Book Description
With more than 1,100 entries written by some 500 distinguished contributors, The Oxford Companion to American Military History is "the most comprehensive treatment of American military history ever compiled" (Parameters: U.S. Army War College Quarterly) and an "easy-to-browse, well-organized work" (The Washington Post). Here is a gold mine of information on American military history, exploring battles and soldiers, ships and weapons, services and doctrines--as well as the social and cultural impact of the U.S. military at home and around the world. The Oxford Companion to American Military History boasts over 1,100 entries written by some 500 distinguished contributors. Readers will find Stephen E. Ambrose writing on the D-Day landing, James M. McPherson on the battle of Antietam, John Keegan on the changing experience of combat, Jean Bethke Elshtain on Jane Addams, Mark A. Noll on religion and war, and Robert M. Utley on Sitting Bull. Ranging from brief factual pieces to extensive essays, the entries examine every major war from the Revolution to the Persian Gulf; important battles from Bunker Hill, to the Alamo, Gettysburg, Little Bighorn, Normandy, and Khe Sanh; and military leaders from Washington to Grant, Lee, Eisenhower, MacArthur, Westmoreland, and Schwarzkopf. Moreover, the Companion goes well beyond the usual "drum and trumpet" coverage to examine a wide range of subjects you might not expect to find. There are entries on relevant acts of Congress and on diplomatic policies such as the Monroe Doctrine and the Marshall Plan; on peace and antiwar movements; on war in film, literature, music, and photography; and on war viewed through the disciplinary lenses of anthropology, economics, gender studies, and psychology. The result is the widest ranging account compiled in one volume of war, peace, and the U.S. military. With over a thousand authoritative and vividly written entries, maps of several major wars, extensive cross-referencing, lists of further readings, and an index, this volume is the first place to turn for information on our nation's military history.
Customer Reviews:
A Prize-Winning Reference Book.......2001-03-11
The Oxford Companion to American Military History has been awarded the Distinguished Reference Book Award by the Society for Military History in 2001. It has been the subject of several long and highly favorable reviews including those by Russell Weigley in the January 2001 issue of the "Journal of Military History," by Hew Strachan in the February 16, 2001 issue of "TLS, the London Times Literary Supplement," and by Vince Rinehart in April 9, 2000 issue of "The Washington Post's Book World."
Interesting reference for military history buff........2000-11-01
This book is NOT a chronological book of American military history, but rather an encyclopedic reference with thousands of entries. No pictures- ... It covers topics including: all the major wars, battles, bios on military leaders, warfare methods, a survey of combat weapons and military hardware, political acts by Congress and treaties, overviews of the military structure and services. It features contributions by notaries like Stephen E. Ambrose and John Keegan... its coverage priorities are odd. The political-correctness bent comes out every now and then in this book...
An Encyclopedia for US History.......2000-05-17
While the quality of the book seems good, the organization is unusual for a history book. It should be emphasized that this is a reference book set up like an encyclopedia on people, battles, and wars (listed alphabetically). It is NOT set up chronologically!
be aware, a broad interpretation........2000-05-15
this is a very comprehensive reference, but its coverage priorities are odd.
for example, it devotes twice as much space to "gays and lesbians in the us military" as it does to the battle of gettysburg, which says it all about modern history really.
A great reference book........2000-04-05
I originally received this book by accident as an unwanted "feature selection" of a book club. However, I was so impressed with it that I decided to keep it. It contains mammoth entries on America's major wars, many small ones covering lesser known interventions by U.S. forces throughout the world (such as the expedition to Russia in 1918 to fight the Bolsheviks), and biographical sketches of important American and foreign military leaders. Most importantly, this book is fairly neutral and objective when discussing any controversies. Its an excellent overview, and anyone interested in American military history will enjoy it.
