1854-1914 Summary and Analysis

The purpose of this chapter, like all the others, is to provide an account of another portion of history and to give the reader further teachings upon strategy through use of examples supported by the author's educational commentary.

In this chapter, one of the main changes was that the military forces became more professional. This had a long lasting effect upon the entire nature of war. Here the author points up the need for balance. Length of service within the professional atmosphere can make the participants a bit stale and can give way to complacency. However, if they have enough experiences that invigorate them, then they won't suffer so much from this debilitating problem. At the other end of the spectrum, there are terrible consequences due to efforts to rely upon unprofessional soldiers, as was painfully recognized during the American Civil...