The Face of Battle

De: John Keegan

Narrado por: Simon Vance

In this major and wholly original contribution to military history, John Keegan reverses the usual convention of writing about war in terms of generals and nations in conflict, which tends to leave the common soldier as cipher. Instead, he focuses on what a set battle is like for the man in the thick of it—his fears, his wounds and their treatment, the mechanics of being taken prisoner, the nature of leadership at the most junior level, the role of compulsion in getting men to stand their ground, the intrusions of cruelty and compassion, the din and blood.

Set battles, with their unities of time and place, may be a thing of the past, but this anatomy of what they were like for the men who fought them is an unforgettable mirror held up to human nature.

©1976 John Keegan (P)2001 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Reseñas de la Crítica

“The most brilliant evocation of military experience in our time.” (C. P. Snow, British novelist and scientist)

The way the British look at war

I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this book. The descriptions of how soldiers die, and the hardships they faced was presented in a way that wasn't stomach turning but enlightening.

The description of Henry the 5th's victory of Agincourt showed how long range (archery) changed the face of battle. The tactics used, the way the archers rallied makes this portion of the 100 years war come to life.

Wellington's victory of Waterloo brought us into the artillery age. His description of one soldier's death from starvation two years after his injury was shocking. This man had his tongue and jaw blown off and it still took him years to die.

The WWI battle of The Somme showed how far the artillery age moved and how it was defeated by the introduction of the machine gun. Keegan made me feel the dust and shaking ground in his description of the artillery barrage that lasted 3 days!

If you are a history buff, or specifically war history buff you will be glad you bought this book.

A hodgepodge but interesting

Keegan's writing isn't the most exciting. It's more academic than pop culture but a wealth of unique info. Readers will learn much about the three battles but the sections before and after seem to brief for such major topcs. Still, it's great work.

Excellent study of battle.

All students of war, battle, fighting and especially the officer cadet should read/study this book. John Keegan brings to light some interesting thoughts that any man-of-arms should know and have learnt from. Many people see battle as a breakdown of human nature whilst others the heights of achievements but I believe John Keegan has put it into perspective that shows it as part of human nature and a by-product of the society we live in. Industrialisation, mechanisation have played their roll however so has culture like religion and honour. I do find his assumptions of the future of battle a little naive but his study backs-up his summary.
I loved this book as it was so much in tuned with my own study in this area however I do need to read not only his source material if possible, but continue to read my own pursuits. I will never complete this hobby reading but it is a passion. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your point of view with my studies, I have never been in combat and so this will hopefully always be an armchair study but this book is excellent in helping me move to a little more understanding of the face of battle.
I hope his other books are made into audio format.

Extremely detailed. Not for a casual listen.

John Keegan is the éminence gries of military history. His scholarship is unsurpassed. His authorship is head and shoulders above all but a few. I enjoyed the book and although generally familiar with the battles described, learned a great deal. The Face of Battle is in essence, a textbook for young officers at Sandhurst or West Point. It can get academic and perhaps a little tedious if you aren't seriously interested. I was, and liked it quite a lot.

Required reading for military history

Required reading for military history breathtaking scope across time and levels of description. from weapons soldiers units armies and the mind and face of what it is fight, live, die in war