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    Moment of Battle: The Twenty Clashes That Changed the World
    Moment of Battle: The Twenty Clashes That Changed the World
    Moment of Battle: The Twenty Clashes That Changed the World
    Audiobook15 hours

    Moment of Battle: The Twenty Clashes That Changed the World

    Written by James Lacey and Williamson Murray

    Narrated by Kevin Foley

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    In the grand tradition of Edward Creasy's classic Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World, James Lacey and Williamson Murray spotlight only those engagements that changed the course of civilization. In gripping narrative accounts they bring these conflicts and eras to vivid life, detailing the cultural imperatives that led inexorably to the battlefield, the experiences of the common soldiers who fought and died, and the legendary commanders and statesmen who matched wits, will, and nerve for the highest possible stakes.

    From the great clashes of antiquity to the high-tech wars of the twenty-first century, here are the stories of the twenty most consequential battles ever fought, including

    Marathon, where Greece's "greatest generation" repelled Persian forces three times their numbers-and saved Western civilization in its infancy
    Adrianople, the death blow to a disintegrating Roman Empire
    Trafalgar, the epic naval victory that cemented a century of British supremacy over the globe
    Saratoga, the first truly American victory, won by united colonial militias, which ensured the ultimate triumph of the Revolution
    Midway, the ferocious World War II sea battle that broke the back of the Japanese navy
    Dien Bien Phu, the climactic confrontation between French imperial troops and Viet Minh rebels that led to American intervention in Vietnam and marked the rise of a new era of insurgent warfare
    Operation Peach, the perilous 2003 mission to secure a vital bridge over the Euphrates River that would open the way to Baghdad

    Historians and armchair generals will argue forever about which battles have had the most direct impact on history. But there can be no doubt that these twenty are among those that set mankind on new trajectories. Each of these epochal campaigns is examined in its full historical, strategic, and tactical context-complete with edge-of-your-seat you-are-there battle re-creations. With an eye for the small detail as well as the bigger picture, Lacey and Murray identify the elements that bind these battles together: the key decisions, critical mistakes, and moments of crisis on which the fates of entire civilizations depended.

    Some battles merely leave a field littered with the bodies of the fallen. Others transform the map of the entire world. Moment of Battle is history written with the immediacy of today's news, a magisterial tour d'horizon that refreshes our understanding of those essential turning points where the future was decided.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateOct 21, 2013
    ISBN9781452687049
    Moment of Battle: The Twenty Clashes That Changed the World

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    Reviews for Moment of Battle

