Military Power: Explaining Victory and Defeat in Modern Battle
One ofChoice'sOutstanding Academic Titles for 2005Winner of the 2005 Silver Medal for the Arthur Ross Book Award, Council on Foreign RelationsWinner of the 2005 Col. John J. Madigan III Book Award, U.S. Army War College FoundationWinner of the 2005 Koopman Prize, Institute for Operations Research and the Management SciencesWinner of the 2004 Huntington Prize, Olin Institute at Harvard"Superlatives hardly do this book justice. It simultaneously makes major contributions in political science, military history, social science methodology, and contemporary policy debates. Stephen Biddle comprehensively and convincingly dismantles two of the most important literatures in international relations theory in the United States: realism and the offence-defense balance."--Ted Hopf,International History Review"Stephen Biddle has written perhaps the best volume on the causes of battlefield victory and defeat in a generation. . . . . This is a seminal work on an issue of critical importance."--Spencer D. Bakich,Virginia Quarterly Review"Biddle's focus is on medium--and high--intensity land war; he combines a sophisticated formal model with analysis of critical case studies of actual battles. His argument has important implications for the structure of all modern military forces and shows persuasively that troops skilled in executing the modern system, not high-tech weapons alone, assure victory. It is a major achievement."--Choice"Stephen Biddle'sMilitary Powerdeserves serious attention from military historians.Military Powermakes a powerful argument that has redefined thinking within political science and policy circles on why armies win battles. . . . Biddle has produced an outstanding work that addresses a question central to historians, political scientists, and policy-makers."--Carter Malkasian,Journal of Military History"Stephen Biddle has written a worthy book on the never-ending debate over why land wars are won and lost. It contributes to the academic literature, and his policy judgments deserve attention. . . . It is well worth reading, owning, and remembering."--Richard L. Kugler,Perspectives on Politics