Helmuth Von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War

Helmuth Von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War PDF Author: Annika Mombauer
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521791014
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 346

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Book Description
A study of the influence of German Chief of Staff Helmuth von Moltke, 1906-1914.

Helmuth Von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War

Helmuth Von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War PDF Author: Annika Mombauer
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521791014
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 346

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Book Description
A study of the influence of German Chief of Staff Helmuth von Moltke, 1906-1914.

Helmuth von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War

Helmuth von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War PDF Author: Annika Mombauer
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521019569
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 344

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Book Description
This book explores the influence of Helmuth von Moltke, Germany's Chief of the General Staff between 1906 and 1914. Based largely on previously-unknown primary sources, it shows that Moltke's influence on the Kaiser and on Germany's political decision-making to have been decisive, helping to foster an increasingly confrontational mood. The book also takes issue with the common perception of Moltke as a reluctant military leader, concluding that he was both bellicose and ambitious and played a crucial role in the outbreak of the First World War.

Helmuth Von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War

Helmuth Von Moltke and the Origins of the First World War PDF Author: Annika Mombauer
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781316346259
Category : World War, 1914-1918
Languages : en
Pages : 325

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Book Description


Moltke on the Art of War

Moltke on the Art of War PDF Author: Daniel Hughes
Publisher: Presidio Press
ISBN: 0307538516
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description
Field Marshal Helmuth Graf von Moltke is best known for his direction of the German/Prussian campaigns against Austria in 1866 and France in 1870-71, yet it was during his service as chief of the General Staff that he laid the foundation for the German way of war which would continue through 1945. Professor Daniel Hughes of the Air War College, in addition to editing and assisting with the translation of this selection of Moltke’s thoughts and theories on the art of war, has written an insightful commentary on “Moltke the Elder” that places him in the broader context of Prussian military theorist Carl von Clausewitz’s sometimes abstract philosophical ideas. The book also contains an extensive bibliographic and historiographic commentary that includes references to Moltke and his theories in the current literature in Germany, England, and the United States—a valuable aid to anyone doing research on the subject. This volume, in addition to its appeal to scholars, serves as an introduction to the theory of the German army, as well as a summary of Moltke’s enduring theoretical legacy. Praise for Moltke on the Art of War “Moltke molded the Prussian and ultimately the German army at a time of technological and economic change. For that reason . . . this book deserves a much wider audience than those interested in nineteenth-century military history. Readers will be particularly grateful for the editor’s careful explanation of terms that are easily mistranslated in English, and for concise and useful footnotes and bibliography. A model of fine editing.”—Foreign Affairs Magazine “This valuable work ably compiles the selected writings on the art of war of one of military history’s greatest geniuses. [Moltke’s] impact on American military thinking persists, especially in various military staff college curricula. Strongly recommended.”—Armed Forces Journal “A thoughtfully edited, well-translated anthology that merits a place in any serious collection on the craft of war in the modern Western world."—Journal of Military History

The Dynamics of Doctrine

The Dynamics of Doctrine PDF Author: Timothy T. Lupfer
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electronic government information
Languages : en
Pages : 84

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Book Description
This paper is a case study in the wartime evolution of tactical doctrine. Besides providing a summary of German Infantry tactics of the First World War, this study offers insight into the crucial role of leadership in facilitating doctrinal change during battle. It reminds us that success in war demands extensive and vigorous training calculated to insure that field commanders understand and apply sound tactical principles as guidelines for action and not as a substitute for good judgment. It points out the need for a timely effort in collecting and evaluating doctrinal lessons from battlefield experience. --Abstract.

Helmuth von Moltke: A Leader Against Hitler

Helmuth von Moltke: A Leader Against Hitler PDF Author: Michael Balfour
Publisher: Plunkett Lake Press
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 371

