Fire and Movement

The British Expeditionary Force and the Campaign of 1914

Peter Hart (Oral Historian, Oral Historian, Imperial War Museum)

$62.95

Hardback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Oxford University Press
11 November 2014

History; British & Irish history; 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000; First World War

The dramatic opening weeks of the Great War passed into legend long before the conflict ended. The British Expeditionary Force fought a mesmerizing campaign, outnumbered and outflanked but courageous and skillful, holding the line against impossible odds, sacrificing themselves to stop the last great German offensive of 1914. A remarkable story of high hopes and crushing disappointment, the campaign contains moments of sheer horror and nerve-shattering excitement; pathos and comic relief; occasional cowardice and much selfless courage--all culminating in the climax of the First Battle of Ypres. And yet, as Peter Hart shows in this gripping and revisionary look at the war's first year, for too long the British part in the 1914 campaigns has been veiled in layers of self-congratulatory myth: a tale of poor unprepared Britain, reliant on the peerless class of her regular soldiers to bolster the rabble of the unreliable French Army and defeat the teeming hordes of German troops. But the reality of those early months is in fact far more complex--and ultimately, Hart argues, far more powerful than the standard triumphalist narrative. Fire and Movement places the British role in 1914 into a proper historical context, incorporating the personal experiences of the men who were present on the front lines. The British regulars were indeed skillful soldiers, but as Hart reveals, they also lacked practice in many of the required disciplines of modern warfare, and the inexperience of officers led to severe mistakes. Hart also provides a more accurate portrait of the German Army they faced--not the caricature of hordes of automatons, but the reality of a well-trained and superlatively equipped force that outfought the BEF in the early battles--and allows readers to come to a full appreciation of the role of the French Army, without whom the Marne never would have been won.

Ultimately Fire and Movement shows the story of the 1914 campaigns to be an epic tale, and one which needs no embellishment. Through the voices and recollections of the soldiers who were there, Hart strips away the myth to offer a clear-eyed account of the remarkable early days of the Great War.

By: Peter Hart (Oral Historian Oral Historian Imperial War Museum)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 236mm, Width: 162mm, Spine: 33mm
Weight: 859g
ISBN: 9780199989270
ISBN 10: 0199989273
Pages: 480
Publication Date: 11 November 2014
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Peter Hart is Oral Historian of the Imperial War Museum in London. He is the author of The Great War: A Combat History of the First World War; Gallipoli; The Somme: The Darkest Hour on the Western Front; and 1918: A Very British Victory.

Reviews for Fire and Movement: The British Expeditionary Force and the Campaign of 1914

Hart's ability to capture individual warriors' experiences as they vividly described them and connect those stories to the broader campaign narrative is a key strength of Fire and Movement * Brian Drohan, Army History * It is [a] combination of strongly expressed opinion, nuance, rigorous argument, and research which makes this book an excellent read, as much for the beginner as for those with previous knowledge. * Bijan Omrani, Military History magazine * Fire and Movement is an eminently readable volume ... Hart's work has established a place as a valuable text on the subject. It will appeal to both scholars and general readers, and deserves to be read by both. * Spencer Jones, Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research * Hart has established himself as a respected historian on the Great War... His books are never dry academic tomes. Pitched at the general reading public and Great War buffs alike, they deliver a clear, engaging and easy to read narrative, interspersed with analysis, and laced with chunks of quotes from participants that add colour and substance to the incidents he relates. * Sydney Morning Herald, Chris Roberts * s an Imperial War Museum oral historian with a string of books about the Great War covering such diverse subjects as Gallipoli, Jutland, and the air war to his name, Peter Hart is justly renowned. With his consumate melding of narrative with descriptions from contemporary diaries and letters, he has effectively taken over the mantle of Lyn MacDonald, producing works that are both accessible to the general reader and informative to the expert. This new volume, covering the Great War from its outbreak until the end of 1914 is no exception. * Western Front Association: Stand To!, Niall Ferguson * Fire and Movement is certainly the best and most perceptive account of the BEF in 1914 currently in print... It is impossible to offer more than a very strong recommendation for peter Hart's latest work. * David Filsell, The Bulletin of the Military Historical Society. *