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Quest for Decisive Victory: From Stalemate to Blitzkrieg in Europe, 1899-1940
Quest for Decisive Victory: From Stalemate to Blitzkrieg in Europe, 1899-1940
Author: Robert M. Citino
Condition: Like New
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Robert M. Citino traces how European militaries confronted the crisis of increasingly indecisive nineteenth‑century battles and the collapse of pursuit as an operational remedy, arguing that the restoration of pursuit and maneuver—not merely doctrinal theory—recreated the possibility of decisive campaigns. Focusing on campaigns from 1899 to 1940 (Boer, Russo‑Japanese, Balkan wars, the First World War, Italo‑Ethiopian and Spanish Civil Wars, and Germany’s 1940 campaign), Citino demonstrates how changing technology (tanks, aircraft, radio) and enduring traditions of maneuver combined to revive decisive operational warfare in the form of the Wehrmacht’s early blitzkrieg.
Published by the University Press of Kansas as part of the Modern War Studies series (ISBN13 9780700611768), Quest for Decisive Victory is a comparative operational history that relies on case studies, German archival and doctrinal sources, and a systematic analysis of mobility, logistics, command and control, and exploitation. The book is aimed at military historians, students of operational art, and professional education audiences and revises blitzkrieg historiography by shifting attention from abstract doctrine to the concrete operational practices that produced decisive campaigns.
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Keywords, content and topics in this Book
Keywords, content and topics in this Book
Bibliographic
Robert M. Citino
University Press of Kansas
Military history
European military history
Pre–World War II warfare
Interwar period
1899–1940
Type of Book / Approach
Doctrinal and strategy study
Operational art analysis
Comparative operational history
Campaign analysis
Historiography of operations
Theoretical study of “decisive battle”
Transition from positional to mobile warfare
Scope and Focus
From stalemate to blitzkrieg
Operational level of war
Campaign pursuit and exploitation
Encirclement operations
Destruction of enemy forces vs. seizure of terrain
Evolution of offensive doctrine
Continuity and change in German operations
Integration of firepower and maneuver
Command and control in mobile operations
Theaters / Geographical Focus
European theater (pre–World War II framing, up to 1940)
Campaigns / Wars Covered
Russo-Japanese War
First World War (Western and Eastern Front operations)
Nations / Armies
Germany – primary focus
Imperial German Army
Reichswehr
Wehrmacht (early World War II period)
France
Britain
Russia / Soviet Union
Japan (Russo-Japanese War context)
Boer forces (South African War context)
Doctrinal / Conceptual Keywords
Decisive battle
Operational pursuit
Exploitation phase
Battle of annihilation
Bewegungskrieg (war of movement)
Stellungskrieg (positional warfare)
Operational breakthrough
Deep operations (in practice, not Soviet theory-focused)
Operational tempo
Command initiative
Mission command (Auftragstaktik as background)
Learning process in military institutions
Continuity in German operational thought
Mechanization and mobility in doctrine
Branch / Force Focus
Army operations (primary)
Land warfare doctrine
Combined arms at the operational level
Blitzkrieg Context
Blitzkrieg concept (re-examined)
Myth and reality of blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg as culmination of earlier trends
Mobile warfare
Rapid operational penetration
Armored and motorized exploitation (in doctrinal context)
German 1940 campaign in France as case of decisive victory
Weapons / Technology (at doctrinal level)
Machine guns and small arms in trench warfare
Tanks and mechanized forces (as elements of mobility, not detailed technical study)
Motor transport and logistics for pursuit
Railways and operational movement (World War I context)
Air support to ground operations (supporting role)
Notable Figures (contextual, as commanders and theorists)
Methodology / Sources
Operational case studies
Use of German archival material
Use of German-language doctrinal literature
Comparative analysis of campaigns
Revision of existing blitzkrieg historiography
Audience / Use
Military historians
Students of operational art
Professional military education
Strategy and doctrine researchers
European warfare specialists
Book Condition: Like New
Book Condition: Like New
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New: Fresh Out of Bootcamp
Flawless and untested. This book is in pristine, new condition and ready for its first assignment.
Like New: Light Combat Experience
Almost new and in great shape. It has clearly been read before and is ready to fight again, but it shows very little wear from its time in the field.
Good: A Few Scars or Shell Shock
A reliable veteran. The book might have some bent corners or a dust cover with a few scratches, but it’s still sturdy and standing tall.
Fair: Battle-Hardened
Visible signs of a long campaign. Expect some stains, bent pages, and perhaps some minor tears on the cover. It’s seen the trenches, but the intel inside is still solid.
Poor: Survived Iwo Jima
This one has been through the meat grinder. It carries noticeable damage, heavy staining, or significant wear—but like any old soldier, it would love to be read one last time before it retires.
