Castles of Steel
Britain, Germany, and the Winning of the Great War at Sea
Robert K. Massie
- In
- a
- work
- of
- extraordinary
- narrative
- power,
- filled
- with
- brilliant
- personalities
- and
- vivid
- scenes
- of
- dramatic
- action,
- Robert
- K.
- Massie,
- the
- Pulitzer
- Prize–winning
- author
- of
- Peter
- the
- Great,
- Nicholas
- and
- Alexandra,
- and
- Dreadnought,
- elevates
- to
- its
- proper
- historical
- importance
- the
- role
- of
- sea
- power
- in
- the
- winning
- of
- the
- Great
- War.The
- predominant
- image
- of
- this
- first
- world
- war
- is
- of
- mud
- and
- trenches,
- barbed
- wire,
- machine
- guns,
- poison
- gas,
- and
- slaughter.
- A
- generation
- of
- European
- manhood
- was
- massacred,
- and
- a
- wound
- was
- inflicted
- on
- European
- civilization
- that
- required
- the
- remainder
- of
- the
- twentieth
- century
- to
- heal.But
- with
- all
- its
- sacrifice,
- trench
- warfare
- did
- not
- win
- the
- war
- for
- one
- side
- or
- lose
- it
- for
- the
- other.
- Over
- the
- course
- of
- four
- years,
- the
- lines
- on
- the
- Western
- Front
- moved
- scarcely
- at
- all;
- attempts
- to
- break
- through
- led
- only
- to
- the
- lengthening
- of
- the
- already
- unbearably
- long
- casualty
- lists.For
- the
- true
- story
- of
- military
- upheaval,
- we
- must
- look
- to
- the
- sea.
- On
- the
- eve
- of
- the
- war
- in
- August
- 1914,
- Great
- Britain
- and
- Germany
- possessed
- the
- two
- greatest
- navies
- the
- world
- had
- ever
- seen.
- When
- war
- came,
- these
- two
- fleets
- of
- dreadnoughts—gigantic
- floating
- castles
- of
- steel
- able
- to
- hurl
- massive
- shells
- at
- an
- enemy
- miles
- away—were
- ready
- to
- test
- their
- terrible
- power
- against
- each
- other.Their
- struggles
- took
- place
- in
- the
- North
- Sea
- and
- the
- Pacific,
- at
- the
- Falkland
- Islands
- and
- the
- Dardanelles.
- They
- reached
- their
- climax
- when
- Germany,
- suffocated
- by
- an
- implacable
- naval
- blockade,
- decided
- to
- strike
- against
- the
- British
- ring
- of
- steel.
- The
- result
- was
- Jutland,
- a
- titanic
- clash
- of
- fifty-eight
- dreadnoughts,
- each
- the
- home
- of
- a
- thousand
- men.When
- the
- German
- High
- Seas
- Fleet
- retreated,
- the
- kaiser
- unleashed
- unrestricted
- U-boat
- warfare,
- which,
- in
- its
- indiscriminate
- violence,
- brought
- a
- reluctant
- America
- into
- the
- war.
- In
- this
- way,
- the
- German
- effort
- to
- “seize
- the
- trident”
- by
- defeating
- the
- British
- navy
- led
- to
- the
- fall
- of
- the
- German
- empire.Ultimately,
- the
- distinguishing
- feature
- of
- Castles
- of
- Steel
- is
- the
- author
- himself.
- The
- knowledge,
- understanding,
- and
- literary
- power
- Massie
- brings
- to
- this
- story
- are
- unparalleled.
- His
- portrayals
- of
- Winston
- Churchill,
- the
- British
- admirals
- Fisher,
- Jellicoe,
- and
- Beatty,
- and
- the
- Germans
- Scheer,
- Hipper,
- and
- Tirpitz
- are
- stunning
- in
- their
- veracity
- and
- artistry.Castles
- of
- Steel
- is
- about
- war
- at
- sea,
- leadership
- and
- command,
- courage,
- genius,
- and
- folly.
- All
- these
- elements
- are
- given
- magnificent
- scope
- by
- Robert
- K.
- Massie’
- s
- special
- and
- widely
- hailed
- literary
- mastery.BONUS:
- This
- edition
- contains
- an
- excerpt
- from
- Robert
- K.
- Massie's
- Catherine
- the Great.
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