    3.5/5

    38 ratings10 reviews

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    • 4/5
      “Moment of Battle” is al tour de force of military history. Covering 2500 years of history, it singles out 20 major battles that the authors consider to have most significantly changed the world. It offers a useful corrective to a bizarre and naïve perspective voiced by US defense analysts in the 1990s, that the US military was about to create capabilities that would leave it unchallenged for the forseeable future. After two lost wars, a crippled economy, and a failing infrastructure, such a view can be seen as yet the latest example of the hubris of many a previous empire. Each of the 20 battles is examined in terms of its historical backdrop, the goals of the warring parties, the military tactics, the factors that determined the outcome, and the lasting significance. For many of the battles, the placement and movement of troops are illustrated with diagrams that (despite their simplicity) usefully supplement the text. The book begins with “Marathon”, the astonishing victory of Athens against the might of the Persian Empire, a battle with great consequence for the historical legacy of democratic traditions and ancient Greek thought. Next comes “Gaugamela”, key to Alexander the Great’s establishment of empire, which in turn set the stage for the later spread of Christianity among Greek- influenced Jews. Another early chapter focuses on the Roman Empire’s failure to conquer the Germanic tribes, which prefigured the East- West divide of Europe that contributed in the 20th century to two world wars. Yet another momentous battle is that of Yarmuk (630 CE), in which the followers of Mohammed established an Arab – Islamic civilization that dominates northern Africa and Arab territories. Likewise there is Francis Drake’s destruction of the Spanish Armada (1588), without which the English would likely have never been able to colonize North America. Yet another explored episode (represented by three battles) by the authors is the Annus Mirabilis (the “year of miracles”) of 1759, in which the British established supremacy over Canada and made inroads towards success in the West Indies and in India. A lasting consequence is that English is the dominant global language when it comes to trade and intellectual exchange, not to mention the lasting legacy of a democratic (and secular) India. Other battles explored are taken from the American Revolution, Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, the US Civil War, the first World War, World War II (represented in three battles). The choice of several of the battles reflects the authors’ American (US) perspective and particular expertise. Thus, there are no battles in South America, Africa, or Asia (outside of World War II). Naturally, one can quarrel with particular choices of battles. For my part, I was surprised at the inclusion of Dien Bien Phu, which signaled the withdrawal of the French from Indochina. However, far more momentous, one would think, was the US debacle in Southeast Asia, the last attempt by Western powers to dominate in east Asia. However, understandably, neither the Tet Offensive nor the fall of Saigon constitutes a momentous battle in the sense that this book explores. An even more peculiar choice is the 2003 US attack on Baghdad, a battle arguably of no lasting significance in light of everything that has happened since. In an interview on Book TV, author James Lacey explained that they included the attack on Baghdad because they wanted some recent military action; he further argued that we can never predict what might turn out to be significant in the future. (The latter point undermines, rather than justifies, the authors’ choice to include it). Lacey and Murray make no secret of their strong opinions on issues of controversy. In fact, they clearly enjoy presenting themselves as iconoclasts against the views of professional historians and other military analysts. Thus, in opposition to other historian’s views, they make statements like “nothing could be further from the truth” (p. 230 and once again on p. 265), and “the experts could not have been more wrong” (p 266). In a particular show of contempt, they assert “Only academics who have spent their entire lives sequestered in school and with scant knowledge of the real world could gin up such nonsense” (p 85). A prospective reader should be prepared to take such tendentious statements in stride. I recommend this book for aficionados of military history – they will find much here to think about and most likely, much to argue over. This book also is ideal for readers who enjoy the “What Ifs” of counterfactual history – the key episodes which, had they come out differently, would have led to a very different sort of world today.
    • 4/5
      Moment of Battle is an epic work that aptly describes what its subtitle offers: The Twenty Clashes That Changed the World. Lacey and Murray have chosen these twenty battles because, “of their long-term impact on the course of history” (xiii). Many of these battles are well known – some of them reside in obscurity to all but historians. What is held in common is that each of these battles has influenced civilization in varying degrees. With the perspective of historical hindsight, the authors ably demonstrate the significance of each battle.This book is an interesting read. It is not so much about the politics that precipitated the conflicts, but attention is given to the battles themselves. The ancient battles, in particular, are described with such detail that the reader can feel the carnage and misery – not in a grotesque way, but in a way that transports him to the battlefield. This is a great book. It appears to have a target readership in mind, but it would be a great read for all who have an interest in the progress of civilization
    • 4/5
      This book was really interesting. Some of the battles were ones I was already familiar with, but some were new to me. I had an Early Reviewer copy and it obviously wasn't well edited yet so I can't criticize issues that may be fixed in the final edition. I am not too into the tactical side of military history but this was not too much for me to follow.
    • 4/5
      An interesting book, especially for someone not familiar with many of the events discussed. Each chapter covers a single battle in about 20 pages or so in an informative, entertaining manner. Good read, either all at once, or piecemeal, a chapter at a time
    • 4/5
      Moment of Battle is entertaining and interesting. More a survey or reference book, it would be useful, for instance to read the chapter on Vicksburg while studying American civil war history. Trying to read this book from beginning to end might intimidate many readers because it covers battles over a twenty-five hundred year time frame.Each chapter is about twenty pages long and concludes with a concise summary of why this particular battle matters in the big picture. A pleasure to read.
    • 4/5
