The Franco-Prussian War: A Captivating Guide to the War of 1870 between the French Empire and German States and the Role Otto von Bismarck Played in ... of Germany (European Military History)

This is an excellent overview of the Franco Prussian War. It is a compact version. I read the entire work over a long weekend during breaks from other activities. There are not footnotes. However there is a bibliography at the end of my Kindle copy. I feel it is a very good starting point as a basis for further study.Years ago I felt that, as an American, I had a poor knowledge of European History. I wished to repair that. I have recently studied the French Revolution and a biography of Napoleon Bonaparte. I next wanted to fill in the time between Napoleon and World War I. An important period is the Franco Prussian War. I am embarking on a study of Bismarck. I wanted to get an idea about this particular conflict as it marks the rise of Bismarck to preeminence. It also marks the beginning of modern Germany as a country. This work assists in filling in background of that study.At the end of World War I there were severe reparations placed on Germany. Compare that settlement with the end of the Franco Prussian War. It seems likely that the end of The Franco Prussian War played a role in the reparations imposed on Germany at the end of War War I. Many people, including me, feel that the settlement at the end of World War I planted seeds for World War II. Therefore it is possible that this war, The Franco Prussian War, in 1870, played a role in the beginning of World War II in 1939.In summary I really liked this work. It is a summary and is a starting point. It is not an obscure event. It can easily be part of the origin of both World Wars. I am very happy with this product as a source for further study. Thank you for taking the time to read this review.

I found this one tough to rate - one cannot fail to be impressed by the quality of the in-depth research and the clever ways of expressing all that detail into a format to be enjoyed by the reader.For the content it would be a *****, if you have NO interest in warfare, tactics and politics - more like **.The first 30%, or so, is devoted to setting the scene - that is followed by a very detailed blow-by-blow account of a series of battles.The section on the respective side's armaments and capabilities is most interesting.The overwhelming reaction is: yet another totally unnecessary war, which achieved nothing apart from staggering casualties and unfair impact on civilians.

A very well written and concise history of the causes and the after effects of the franco-Prussian War. Obviously, the majority of the book is the history of the war itself. While there are likely longer books about this conflict this book is enough to give you a good overview of it. Definitely worth the price of the time that it takes to read it.

This book explains quit well how the end of Charlemagne's rule caused chaos. Which lead to wars and hard feelings. Then posturing and more wars, all the way to WW2. The birthing of Germany and modern military thought.

The review title is a reference to the war itself, not the book. The book is very thorough on the figures & battle moves & (mis-) strategies, which makes it a bit hard to follow.This is an vital story to understanding why western continental Europe has the geopolitical shape it does today, and why it went forward the way it did subsequent to this little discussed war.

There are events in history that upon examination are shown to be tipping points which change the direction of social and cultural directions. Such is the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. As Matt Clayton notes, the war was short, but it shook the foundations of Europe. France failed to preserve its image as a strong player in Europe and the loss led to the fall of the last monarchical regime. The war also led to a unified German Empire and was consider as the first major step to World War 1.Matt starts with a brief history of Franco-German relations and quickly walks us from the 9th century to Napoleon's reign. Napoleon's interests conflicted with the growing influence of Otto von BismarckThe publication explains the strategic and tactical maneuvers during the war. Prussia maintained a high degree of preparation in campaigns and mobilizations and practices wargames. On the other hand, the French military was much less organized.Matt takes time to discuss the armaments of the two armies and then provides a splendid series of chapters to illuminate ebb and flow of the campaign. A nice collection of references is provided at the end for further research.

Captivating History takes us through the Franco-Prussan War step by step in this book and gives the facts of this conflict that lasted only about six months but it's impact still influences our military today.There are several pictures and maps included in this book to further illustrate and explain the war and help the reader understand,which I personally appreciate.I am not very knowledgeable about the wars that have taken place but I am trying to remedy that because I love learning about history and that should include the conflicts to future understand how we got here and where we are going.There are plenty of reasons that anyone interested in history should read this book and you can always count on Captivating History to teach you well.I highly recommend this book.

No listed author or publisher, no sources, very poor reproduction of maps and photos. Not particularly easy to read. The idea might be sound, but this needs work and I would encourage that.