War in Europe began with the first human migrants. Rival bands fought for thousands of years before the Greeks and Romans began writing about their military history, first as legend—for instance, the hero Achilles battling the Trojans—and then as fact. Finally, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, technology exploded: railroads, steamships, telegraphs, machine guns, automobiles, airplanes, and tanks enabled European states to muster, equip, arm, transport, and command more men than e...

A look at the Russian leader's successful use of hard military and economic power and soft psychological power through information warfare, or "fake news."Vladimir Putin has tightly ruled Russia since 31 December 1999, and will firmly assert power from the Kremlin for the foreseeable future. Many fear and loath him for his brutality, for ordering opponents imprisoned on trumped up charges and even murdered. Yet most Russians adore him for rebuilding the economy, st...

Tyranny's core insight reveals how a dictator's ascent reshaped politics, power, and society.The art of tyranny involves aspirants taking and keeping uninhibited, arbitrary power over others. Benito Mussolini is among the world’s most recognizable tyrants with his scowl, jutting jaw, bald dome, booming voice, chopping fists, squat body, and wide stance. He founded the Fascist movement dedicated to transforming Italy’s liberal democracy into a regime that mingled au...

Insurgencies are like the hydra, the many-headed beast of Greek mythology. Once one begins, the measures a government takes to eliminate militantsùto cut off the insurgencyÆs headùcan provoke countless others to join the enemy ranks. Tactical victories often breed strategic de¼feats. Traditional ôsearch, destroy, and withdrawö missions that rely on firepower to wipe out reb¼els frequently destroy the livelihoods and loved ones of innocent people caught in the cross fire. U.S. troops have seen...

“Nester brings out clearly the features of Patton’s buoyant dynamic leadership… an important addition to the stock of modern military biographies.” – The NYMAS ReviewFor General George S. Patton, “Leadership is the thing that wins battles. I have it—but I’ll be damned if I can define it. Probably it consists in knowing what you want to do and then doing it and getting mad if anyone steps in the way. Self-confidence and leadership are twin brothers.”Indeed, ...

No one in history has provoked more controversy than Napoleon Bonaparte. Was he an enlightened ruler or brutal tyrant? Was he an insatiable warmonger or a defender of France against the aggression of the other great powers? Was he kind or cruel, farsighted or blinkered, a sophisticate or a philistine, a builder or a destroyer?One thing is certain, if the art of leadership is about getting what one wants, then Napoleon was among history's greatest masters. War was the medium through...

As William Nester asserts in The Age of Jackson, it takes quite a leader to personify an age. A political titan for thirty-three years (1815-1848), Andrew Jackson possessed character, beliefs, and acts that dominated American politics. Although Jackson returned to his Tennessee plantation in March 1837 after serving eight years as president, he continued to overshadow American politics. Two of his proteges, Martin "the Magician" van Buren and James "Young Hickory" Polk, followed him...

Many indeed, are the biographies of Winston Churchill, one of the most influential figures of the twentieth century. But what was that influence and how did he use it in the furtherance of his and his country's ambitions? For the first time, Professor William Nestor has delved into the life and actions of Churchill to examine just how skillfully he manipulated events to place him in positions of power.His thirst for power stirred political controversy wherever he intruded. Those wh...

A detailed analysis of Adolf Hitler’s rise, ideology, tyranny, and the devastating consequences of his rule in Europe.Adolf Hitler may be history’s most notorious tyrant. Surely no one’s name is more often evoked to epitomize evil and the deliberate infliction of suffering on vulnerable individuals and groups?Through exceptional will and luck Hitler struggled up through the ranks of political power until he became Germany’s master. He then sought to dominat...

A unique biography that explores how Churchill viewed, pursued, and used power, by the award-winning author of Napoleon and the Art of Diplomacy.Many indeed, are the biographies of Winston Churchill, one of the most influential figures of the twentieth century. But what was that influence and how did he use it in the furtherance of his and his country's ambitions? For the first time, Professor William Nestor has delved into the life and actions of Churchill...

The first study to explore all Britain's key land and sea campaigns from 179–1815 and the two military geniuses who vanquished France.The art of power consists of getting what one wants. That is never more challenging than when a nation is at war. Britain fought a nearly nonstop war against first revolutionary then Napoleonic France from 1793 to 1815. During those twenty-two years, the government formed, financed, and led seven coalitions against France. The French ...

Scholar William Nester explores Franklin D. Roosevelt's character, personality, and presidential power. After their independence and civil wars, Americans never faced a greater threat than the sixteen years of global depression followed by global war from 1929 to 1945. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the president for the last dozen of those years, during which he led the nation first to alleviate the Great Depression then led an international alliance that vanquished the fascist powers duri...