that is absent. The writing is fluent and clear, and not academic in style although the research is clearly thorough and based on a wide range of sources. It is great to see that this steps into French, German, Turkish and other material from outside the UK, although we should not be surprised that time, budget and no doubt language are a limitation on just how far a man can go in delving into unexplored sources from overseas. Hart takes us from politics and grand strategy to the experience of the men in the trenches: this is primarily a narrative of military operations but there is enough coverage of the political for the reader to grasp why these battles were undertaken and the ambitions of the national leaderships that underpinned them. All in all, a very good book and for £25 an absolute snip. Will it stand the test of time and take its place as a key work in Great War historiography? I am not sure. We are about to be deluged by new publications, timed to take advantage of heightened interest around the centenary and Peter Hart’s work may find itself amongst lots of others. But it will stand out as a clear expression of a well-researched body of thought and an entertaining read. That may not be the case for all we are about to receive. The book is completed by a number of clear maps and a selection of photographs, although some of these are familiar from previous publications. A lengthy set of notes and a good index complete it. This review first appeared on the Long, Long Trail website on 2 April 2013. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PMHart Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 Thanks Chris. That is very kind of you. Some might be interested in Paul Reed's nice review which has also cheered my day! It can be found here: http://ww1centenary....-by-peter-hart/ It is always nice to find out how generous spirited fellow Great War historians and aficionados can be..... Cheers guys! Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anthony osborne Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 On my list to read. Ant Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Connolly Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 I've appreciated and enjoyed Peter's other Great War works and would like to purchase this one. However - I am trying to save for a visit to Flanders in the middle future, so may I be excused until the paperback comes out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitchener's Bugle Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 I see that you added your appraisal to the Amazon page for this book! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 3 April , 2013 Author Share Posted 3 April , 2013 I always do: whenever I write a review for LLT it also goes onto Amazon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 Will copies be available at the GWF Conference? Will the author sign them? Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PMHart Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 Hi Bruce, I will have copies at the GWF Conference and the unwary will find I have signed them before they can get away! Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squirrel Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 What a splendid chap this Hart fellow is and much admired by his fellow authors and battlefield guides. That has to be good news for us all and so I will have to obtain a copy of this latest publication. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithmroberts Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 He slips up occasionally, I have seen an unsigned copy of his book on Gallipoli, but it was at the full list price. I reckon the dedications are something he has worked out with the publisher to mark the bargain copies. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanA Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 I saw one of his books in the antiquarian section of Ebay. It's possible he writes from personal experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pighills Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 Looking forward to getting our signed copy (must have the complete set) at the conference. You know the book's going to be a good one when you see the author's name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Filsell Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 I completed my review for Stand To last week, and it pretty much mirror's Chris's so I will not bother to post it. A terrific pogo through the war, and since I have a review copy it will remain unsigned a thus become extremely valuable. I is a very worthy addition to Pete's earlier works Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitchener's Bugle Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 Hi Bruce, I will have copies at the GWF Conference and the unwary will find I have signed them before they can get away! Pete Forgive my ignorance Peter but I did not realise you are the author!!!!!!. I have just ordered my copy (through this site) from Amazon. Looking forward to it's arrival. Best Wishes KB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichaelBully Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 Great news, I am going to treat myself to a copy at the conference. Regards, Michael Bully Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Hastings Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 Think Peter's 'The Somme' and '1918 A Very British Victory' were exceptional and have 'Gallipoli' and 'Passchendaele: The Sacrificial Ground' on book shelf waiting to go, and will definitely get this title to accompany them! Will there be an audiobook version Peter, as really enjoyed listening to those for Somme and 1918 when driving and doing DIY last year? (If so please tell them not to let Clive Mantle do his German accent !!!!) Good luck with the book Cheers Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crunchy Posted 4 April , 2013 Share Posted 4 April , 2013 What a splendid chap this Hart fellow is Squirrel, You obviously haven't met him. He can drink any Aussie under the table Good to see he has produced another book. They are very good reads - well researched, balanced, entertaining, incisive and by their very readable style appeal to the wider public, thereby providing a much needed antidote to the populist lions led by donkeys school. Looking forward to reading this one. Cheers Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squirrel Posted 4 April , 2013 Share Posted 4 April , 2013 Squirrel, You obviously haven't met him. Chris I have met him on a number of occasions - that's why I now have to try and stay on the right side of him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Broomfield Posted 4 April , 2013 Share Posted 4 April , 2013 I've met him, too, and so has my wife. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil andrade Posted 4 April , 2013 Share Posted 4 April , 2013 Today it arrived. I've browsed through it, with the intention of reading it properly later. I like it..... it works. There is proper acknowledgement of the enormous burden taken by the French . Money well spent. Phil (PJA) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archangel9 Posted 4 April , 2013 Share Posted 4 April , 2013 I'd love a signed copy but won't be at the conference. I wonder what my chances are? John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithmroberts Posted 5 April , 2013 Share Posted 5 April , 2013 I'm sure something can be arranged with Mr Hart. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_Hartley Posted 27 June , 2013 Share Posted 27 June , 2013 I enjoy Pete's writing style almost as much as I enjoy his public speaking style - although the latter usually includes more jokes and swearing. It's a weighty tome, nearly 500 pages. But then, there's a lot to get through. Great War anoraks, like most of us here, will find chapters that don't learn much from. But, for folk wanting perhaps a first book on the war, there's much to find here, in this modern interpretation of events. And, for this anorak, there was also much to learn. I knew next to nothing about the Eastern Front and I suspect we Brits get too obsessed with what our own Army was getting up to, that we forget the contribution of, say, the French. I particularly appreciated the quotes from the various non-Brit personal accounts. Good read - go buy it. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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