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WWI Austria/Germany

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Misfit
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WWI Austria/Germany

Post by Misfit » Sun February 23rd, 2014, 7:18 pm

I just finished My Enemy, My Love by R.T. Stevens. It's set mostly in Austria, beginning 1914, and it really helped me a lot to flesh out how The Great War began.

**this might be a bit spoilerish below if you're planning on reading the book soon**

That said, and pardon my ignorance if I'm missing the boat here - I know there's always that us vs them mentality and hating the enemy and all - but I am a bit puzzled over the Austrian's mindset towards the British - at least as how it was portrayed in my book. I know they fought on opposite sides, and I know there's going to be bitterness towards the victors, but here's where I'm a bit confused and please pardon my ignorance. Austria and Germany were allies, were they not? Wasn't Germany the aggressor on the Western front when this was all supposed to be about Serbia and a war with Russia? When then such a hatred and resentment for the British even after the war, and none against the Germans?

Any input would be welcome, as would book suggestions.
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donroc
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Post by donroc » Sun February 23rd, 2014, 10:37 pm

Guns of Augustt by Barbara Tuchman will help. England, France and Russia were the Triple Entente. Germany and Austria-Hungary were allies. Autria Hungary wanted to punish the Serbs, Russia mobilized to protect her little Slavic brother. France wanted revenge for its losses during the Franco-Prussian War after 1871. England feared the growing German navy as a threat to its colonial empire. Germany supported Austria Hungary when it attacked Serbia, and it invaded Belgium preperatory to attacking France. England guaranteed Belgium's neutrality and declared war against Germany. And so it went.
Last edited by donroc on Sun February 23rd, 2014, 10:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Bodo the Apostate, a novel set during the reign of Louis the Pious and end of the Carolingian Empire.

http://www.donaldmichaelplatt.com
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Post by Misfit » Mon February 24th, 2014, 12:42 am

Thanks Don, that helps. Such tremendous loss of lives.
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Post by annis » Thu February 27th, 2014, 4:13 am

With the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War coming up this year, there have been some excellent new NF books tackling the origins of WWI tucked in amongst the slew of WWI novels. Three I'd recommend are Margaret MacMillan's The War that Ended Peace: the Road to 1914, Max Hastings' Catastrophe: 1914 and Christopher Clark's The Sleepwalkers. Reviews at the Washington Post.

We all think we know how WWI began- "yer Balkans, yer Balkans, it's always yer Balkans", to quote Ben Elton in The First Casualty - but in fact a rabid revolutionary taking a potshot at an obscure Archduke at Sarajevo was just one of a whole raft of factors which came together at a particular time and place to create a perfect storm. One thing that's become clearer as time's gone by is that Imperial bullishness amongst the British military echelons was just as much to blame as Prussian militarism.

Last year I caught up on some classics and as far as fiction goes would also recommend Joseph Roth's novel about the decline of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, The Radetsky March.
Last edited by annis on Thu February 27th, 2014, 6:00 pm, edited 16 times in total.

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Post by donroc » Thu February 27th, 2014, 3:58 pm

"Some damn foolish thing in the Balkans will start the next great European War." Otto von Bismarck ca. 1880s.

A saying before WWI: "In Berlin the situation is serious but not impossible. In Vienna the situation is impossible but not serious."

Russian foreign minister in 1876: "The Balkans, made up of Christianized Turks with funny names."

"Italy, such a great appetite, such poor teeth." Bismarck again.
Image

Bodo the Apostate, a novel set during the reign of Louis the Pious and end of the Carolingian Empire.

http://www.donaldmichaelplatt.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXZthhY6 ... annel_page

annis
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Post by annis » Sat March 1st, 2014, 12:52 am

Posted by Donoc
"Some damn foolish thing in the Balkans will start the next great European War." Otto von Bismarck ca. 1880s.
He certainly got that right!

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Post by Ash » Sat March 1st, 2014, 6:10 pm

I second and third Guns of August. Also you can't beat The Regeneration Trilogy by Pat Barker for one of the best HF novels I've read about the time period, through the eyes of the soldiers. I also loved Johnny Got His Gun and All Quiet on the Western Front.

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Post by donroc » Sun March 2nd, 2014, 3:31 pm

The Russian Dagger by Virginia Cowles NF is the perfect book to sort out Russian meddling and the tribal craziness in the Balkans between the Crimean War and WWI.
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Bodo the Apostate, a novel set during the reign of Louis the Pious and end of the Carolingian Empire.

http://www.donaldmichaelplatt.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXZthhY6 ... annel_page

annis
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Post by annis » Mon March 3rd, 2014, 7:02 am

And God help us, here we are with Russian meddling, tribal Balkan craziness and European readiness to jump into the fray happening all over again- I'm very nervous about where this one is going to go :(

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Post by Misfit » Mon March 3rd, 2014, 3:37 pm

[quote=""annis""]And God help us, here we are with Russian meddling, tribal Balkan craziness and European readiness to jump into the fray happening all over again- I'm very nervous about where this one is going to go :( [/quote]

I've been thinking the same thing.
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be

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