1911-1914 The Reminiscence of World War I -(Complete five volumes)

Author: Churchill
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-07-01
Features: Nobel Prize-winning author, former British Prime Minister Churchill's panoramic historical masterpiece! Due to his expertise in the art of history and biography, and also because of his brilliant speeches defending the dignity of humanity. – Swedish Academy Nobel Prize Award Citation The publication of this book can be considered a rare event among the few significant occasions in history. – The New York Times True insight, learning from the past to understand the present, every word is a pearl, unparalleled among those in high positions. – Vincent Sheen The imagination hidden behind the language is full of heroism, and he handles the grand and tumultuous events of the world with ease, a rare feat in historical works so far. – The New Yorker magazine In the early 20th century, it was an era of restlessness and unrest. Since the emergence of industrial civilization represented by machines and metropolises, colonial powers and their interest groups have engaged in a new global struggle, which eventually led to a seemingly accidental terrorist incident and the most brutal war in human history – World War I. This war utilized the full range of technological achievements from physics to chemistry of human civilization, making people deeply realize the negative power of civilization. The four years and three months of war involved a population of over 1.5 billion, with military and civilian casualties exceeding 30 million. Many European monarchs and emperors disappeared, and four historically prosperous great empires were destroyed, completely changing the global political and social order at the time. To give readers, especially young readers, a more intuitive impression of the world a century ago, we have specially commissioned Guangzhou Jicheng Image Company to select and match nearly 200 illustrations based on the content of the book, allowing Winston Churchill's beautiful words, as a Nobel Prize-winning author, to resonate with brilliant historical moments.
As a typical Western politician, the author naturally adopts a hostile attitude towards the Russian Revolution and the Communist movement from his own values. In the Chinese edition, we have deleted such passages that merely express the author's hostility and condemnation. However, when it comes to historical events and correspondence, except for slightly deleted words and phrases that are irrelevant to the narration, we have retained the essence, as they are all links in the chain of history, connecting both upward and downward; secondly, they also reflect from another perspective how the governments of capitalist countries at the time feared and interfered with the newly born Soviet regime and the Communist movement.
A commander-in-chief's recollection of the most brutal war in human history: Winston Churchill, a renowned British politician, held high-ranking positions in the British government for a long time and directly participated in many events. Britain was a major country in this war, so the book's detailed and reliable first-hand materials and personal experiences make it an indispensable and excellent version of World War I, whether from the perspective of historiography, military science, or international political science. This volume primarily narrates the European history from 1911 to 1914. In analyzing the true causes of World War I, Churchill reveals the historical origins and complex international relations of conflicts between major capitalist countries since 1870, outlines the state of arms race before the war, and introduces the frequent diplomatic activities between the two major groups aimed at forming alliances for dominance and counterdominance. Churchill refers to August to December 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, as the "first phase" of the war. He describes how Germany launched a surprise attack on the neutral country Belgium and invaded France, followed by Britain's naval support to France. During this phase, France and Britain launched large-scale battles such as the Marne River, resulting in hundreds of thousands of casualties and wasting lives for nothing. He also describes the initial stage of the Anglo-German naval war and how the German navy shelled British coastal cities for harassment. Later, he introduces the relationship between Turkey and the Balkan countries, which would affect the entire course of World War I.
1915 was the "second phase" of World War I. France and Britain launched battles such as Champagne, Artois, Ypres, and Loos. In the face of new weapons like machine guns and powerful artillery, the traditional military thinking of frontal assaults and bayonet charges to break enemy lines proved ineffective. On the Western Front, except for the costly war of attrition, there was no significant gain, and the battlefront stalemate. Britain's invention of tanks and use of smoke screens achieved only limited progress. The British navy held naval supremacy, but with a conservative commander, the naval battles were ineffective and yielded no positive results. In this volume, Churchill proposes a strategic decision to attack the Dardanelles, which would have a decisive impact on the composition of international forces and the entire war. However, due to the lack of understanding and support from most military leaders, the opportunity was repeatedly missed, and more than ten chances to win were lost, ultimately ending in failure. The Allies fell into crisis.
This volume narrates the "third phase" of World War I from 1916 to 1918, where the first two years saw a stalemate between the two sides. France and Britain launched battles such as the Somme, Aras, Messina, Paschendaele, and Cambrai. Germany attempted to capture the cornerstone of French honor and spirit – Verdun. However, neither side achieved anything. In terms of naval warfare, the Battle of Jutland saw Britain repeatedly miss opportunities, which Churchill describes in detail, profoundly analyzing the conservative thinking of the British naval commander. However, Britain defeated Germany's submarine warfare at sea. Due to Germany's naval blockade and unrestricted submarine warfare, the United States entered the war, changing the balance of power. Once German morale declined, they suffered a catastrophic defeat, leading to the collapse and surrender of the German Empire.
The first three volumes primarily narrate the Western Front and naval warfare of World War I, as well as the crucial battle for the Dardanelles. This volume focuses on the Eastern Front. It begins by discussing the historical origins of the conflict between the two major groups before the war. It then details the assassination of the Archduke of Austria and how it became the spark that ignited the war. It also describes Austria's declaration of war on Serbia and the subsequent mutual declarations of war between the two major groups, leading to the Eastern Front campaign. The Russian advance into East Prussia alleviated the pressure on France and Britain on the Western Front, initially achieving victories. However, after the German command changed with Hindenburg and Ludendorff taking over the Eastern Front, the situation changed. Additionally, due to the leak of military communications, the Russian army suffered a devastating defeat by the Germans, leading to successive retreats. Eventually, the October Revolution broke out in Russia, and they withdrew from World War I.
After the war, millions of soldiers from both sides needed to be demobilized, retrained, and employed; women who had worked in war industries needed to return to their jobs; and the military economy needed to be transformed. This was another dilemma faced by Britain at the beginning of the war. Russia experienced a civil war, and the Allies intervened militarily but ultimately failed. World War I weakened the capitalist world system. To end the war, a peace conference was held in Paris, France. The major powers attending the conference had their own interests and contradictions, struggling to redraw spheres of influence. Although the League of Nations was established, it did not achieve the goals of international security and disarmament.
This volume primarily narrates events outside the Paris Peace Conference and the consequences and reactions to its decisions. Additionally, it discusses the deep-seated and persistent issue of Britain and Ireland; it describes how Turkey, though defeated in World War I, is rising under Kemalism; and how Greece, though a victorious nation, faced tragedy after the war due to its conflict with Turkey.