Enduring Controversies in Military History: Critical Analyses and Context [2 volumes]

Spencer C. Tucker

Sep 2017 · ABC-CLIO

About this ebook

This provocative examination of major controversies in military history enables readers to learn how scholars approach controversial topics and provides a model for students in the study and discussion of other historical events.

Why did Alexander the Great's empire fall apart so soon after his death? How did France win the Hundred Years War despite England winning its major battles? Was slavery the primary cause of the American Civil War? Would it have benefited the Allies militarily to have gone to war against Germany in 1938 rather than in 1939? Should women be allowed to serve in combat positions in the U.S. military? All of these questions and many other historical controversies are addressed in this thought-provoking reference book.

By exploring every angle of some of the most contentious debates involving military history, this book builds students' critical thinking skills by supplying a complete background of the controversial topic to provide context, and also by providing multiple perspective essays written by top scholars in the field. The perspective essays present arguments for different positions on the controversy. Readers will consider the cases for and against whether Hannibal should have marched on Rome after his momentous victory at Cannae, whether the United States was justified in using the atomic bomb in Japan, whether Adolf Hitler was primarily responsible for the Holocaust, and whether torturing prisoners during the War on Terror is warranted, among many other historical military debates.

Provides compelling examinations of major controversies in military history from the time of the ancient world to the modern day

Enables readers to see how historians address such topics and understand how their process could be applied to other topics or research areas

Offers a bibliography specific to each topic to give students looking to do further research a wealth of options

About the author

Spencer C. Tucker is Senior Fellow in Military History for ABC-CLIO Publishing. He retired in 2003 after 36 years of university teaching, the last six as holder of the John Biggs Chair in Military History at the Virginia Military Institute.