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Book Description
“Helmut James von Moltke [1907-1945] pursued two related goals during the Second World War: to help victims of National Socialism and to prepare for post-National Socialist Germany and Europe. He worked toward the first goal as a specialist in international law in the army’s intelligence department. There he struggled to uphold principles of international law against Nazi policies of racism and aggression. To achieve the second goal, Moltke initiated what later became known as the Kreisau Circle, a group that discussed and drafted plans to rebuild and reorganize Germany after Hitler’s defeat. By birth and character Moltke was particularly well suited for his self-appointed tasks. He succeeded in his work for the army not only because of his exceptional abilities but also because of his name, which bestowed a degree of privilege and immunity. On his father’s side, he was a grandnephew of the famous Prussian field marshal, whose Silesian estate, Kreisau, he inherited. Through his mother, he was the grandson of Sir James Rose Innes, the liberal South African judge. Partly through him, Moltke developed a strong sense of social justice and a cosmopolitanism rare among the Junkers. As an aristocrat and a devout Christian, as an internationalist with socialist sympathies, Moltke won collaborators for the Kreisau Circle in the army, the bureaucracy, the Catholic and Protestant churches, and the trade unions... Moltke was arrested in January 1944 and sentenced to death a year later, while most of his associates were convicted in the trials following the attempt to kill Hitler in July 1944. This biography shows that Moltke not only distinguished between good and evil but, more important, felt a moral imperative to combat evil. His human greatness resulted from this combination of insight and action.” — Erich Hahn, The Journal of Modern History “This book owes much to the nature of [Helmuth and Freya von Moltke’s] relationship and the frequency of the letters, and to the fact that Michael Balfour and Julian Frisby, the English friends of Moltke’s, were able to use them to quote from them extensively. In these letters the man comes alive, though the book as a whole has the merit of putting them in their biographical and historical context.” — Beate Ruhm von Oppen, The New York Times “[An] excellent and moving book... an important contribution to our knowledge of the German resistance to Hitler... For the casual reader who wants to learn how a decent and able man reacted in a situation of brutality and horror, [Balfour and Frisby] have presented an engrossing story. For fellow historians they have made available a set of indispensable documents.” — Gordon R. Mork, History “The authors of this book have had access not only to the [Kreisau] Circle’s hopeful thoughts about the future shape of Germany, but also to Moltke’s revealing and voluminous letters to his wife, who survived him. This material has been admirably employed to construct a biography in the best historical tradition: that is, one which not only brings to life the central figure, but throws abundant light upon the times in which he lived... Moltke raised his own memorial. He has been fortunate in the two biographers who in this book have delineated and interpreted it.” — R. Cecil, International Affairs “This is an important addition to the growing literature on the German Resistance movement.” — Robert E. Neil, The American Historical Review “This new biography is written with real affection by two close personal friends of Moltke... provides a more personal angle, above all by the numerous quotations from Moltke’s letters to his wife which miraculously survived the war... gives us a fascinating picture of the problems any German opposition to Hitler had to face.” — F. L. Carsten, The Slavonic and East European Review “This is Helmuth von Moltke’s story, told by two of the many friends he made in England before the war years. The drama of the story sustains the narrative... Helmuth’s letter to his wife, written the day before his execution, is worth many times the price of the book.” — Worldview

The Origins of the First World War

The Origins of the First World War PDF Author: Annika Mombauer
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317875842
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 267

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Book Description
The seminal event of the 20th century, the origins of the First World War have always been difficult to establish and have aroused deep controversy. Annika Mombauer tracks the impassioned debates as they developed at critical points through the twentieth century. The book focuses on the controversy itself, rather than the specific events leading up to the war. Emotive and emotional from the very beginning of the conflict, the debate and the passions aroused in response to such issues as the ‘war-guilt paragraph’ of the treaty of Versailles, are set in the context of the times in which they were proposed. Similarly, the argument has been fuelled by concerns over the sacrifices that were made and the casualities that were suffered. Were they really justified?

The Causes of the First World War

The Causes of the First World War PDF Author: ANNIKA. MOMBAUER
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780815347934
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
More than a hundred years after it began, the question of the origins of World War I remains contested. Based on Mombauer's The Origins of the First World War (2002), this thoroughly revised and expanded volume surveys the long debate, taking the analysis from 1914 to the centenary and beyond. The causes of the First World War were in dispute before the first shots had even been fired. Recriminations intensified following the Treaty of Versailles when the victors accused Germany and its allies of starting the war. This was the start of a heated blame game. To shift the responsibility to former enemies, historians and politicians on all sides became embroiled in a war of documents and publications. The author examines the circumstances that fuelled these international disagreements, offering an extensive analysis of a complex historical controversy which has been shaped by political and ideological concerns. This volume provides students, teachers, scholars, and non-specialist readers with a comprehensive guide through the maze of conflicting interpretations and arguments over evidence.

The Marne, 1914

The Marne, 1914 PDF Author: Holger H. Herwig
Publisher: Random House Incorporated
ISBN: 1400066719
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 463

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Book Description
Evaluates the Battle of the Marne as what the author believes to be the most important land battle of the 20th century, in an account that analyzes the strategies of Germany's plan to capture France and how its failure culminated in a catastrophic trench war.

Light for the New Millennium

Light for the New Millennium PDF Author: Rudolf Steiner
Publisher: Rudolf Steiner Press
ISBN: 1855844001
Category : Generals
Languages : en
Pages : 398

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Book Description
Containing a wealth of material on a variety of subjects, Light for the New Millennium tells the story of the meeting of two great men and their continuing relationship beyond the threshold of death: Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925)--the seer, scientist of the spirit, and cultural innovator--and Helmuth von Moltke (1848-1916)--a renowned military man, Chief of the General Staff of the German army during the outbreak of World War I. In 1914, following disagreements with the Kaiser, Moltke was dismissed from his post. This led to a great inner crisis in the General, that in turn drew him closer to Steiner. When Moltke died two years later, Steiner maintained contact with his excarnated soul, receiving communications that he passed on to Moltke's wife, Eliza. These remarkable and unique messages are reproduced here in full, together with relevant letters from the General to his wife. The various additional commentaries, essays and documents give insights to themes of continuing significance for our time, including the workings of evil; karma and reincarnation; life after death; the new millennium and the end of the last century; the hidden causes of World War I; the destiny of Europe, and the future of Rudolf Steiner's science of the spirit. Also included are Moltke's private reflections on the causes of the Great War ("the document that could have changed world history"), a key interview with Steiner for Le Matin, an introduction and notes by T. H. Meyer, and studies by Jürgen von Grone, Jens Heisterkamp and Johannes Tautz.