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The Civil War and Reconstruction: A Student Companion (Oxford Student Companions to American History)
William L. Barney
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
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American Immigration: A Student Companion (Oxford Student Companions to American History)
ASIN: 0195115597 |
Book Description
The Civil War was the most devastating event in U.S. history, in which over half a million Americans paid for their beliefs with their lives. The heroic battles, harrowing marches, and military genius of generals on both sides still inspire books, movies, and the imaginations of Civil War buffs. Less obvious are the economic, political, social, and cultural repercussions of the war, which continue to influence American life. Reconstruction and the end of slavery brought deep-seated problems to the reunited nation. This single-volume encyclopedia includes 245 entries on all facets of the conflicted era. It features articles on: * Battles and campaigns (Gettysburg, Shiloh, Sherman's March to the Sea) * Culture (music, photography, religion) * Economic affairs (cost of the war, gold, Richmond Bread Riot) * Foreign affairs (France, Great Britain, Laird rams) * Health and welfare (disease, medicine, prisons) * Ideologies (federalism, free-labor ideology) * Legislative landmarks (14th Amendment, Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, Wade-Davis bill) * Military terms, strategy, and weaponry (cavalry, rifles, tactics) * Minorities (black suffrage, emancipation, Native Americans) * Political events and organizations (Constitutional Union party, election of 1860, fire-eaters) * Prominent individuals (Clara Barton, Frederick Douglass, Robert E. Lee, Abraham Lincoln, Walt Whitman) * Social reform (abolitionism, women's rights movement) * Women (nurses, women in the war, individual women) More than 200 black-and-white illustrations, including over a dozen maps, complement the entries. A list of selected Civil War museums and historic sites, suggestions for further reading, recommended websites, and a chronology of the war round out this essential resource.
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World War II: A Student Companion (Oxford Student Companions to American History)
William L. O'Neill
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0195108000 |
Book Description
World War II was the bloodiest and farthest-reaching military conflict in human history, which resulted in the annihilation of some 60 million people. This authoritative and thorough volume summarizes the essential information regarding the war in vibrant, accessible entries. It features: * brief biographical portraits of notable military and political leaders, from Bradley to Zhukov * informative analyses of significant battles and political events, from blitzkrieg to Yalta * details on military organizations, army, navy, and air force units, and theaters of war * descriptions of individual weapon classes, from flame throwers to U-boats * insightful articles on war-related issues, such as home front and financing the war * profiles of the key participating countries * explanation of war-specific terms, such as unconditional surrender and civil defense * entries on lesser known topics--including Navajo code breakers and Afrika corps * Further reading lists following each entry * A list of museums and historical sites, including on-line information * A complete chronology of important dates * Cross-references following each entry While focusing primarily on the American war effort, the author has incorporated extensive material about the other major participants in the conflictnotably the Soviet Union, Germany, Japan, Great Britain, France, Italy, and China. O'Neill does not hesitate to tackle controversial issues--from the atomic bomb to the lack of an American heavy tank. Over 220 photographs and maps, and a detailed index make World War II: A Student Companion an excellent introductory resource for students and readers interested in modern history.
Book Description
North Carolina possesses one of the longest, most treacherous coastlines in the United States, and the waters off its shores have been the scene of some of the most dramatic episodes of piracy and sea warfare in the nation's history. Now, Lindley Butler brings this fascinating aspect of the state's maritime heritage vividly to life. He offers engaging biographical portraits of some of the most famous pirates, privateers, and naval raiders to ply the Carolina waters.
Covering 150 years, from the golden age of piracy in the 1700s to the extraordinary transformation of naval warfare ushered in by the Civil War, Butler sketches the lives of eight intriguing characters: the pirate Blackbeard and his contemporary Stede Bonnet; privateer Otway Burns and naval raider Johnston Blakeley; and Confederate raiders James Cooke, John Maffitt, John Taylor Wood, and James Waddell. Penetrating the myths that have surrounded these legendary figures, he uncovers the compelling true stories of their lives and adventures.
Customer Reviews:
Villainy, Luck and Courage on the Outer Banks.......2004-05-15
While visiting beautiful Ocracoke Island on North Carolina's Outer Banks recently I picked up this book in a local book store. I wanted to get some flavor of the island's history and had skimmed through a dozen or so titles before I settled on this one. I was not disappointed. Lindley S. Butler has captured the marine lore of the Outer Banks in a well written and researched book. "Pirates, Privateers, and Rebel Raiders of the Carolina Coast" chronicles, without sensationalism, the often bloody careers of eight of the most important personalities of the days of pirates, the War of 1812 and the Civil War. All, from the pirate Blackbeard to the Confederate raider James I. Waddell, are shone in realistic fashion. I was much impressed by both the wealth of sources listed and with the easy reading style of this work. It made a great read during my flight from Raleigh-Durham to El Paso. This is, in my opinion as a non-historian, the way histories should be written to make them more accessible to the layman. I have to also give my compliments to the University of North Carolina Press for publishing this excellent account, which stands out among any number of books on pirates and privateers.
If you visit the coast of either North or South Carolina and wish to know more about the rich local history, you cannot go wrong in reading Butler's volume on the subject!
