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A mad catastrophe : the outbreak of World War I and the collapse of the Habsburg Empire / Geoffrey Wawro.

By: Material type: TextTextPublication details: New York : Basic Books, a member of the Perseus Books Group, [2014]Description: xxiv, 440 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 0465028357 (hbk.)
  • 9780465028351 (hbk.)
Subject(s):
Contents:
The sick man of Europe -- Between blunder and stupidity -- The Balkan Wars -- Murder in Sarajevo -- The streamroller -- Misfits -- Krásnik -- Komarów -- Lemberg and Rawa-Ruska -- Death on the Drina -- Warsaw -- The thin gray line -- Serbian jubilee -- Snowmen.
Summary: "The Austro-Hungarian army that marched east and south to confront the Russians and Serbs in the opening campaigns of World War I had a glorious past but a pitiful present. Speaking a mystifying array of languages and lugging outdated weapons, the Austrian troops were hopelessly unprepared for the industrialized warfare that would shortly consume Europe. As ... historian Geoffrey Wawro explains in [this book], the doomed Austrian conscripts were an unfortunate microcosm of the Austro-Hungarian Empire itself--both equally ripe for destruction"-- Provided by publisher.
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library NonFiction 940.414 W356 Available 33111007551910
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

A masterful account of the Hapsburg Empire's bumbling entrance into World War I, and its rapid collapse on the Eastern Front



The Austro-Hungarian army that attacked Russia and Serbia in August 1914 had a glorious past but a pitiful present. Speaking a mystifying array of languages and lugging obsolete weapons, the Habsburg troops were hopelessly unprepared for the industrialized warfare that would shortly consume Europe. As prizewinning historian Geoffrey Wawro explains in A Mad Catastrophe , the disorganization of these doomed conscripts perfectly mirrored Austria-Hungary itself. For years, the Empire had been rotting from within, hollowed out by complacency and corruption at the highest levels. When Germany goaded Austria into starting the world war, the Empire's profound political and military weaknesses were exposed. By the end of 1914, the Austro-Hungarian army lay in ruins and the course of the war seemed all but decided. Reconstructing the climax of the Austrian campaign in gripping detail, A Mad Catastrophe is a riveting account of how Austria-Hungary plunged the West into a tragic and unnecessary war.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 427-431) and index.

The sick man of Europe -- Between blunder and stupidity -- The Balkan Wars -- Murder in Sarajevo -- The streamroller -- Misfits -- Krásnik -- Komarów -- Lemberg and Rawa-Ruska -- Death on the Drina -- Warsaw -- The thin gray line -- Serbian jubilee -- Snowmen.

"The Austro-Hungarian army that marched east and south to confront the Russians and Serbs in the opening campaigns of World War I had a glorious past but a pitiful present. Speaking a mystifying array of languages and lugging outdated weapons, the Austrian troops were hopelessly unprepared for the industrialized warfare that would shortly consume Europe. As ... historian Geoffrey Wawro explains in [this book], the doomed Austrian conscripts were an unfortunate microcosm of the Austro-Hungarian Empire itself--both equally ripe for destruction"-- Provided by publisher.

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