The Great War: An Imperial History

The beginning of the nineteenth century marked the peak of Western imperial power. After subjugating "inferior" peoples in distant lands, the European states turned inward in an unparalleled orgy of self-destruction that began in 1914 and did not end until 1945. A remarkable achievement, The Great War revolutionizes our understanding of the First World War by placing it squarely in the context of Western imperialism. Distinguished historian John H. Morrow, Jr. shows how a world view saturated in aggression and fear--coupled with intellectual trends such as social Darwinism and eugenics--unleashed disastrous consequences. With particular attention to race, class, and gender issues, Morrow traces the conflict from origins to aftermath to provide the first truly global history of the war, one that emphasizes the experiences of soldiers in all theaters (Africans, Turks, etc.), as well as citizens on the many home fronts. Looking beyond the brutal trench warfare, Morrow argues that the war was won not in thefields of France but in the cold waters of the Atlantic, where blockades starved the central powers into submission. Powerfully written, yet concise and comprehensive,The Great Waris the definitive new history of the conflict that illustrates the destabilizing effects of imperialism on both the colonizers and the colonized.