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How Soldiers Die in Battle
Crown
June 2012
On Sale: May 22, 2012
480 pages
ISBN: 0307395847
EAN: 9780307395849
Kindle: B006JHKSS2
Hardcover / e-Book
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Non-Fiction
In this brilliantly researched, deeply humane work of
history, Michael Stephenson traces the paths that have led
soldiers to their graves over the centuries, revealing a
wealth of insight about the nature of combat, the
differences among cultures, and the unchanging qualities of
humanity itself. Behind every soldier’s death lies a story, a tale not just
of the cold mathematics of the battlefield but of an
individual human being who gave his life. What psychological
and cultural pressures brought him to his fate? What
lies—and truths—convinced him to march toward his death?
Covering warfare from prehistory through the present day,
The Last Full Measure tells these soldiers’ stories,
ultimately capturing the experience of war as few books ever
have. In these pages, we march into battle alongside the Greek
phalanx and the medieval foot soldier. We hear gunpowder’s
thunder in the slaughters of the Napoleonic era and the
industrialized killing of the Civil War, and recoil at the
modern, automated horrors of both World Wars. Finally, we
witness the death of one tradition of “heroic” combat and
the construction of another in the wars of the modern era,
ranging from Vietnam to America’s latest involvements in
Iraq and Afghanistan. In exploring these conflicts and others, Stephenson draws on
numerous sources to delve deep into fascinating,
period-specific detail—tracing, for instance, the true
combat effectiveness of the musket, the utility of the
cavalry charge, or the vulnerabilities of the World War II
battle tank. Simultaneously, he examines larger themes and
reveals surprising connections across both time and culture.
What does the medieval knight have in common with the modern
paratrooper? What did heroism and bravery mean to the Roman
legionary, or to the World War I infantryman—and what is the
true motivating power of such ideals? How do men use
religion, friendship, or even nihilism to armor themselves
against impending doom—and what do we as human beings make
of the undeniable joy some among us take in the carnage? Combining commanding prose, impeccable research, and a true
sensitivity to the combatant’s plight, The Last Full Measure
is both a remarkably fresh journey through the annals of war
and a powerful tribute to the proverbial unknown soldier.
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