Engrossing tales of captivating seafarers.......2004-04-17
With Pirates, Privateers, and Rebel Raiders, Dr. Lindley Butler has written an exceptionally readable narrative that attempts to transcend the myths of sea outlaws and tell the stories of 8 important seafarers who operated off the rugged North Carolina coast. The book spans over 150 years from 18th century pirates, to privateers during the War of 1812, and rebel raiders of the Civil War. The stories of the notorious Blackbeard and Stede Bonnet open the book with engrossing tales about these pirates' lives and activities during their relatively short stints as outlaws. Historical consultant to the archaeological team exploring the 18th century wreck off the coast of North Carolina believed to be Blackbeard's flagship, the Queen Anne's Revenge, Butler has researched some of the most up-to-date material on the world famous pirate, though much of Blackbeard's early life remains a mystery. Equally engaging are the stories of the lesser-known privateer, Otway Burns, and naval commerce raider Johnston Blakeley who operated out of North Carolina during the War of 1812. The poignancy of Blakeley's final days is skillfully told through Butler's narrative. The book concludes with the exploits of Confederate naval officers James Cooke of the ironclad Albemarle, blockade runner John Maffitt, naval commando John Taylor Wood, and James Waddell, the commerce raider who sailed around the world in the Shennandoah. The stories of these naval heroes of the rebellion reveal the intensity of the national struggle that shook the country apart and draw the reader into a deeper understanding of the personal struggles that affected so many in the nation. Although the lives of these eight men are not romanticized in Butler's book, romance is not left out of his narrative as family life and personal relationships are woven into each biographical sketch. Nonetheless, the action packed stories of these maritime warriors and thieves are thoroughly captivating, making the book difficult to put down. What Butler has reminded us is that history in its truest form is first and foremost about story-telling. He has succeeded in telling the stories of these men's lives in a way that is both historically informative and skillfully narrated.
Book Description
Raiders and Rebels is a rich and vivid account of the golden age of piracy. From 1692 to 1725 pirates sailed the oceans of the world, terrorizing seamen and plundering ships laden with the riches of India, Africa, South America and the Caribbean. Beneath these well known facts lies the true story of pirates. They were common men and women escaping the social and economic restrictions of 18th-century Europe. Their activities threatened the beginnings of world trade and jeopardized the economic security of several European nations even as they formed one of the first true democracies in the world.
Customer Reviews:
An entire musuem between two covers........2003-09-06
"Raiders and Rebels" heeds the advice of telling an entire story from background to climax while being kind enough to remove all the unnecessary parts. We learn about the conditions of miniscule earnings, rotten food, and brutal merchant captains that turned ordinary sailors into authority-hating pirates. We learn truth from myth without losing an ounce of the wonder that made the stories of pirates into centuries-old legends.
Told in a linear narrative from 1692 to 1725, "Raiders and Rebels" succinctly establishes the sea settings and major players of the era and moves us along the rise and fall of piracy's golden age replete with anecdotes of captured prisoners' heads set afire, Spanish monks made to run in circles while being whipped and stabbed by the entire pirate crew, and daring escapes and defiant last stands and a famous beheading of a legend.
In 1692, sailors were harshly treated, malnourished, minimally paid, and essentially enslaved to the boat and its profitting captain and owners. The ships themselves were evenly matched (even if outgunned) with naval warships in technology and seamanship, making rebellion possible. And the Navigation Acts dating from 1651 had forced the American colonies to trade only with England, artificially driving up prices and making fine goods a rarity in the colonies. These Acts created a huge demand and subsequent black market in the colonies for illegal goods. This was the world that sailors toiled in when the outbreak of privateering struck the maritime world.
Privateering was the practice of one country issuing a license to a private ship to attack and plunder merchants from an enemy country. In an instant, privateers swarmed the seas, each ship promising its crew better pay than the more honest sailors would ever earn.
But when peace was declared, these hardened privateers were essentially asked to return to their shackles and sentences aboard merchant ships. Many rebelled and turned to privateering without licenses, the lack of which made them official pirates.
Pirates flourished, gained freedom and fame, corrupted governors, built island kingdoms in Madagascar, the Bahamas and even off the American coast, they established anarchic towns of debauchary, and threatened the burgeoning shipping industry to the point of collapse. Truly democratic, pirate societies gave the promise of freedom and power to desperate men. Heroes arose among the pirates and the pirate-hunters and Frank Sherry gives due account to both.
Most interesting to me, however, was that piracy was not possible without atrocious conditions in the merchant business and a willing market in the Americas to deal in pirated goods. While pirates certainly committed evil acts, they were not without their root causes. A lesson that rings true today.