      This, as other reviewers have pointed out, is a modern update on the 20 battles that most shaped the world, though predominantly the Western world. It is presented with alternate selection critera for the battles chosen according to the authors. They state that the total situation before and after the battle needs be examined to make the cut not just the usual suspects and dramatic points of history. The authors themselves claim that the treatise on each conflict is not meant to be exhaustive and to acknowledge the great body of work done by previous authors on many of these subjects. Rather it is to encapsulate the events leading up to, during, and after each battle and its place in the major conflict that fueled it. They acknowledge the politics and international situations that formed these conflicts and do advise those looking for more details to read further in other volumes. The book comes off as a primer, albeit a well-constructed one, on some important military moments in history. The narratives for each battle are concisely put together, written in an intelligent and well-researched manner though not overly academic, and desgined that even a military history novice could come away with a working understanding of the impact of these conflicts. In that sense, the authors deserve significant credit. It is a fun book that acknowledges it short-comings in the introduction and does introduce several battles that even more well-read military historians might not have acknowledged. Some of the conflicts deserve more detailed treatment but this is not the book for it nor should it be treated as such. Many reviewers state frustrations with the length and format. History by its nature is objective and author's will always have biases. The fact that the book is a scant 20 battles out of several millennium of conflicts is a big enough indicator of that. This book does present some new scholarship into its research and does come closer to current time lines than most books in this vein. It is not meant to be comprehensive but rather an enjoyable read for the non-fiction novice, casual military historians, or any one looking for a new look on major military conflicts that shaped the modern Western world. A solid effort.
    • 4/5
      This is a book that should be in every military history buff’s library; not as a replacement for other works on the same subject but to augment them and, in many cases, present alternative points of view. Many may argue about which twenty battles should be considered as crucial in determining the course of world events but the authors have chosen these twenty as representative and they do a plausible job defending their selection except—most notably—the final battle, Objective Peach, from the conflict in Iraq.The pattern of their description of each battle is the same. They first set the stage to put the conflict into the broader historical context. They then analyze the battle to include tactics, technology, personalities and key decisions. They end each chapter with an assessment of what effect the outcome had on ensuing events. For the most part, their style is fresh with a smattering of modern idioms. When they disagree with other historian’s conclusions, they define the differences and clearly state their reasons to disagree. The book has some significant defects. Their use of maps is woefully inferior. First, they are misplaced or, at best, inconsistently used. Mostly they are located within the first two or three pages when the run up to the battle is discussed and, when the crux of the battle is finally discussed, it is necessary to leaf back to the map. In some cases the maps seem to be intended to augment the preliminary discussion in which case the location is proper but it is not always clear what the maps are intended to support. Also, the notations on the maps do not always gibe with the text. For example, sites on the map that look significant often go without mention in the battle description. In short, the maps and text are poorly integrated and detract rather than augment.Many of the conclusions are painful as if forced to be included simply to conform to a predetermined format. Without question, it is difficult to assess the course of history had the outcome of each battle been different but the author’s anglophile biases bubble to the surface all too frequently. The rise and predominance of the British Empire did not ensure the continuance of the industrial revolution let alone spark the “Age of Reason”. Many of the great centers of learning in the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries were in mainland Europe and they seem to have thrived in the face of French military ineptitude. A particular case in point is the analysis of the Battle for Quebec in Annus Mirabilis. Wolfe’s success is gleefully recorded as signaling the pending demise of French imperialism but that it probably adversely affected the course of American history is ignored. If the Colonies had had a French ally on their Northern border, the War of Independence might have been averted or, at least, not put so perilously at risk. Burgoyne would not have had a base to assemble; the diversion of Continental forces to central New York would not have been necessary and the Battle of Saratoga might not have been fought. We won that battle but expended resources (including the ego of Benedict Arnold) that might have been effectively used elsewhere. In all probability, the Revolutionary War would have been fought differently had Canada been in French hands.I also disagree with some analyses but respect the author’s opinions. I disagree with the harsh assessment of Omar Bradley’s performance at Normandy, for example. And, based on Bernard Fall’s informed opinion (as an agent of the French government as has been alleged?) and other reading, I lay some of the blame for the Dien Bien Phu debacle on the U.S. I believe the French relied on a tacit, if not declared, promise of air support that was denied after Giap’s forces were ‘found’ and ‘fixed’. Maybe I’m sounding like a Francophile which I am not but that may counter Lacey’s and Murray’s anti-Francophile biases .Let us turn lastly to the post-Viet Nam era. The authors contend that we learned nothing from that era. That is naïve and reflects ignorance of the profound cultural adjustments made in the military since then. The most salient change was the elimination of the draft. The conduct of the Army, in particular, in that conflict depended on the conduct of amateur draftees. We have depended on professionals since then with drastically different results. Another profound adjustment made in South-East Asia was Nixon’s incursion into Cambodia. That was a game changer which future historians must surely acknowledge. A basic precept enunciated by Mao in his Little Red Book was that irregular forces must always have a refuge where they might be revitalized, rearmed, and rested. Our cross-border incursion negated the future use of international boundaries for that use; a lesson yet to sink in but effectively relied on with, for example, our use of drones in Pakistan and Yemen. The precedent was set by Nixon’s unpopular Cambodian incursion. Who cannot recognize that as a clash that changed the world? James Lacey and Williamson Murray come to mind.For all its faults, I believe the book to be a creditable work but it could have been better. Buy it but keep an open mind.
