book review: Brills Encyclopedia of the first World war

with the aid of Gerhard Hirschfeld, Gerd Krumeifh, & Irina Renz, editors Leiden/Boston: E. J. Brill, 2012. Two vols., pp. xii. Illus., maps, notes, biblio., index. $275.00 the set. ISBN: 9004207392 this is an important new reference work on the great struggle. initially published in German in 2009, this work opens with a sequence of thematic essays via a variety of students which take up about half the first extent. These essays are grouped into four classes: States,” has nation profiles of Germany, France, Belgium, Britain, Austria-Hungary, Russia, Italy, and the U.S., reviewing their policies, pursuits, and leadership Social aspects,” has essays on specialized issues such as girls, workers, soldiers, religion, and economies. “The course of the war,” examines a variety of phases of the warfare, its origins, strategies of the alliances, defense force rule and conflict crimes, and its end. “Historiography” looks on the historical past of the history of the struggle, and has a very unique essay on the warfare and the previous German Democratic Republic The stability of the work consists of numerous short essays on people, activities, battles, weapons, and so on. Some of these entries are reasonably long, taking on a few 7”-via-10” pages (e.g., “Alpine warfare,” Demobilization,” and so on.), whereas others are just one or two paragraphs. all the entries are fairly first rate, constantly written with the aid of consultants in the container (over a hundred and fifty students contributed to the volume). whereas most entries are reasonably general, the sort of factor one fairly expects in such a work (e.g., “armed forces,” “Peace Initiatives,” and many others.), others cowl matters regularly ignored (e.g., “Superstition,” “Rumors,” “war Weddings,” “film,” and so on.). Betraying it origins, youngsters, the set has reasonably extra entries involving Germany and Austria-Hungary than to different nations. this is constructive in that it gives the reader with a deeper analyze wartime trends and movements in those international locations (e.g., the German “Auxiliary service” or “Emergency cash” programs). nevertheless it additionally potential that there are some startling omissions (e.g., Serb container Marshal Radomir Putnik, American Admiral William Sims, and so forth.). having said that, this is a vital new reference on the great war which throws pleasing light on aspects of the conflict that are sometimes overlooked in equivalent works by using scholars from erstwhile Allied countries. ---///---