Forthcoming: Peter H. Wilson, 'Iron and Blood: A Military History of the German-speaking Peoples since 1500'

iron and blood

'Iron and Blood: A Military History of the German-speaking Peoples since 1500'  encompasses five centuries of political, military, technological and economic change to tell the story of the German-speaking lands, from the Rhine to the Balkan frontier, from Switzerland to the North Sea.

Peter H. Wilson's narrative considers everything from weapons development to recruitment to battlefield strategy. Germans' military impact on the rest of Europe has been immense. If there is one constant it has been the sense of being beset by seemingly more powerful enemies - France or Russia or Turkey - and the need to strike a rapid knockout blow to ensure a favourable result. Almost inevitably, this has in practice meant protracted, relentless and often unwinnable wars, and - in 1939-1945 - moral catastrophe. 

 

'Iron and Blood: A Military History of the German-speaking Peoples since 1500' is published by Allen Lane on October 6th 2022.

For more information, go to https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/309746/iron-and-blood/9780241355565.html

 

Peter H. Wilson is the Principal Investigator of The European Fiscal-Military System 1530-1870.