    • 2/5
      This is a disappointing book. The military analysts James Lacey and Willaimson Murray set out to write a corrective for all those stuffy academic historians who don't understand that battles are really important. While battles are important, wars and the peace made after them are more important, a fact that Lacey and Murray seem to forget. We can argue endlessly over why the authors included some battles but not others. They don't include Cannae, Hannibal's greatest victory, because it wasn't decisive--a very sound point. Instead they discuss Zama, where Scipio Africanus defeated Hannibal and put an end to the Second Punic War. Yet the battles matter ONLY because the Romans were able to hold their confederation of allies together over many years and under intense pressure. Without that social/political/cultural/military ability, Zama never happens. But that diplomatic/political/social stuff isn't really important in the authors' eyes. We see the same shortcoming in the discussion of Trafalgar. What allowed the British navy to maintain itself over the years of the continental blockade? What forms of public finance, of press-ganging, of leadership enabled Nelson to do what he did? Who were the poor men press-ganged into service and how did the navy transform them into the dauntless sailors who beat the Spanish? Yes, yes, the manuevers are so fascinating, if your view of history starts and stops with toy soldiers on a map. The authors do a better job on the battle of Hastings, which surely deserves to be in a volume like this. But again, we find them narrowly concentrating on formations and tactics, rather than on the underlying "sinews of war." And they believe that the Normans faked retreats in order to lure the English out from behind their shield wall, although most historians doubt that the Normans could intentionally feint even once, let alone several times. Finally, the authors' narrow view of history is fully revealed in the chapter on Objective Peach, the drive on Baghdad during the second Gulf War. Really? This is one of the twenty most decisive battles in the history of mankind? I cannot recommend this book.
    • 3/5
      I found this to be written well and extremely clearly. When you're dealing with the events during an actual battle it can be easy to get muddled, to focus too much on one part, to assume the audience more knowledgeable than it is, etc...The authors spend roughly twenty pages discussing each battle. They typically cover the events (both military and political) leading up to the battle, and go into what might have happened if the result had been flipped. They also talk specifically about the changes in culture or politics that resulted because the battle went the way it did. All but two of the battles include a map (though with Trafalgar it's a period piece showing the lines before battle started, of course). The two that don't include them are Teutoburger Wald and Yarmuk. Each chapter also includes various pictures of art or relics relating to that battle or period.My one quibble, and this may only be found in the uncorrected proof, is that the maps were sometimes placed a dozen pages before the action was described. It seems like a fairly easy thing to place the maps opposite the page where the battle action is starting to be described. I did also find some historical simplifying in later chapters, however, so I wonder how much that went on in with the battles I was less knowledgeable about.
    • 4/5
      This is the latest updating of Edward Creasy’s Fifteen Decisive Battles. The battles range from Marathon in 490 BC to Operation Peach of the Iraq War in 2003. The authors opt for a specific criteria – not battles that changed the course of a war but ones that fundamentally altered the future influence of nations and cultures. Most of the time that criteria is met even if it means we get four from WWII (the Battle of Britain, Midway, Kursk, and Normandy). The inclusion of the Iraq War is, as the authors acknowledge, somewhat questionable given that history is only beginning to work out its effects. It seems there to mainly lend novelty to the latest entry in this military history sub-genre and to take advantage of the authors’ own contributions to scholarship on the war – in this case a fascinating look at Saddam Hussein’s decisions in response to the invasion of his country.Besides the Iraq War, there are other deviations from the stated formula. The “Annus Mirabilis” chapter actually covers two 1759 battles, one on land and one on sea, that determined the British, and not the French, Empire would dominate the world and lay the groundwork for modern globalization. We get Vicksburg and not Gettysburg for the American Civil War – thus running counter to the authors’ wry observation that historians looking for a quick payday can always whip out a book on Hastings, Waterloo, or Gettysburg. (Hastings is here, though.)As a casual reader of military history, I had heard of most of these battles except Yarmuk and Breitenfeld. The first was the 636 battle that forever denied Palestine and Syria to the Byzantium Empire. Colorfully known in Arab history as “The Day of the Lost Eyes” (though the historical record is unclear on even how many days this battle lasted), its win enabled Islam to continue to push against Europe until it encountered Charles the Hammer almost a 100 years later. Breitenfeld was Gustavus Adolphus debuting modern warfare – discipline on the battlefield, tactical flexibility, and the maximum use of firepower – to the world in 1631. Most of the battles – with the reasonable exceptions of Trafalgar and Teutoburger Wald – have maps. However, those maps are often a bit too general. Operation Peach’s map, on the other hand, seems somewhat unconnected to the text.The formula followed for each battle-chapter is a quick setting of the historical context, a description of the battle which does not purport to detail the very moment it was decided, and a summation on why the battle affected world history. I am not a devotee of any of these battles, but I suspect that readers who have read multiple books on any of them will not usually find anything groundbreaking. However, I suspect there are some exceptions where recent scholarship has provided new information. Besides the obvious case of Operation Peach (the taking, intact, of the al-Qàid Bridge over the Euphrates River), I think, given the cited sources, the battles of Kursk and Dien Bien Phu may fall in this category.So, general history readers should find this book worthwhile, and even those hardcore military history readers who have studied these battles might find a few new tidbits – or, at least, another list of decisive battles to argue about.