A fascinating read, I found myself compulsively taking notes throughout the entire book. An excellent account of history with a touch of artistic sensitivity to keep it grounded and readable. Read. Enjoy.
An Excellent Reference Book about Pirates and Piracy!.......2003-08-26
I beg your pardon, Mr. Bruce Rex, top 500 Reviewer! Your review was well-written and accurate except for one HUGE ERROR! You commented that the pirates, Anne Bonny and Mary Read, were lesbians?!!! That, sir, is far from the truth. As the author of RAIDERS & REBELS states, Anne Bonny was the young wife of James Bonny, a n'er-do-well sailor. After a few months of marriage, she ran away to sea with the notorious but handsome Calico Jack Rackham. (Mr. Sherry states Anne had many lovers before Jack, but I wonder where he got that information. I never read anything of the sort except in fictional novels!) As for Mary Read: She had worn men's clothing most of her life, fought in the War of the Spanish Succession, and fell in LOVE with a fellow soldier!!! She and her soldier married, were discharged from the army, and ran a pub in the Nederlands before her husband died. After his death, she again donned men's clothing, went to sea on a merchantman, and eventually ended up sailing on Calico Jack's ship where she and Anne became best friends. It is believed Anne had two children by Calico Jack. And Mary was pregnant with a child of her new love (an unnamed pirate aboard Rackham's ship) when they were captured in Negril Bay off the west coast of Jamaica. Frank Sherry included an index and bibliography as well as chapter notes in his wonderful book! I recommend it for everyone.I also recommend a children's novel that has photos and accurate information about pirates including Anne Bonny and Mary Read: The Diary of a Slave Girl, Ruby Jo includes a scene about Blackbeard and his men in 1718 Charles Town, SC. Also, a must read for any age!
"Will Ye Join Us, Brother?".......2003-03-11
This is the single best overall book available on piracy's Golden Age. Sherry organizes his material very well, telling a straight chronological history of piracy's evolution from early buccaneers to king's privateers to outright pirates. He devotes separate chapters to the most famous captains, elucidating their personal histories and careers in a clear and concise manner - Henry Morgan, Edward Teach (Blackbeard), Edward Low, Bartholomew Roberts (Black Bart), Calico Jack Rackham (and his lesbian pirate associates, Anne Bonney and Mary Read), the ill-fated Captain Kidd, and more. He also renders a wonderful biography of Woodes Rogers, the privateer-turned-governor of Nassau, a fascinating character whose actions, perhaps more than anyone else's, most damaged the cohesion of piracy - helping it fall apart of its own accord, due to disorganization and lack of discipline and foresight.
Sherry does not write merely about piracy as seagoing theft, but about the short-lived and surprisingly democratic "Maritime Nation." Few people realize that the "Brethren of the Coast" (as they styled themselves) were one of the earliest "countries" - and certainly the only one of their age - to institute accident and disability insurance and elected leadership, not to mention equal opportunity employment and what essentially amounted to equal-share company stock options. Sherry does an expert job of illustrating the brutality and oppression of the age, making it clear why so many sailors voluntarily joined ranks with the seafaring rebels - whose primary battle cry was not "death to all," but "Will ye join us, Brother?"
Many myths are explored and deflated, and many others shown to have a great deal of validity. There is only one recorded instance of anyone being made to walk the plank, for instance, (even if the pirates played on that prevalent myth to their own advantage), though marooning was indeed the favored form of pirate capital punishment.
Most importantly, Sherry does a fine job of making the reader feel what daily life was like for the pirates - and for their suffering cousins in the merchant marines and the Royal Navy - and portrays them in a sympathetic and understanding light. He doesn't soft-pedal the darker side of piracy, but he does put it into perspective.
Equally recommended is David Cordingly's "Under the Black Flag," though Sherry's "Raiders and Rebels" is better organized and actually more thorough.
Shiver Me Timbers!.......2001-03-20
A profound writing on the tumultuous, sea-going times of the Golden Age of Pirates, from 1692-1725. Raiders and Rebels, though a historical work, sparks as much imagination as a well-written novel and speaks with an amazing amount of clarity and excitement. A fantastic read, I loved every minute! I recommend it to anyone who's ever dreamt of those swashbuckling days of a bygone, but not forgotten era. Wow! Great job Frank!
Great book........2001-03-08
This is a great book on a rich and detailed subject. Buy it and read it.
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Raiders and rebels: The golden age of piracy
Frank Sherry
Manufacturer: Hearst Marine Books
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ASIN: 0688046843 |
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