Battlegrounds : geography and the history of warfare /
Stephenson, Michael,1946-
Washington, D.C. : National Geographic,
c2003.
Explores the critical role of geography in thirty-eight battles from twenty-five centuries of armed combat, discussing how different geographical features have influenced the outcomes of historic battles.
Includes index.
Introduction / Robert Cowley -- Editor's note / Michael Stephenson -- 1. PLAINS: Alexander at Issus, Turkey, 333 B.C. / Matthew Bennett ; A good day to die, the Little Big Horn, Montana, 1876 / Bryan Perrett ; The end of the beginning, El Alamein, Egypt, 1942 / Bryan Perrett -- 2. VALLEYS: Death ride, Balaklava, Russia, 1854 / Ian Castle ; Jubal Early in the Shenandoah, Cedar Creek, Virginia, 1864 / Gary Gallagher -- 3. RIVERS: Alexander at the Hydaspes, India, 326 B.C. / Matthew Bennett ; Crossing the Berezina, Russia, 1812 / Philip Haythornthwaite ; "A drop too many," Arnhem, Holland, 1944 / Peter A. Huchthausen -- 4. ISLANDS: Crusaders' last stand, the Great Siege of Malta, 1565 / Bryan Perrett ; Out of the blue, Crete, Greece, 1941 / Will Fowler ; Sulfur Island, Iwo Jima, 1945 / Colonel Joseph H. Alexander, USMC (Ret.) -- 5. WOODS AND FOREST: The massacre of the legions, Teutoburg Forest, Germany, A.D. 9 / Bryan Perrett ; Into the wilderness, Chancellorsville, 1863 / Gary Gallagher ; Devil dogs, Belleau Wood, France 1918 / Agostino von Hassell -- 6. COASTS: Beachhead victory, Marathon, Greece, 490 B.C. / Matthew Bennett ; Buried on the beaches, Gallipoli, 1915 / Peter A. Huchthausen ; A bloody brawl, Tarawa, Gilbert Islands, 1943 / Agostino von Hassell -- 7. HIGHGROUND: HILLS, MOUNTAINS, RIDGES: The chosen few, Masada, Israel, A.D. 73-74 / Matthew Bennett ; "Fix bayonets," the Little Round Top, Gettysburg, 1863 / Gary Gallagher ; The Canadians' great assault, Vimy Ridge, France, 1917 / Nigel Cave ; Haunted highlands, "Bloody Nose Ridge," Peleliu, 1944 / Colonel Joseph H. Alexander, USMC (Ret.) ; Crown of thorns, Monte Cassino, Italy, 1944 / Stephen Badsey ; Frozen Chosin, North Korea, 1950 / Colonel Joseph H. Alexander, USMC (Ret.) ; Jungle highlands, the Siege of Khe Sanh, Vietnam, 1968 / Colonel Joseph H. Alexander, USMC (Ret.) -- 8. DESERT: A desert storm. Omdurman, Sudan, 1898 / Bryan Perrett ; Fire storm: Desert saber, Kuwait/Iraq, 1991 / Will Fowler -- 9. JUNGLE: New Guinea nightmare, Buna, Papua, New Guinea, 1942-43 / Eric Bergerud ; Find, fix, and destroy, the Ia Drang Valley, Vietnam, 1965 / Eric Bergerud -- 10. PASSES: Leonidas' last stand, Thermopylae, Greece, 480 B.C. / Matthew Bennett ; The blooding, Kasserine Pass, Tunisia, 1943 / Bryan Perrett -- 11. BAYS AND HARBORS: Ambush in the straits, Salamis, Greece, 480 B.C. / Matthew Bennett ; Nelson at the Battle of the Nile, Egypt, 1798 / Philip Haythornthwaite ; "Damn the torpedoes," Admiral Farragut at Mobile Bay, 1864 / Gary Gallagher --12. PENINSULAS: "The world turned upside down," Yorktown, Virginia, 1781 / Ian Knight ; The battling bastards, Bataan, Philippines, 1941-42 / Michael Stephenson -- 13. THE GEOGRAPHY OF HELL: "The abomination of desolation," Passchendaele, Belgium, 1917 / Stephen Badsey ; "They shall not pass," Verdun, France, 1916 / Stephen Badsey ; City of the dead, Stalingrad, Russia, 1942-44 / Will Fowler.
Explores the critical role of geography in thirty-eight battles from twenty-five centuries of armed combat, discussing how different geographical features have influenced the outcomes of historic battles.
Battlefields.
Battles.
Military geography.