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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What should be the main purpose of any attack?

2. What was Napoleon able to accomplish that Hitler could not?

3. What tactic, employed by generals as early as Belisarius, was widely used in World War II?

4. During World War II, most maneuvers had the intention of attacking the enemy where?

5. Forces are usually drawn into the "horns of a dilemma" in what way?

Short Essay Questions

1. What were the strengths and vulnerabilities of the Turks and the Arabs during the First World War?

2. What were the results and casualty rates on the Southeastern and Mediterranean fronts during the First World War?

3. What is a wedge attack, what is it used for and how is it countered?

4. According to the author, what were some motivating factors behind writing this book?

5. What are the important strategic differences between large and small armies.

6. Why was Ludendorff mostly unable to enact indirect strategies throughout the war?

7. What was the state of strategy and tactics on the eastern front during the First World War?

8. What was unusual about Hitler's preparations for war?

9. What was the problem with Clausewitz's writings, and why did they have a negative impact on the first World War?

10. What did Germany need in order to become secure and peacefully end the war?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The western front during the first World War was bloody and generally indecisive. The eventual German retreat was not precipitated by military setbacks, but by mere strategic considerations of position. There is every indication that the war could have continued in its indecisive state for many more years.

Part 1) What nations participated in the war on this front? What were the strategies on both sides? How was the war expected to be fought and won?

Part 2) What difficulties became apparent once the war had begun? How did terrain and technology affect the maneuvers and strategies that could be employed by both sides? In actual practice, what types of strategies were employed during the war?

Part 3) Were the results of the war in this theater decisive or indecisive? What factors contributed to this outcome? How did grand strategy affect the results of the war? Why was Germany eventually forced to retreat and eventually to surrender?

Essay Topic 2

The author suggests that the indirect approach is applicable to many fields outside of military strategy. There are obvious similarities between military endeavors, in which the goal is to acquire some lasting benefit for oneself, often in the face of resistance from an outside force, and many other human activities.

Part 1) Explain the indirect approach independent of military strategy. Describe its various components and attributes without reference to military terms or ideas.

Part 2) Discuss how these ideas can be applied to another specific human endeavor. Draw analogies between the military concepts discussed in the book and the concepts that pertain to the endeavor you have chosen to discuss.

Part 3) Use examples to explain how grand strategy relates to this endeavor, and how decisive and indecisive results can be identified.

Part 4) Explain step by step one example of how the indirect approach can be applied to this endeavor in order to bring about decisive results.

Essay Topic 3

Hitler and other German military leaders unleashed a furious war on conquest against most of continental Europe that shocked the world with its speed and effectiveness. Hitler had an unquestionably strong grasp of military strategy, and was in a unique position to manipulate the grand strategy of the war.

Part 1) What was the state of strategy and generalship immediately before the outbreak of World War II? What types of forces and engagements were most nations expecting? How did the German war-effort differ from these expectations?

Part 2) Explain the major characteristics of Hitler's strategies in World War II. Were his methods largely direct or indirect? Provide examples of both types of approaches.

Part 3) Summarize the extent of Hitler's successes. Were these results decisive or indecisive? Did Hitler succeed in achieving the goals dictated by his grand strategy?

(see the answer keys)

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