Delbrck's Modern Military History

The period 18661920 saw the rise and ruin of imperial Germany, and Hans Delbrck (18481929) reported on the events of those years from a uniquely privileged position. A professor of history at the University of Berlin, editor of the Prussian Annalsthe most famous journal of political commentary of his dayand a delegate to the Paris Peace Conference, he also moved among political, cultural, and military elites. Delbrck pioneered the techniques of modern military history, studying tactics and technology as well as the social, political, and economic context of military operations. His four-volume History of the Art of War is a classic of German and military history. This volume reveals the tension between Delbrcks patriotism and his scholarship, which helped him to recognize German military failings. The twenty-four readings, comprising letters written to his mother while he served in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 and essays, reviews, commentaries, and speeches on military figures, historians, and events through World War I, show his talents as a historian and political commentator. Arden Bucholzs introduction and headnotes illuminate the context of Delbrcks life and work.