Catalysts for Catastrophe: Five Small Wars That Changed the Course of Modern History - Paperback
Pay over time for orders over $35.00 with
Offers & Perks
Earn 21 points with this purchase
Added to your rewards balance after checkout.
100 points welcome bonus
Create an account and start with extra points.
Four Wars. Three Decades. One Relentless March Toward Global Catastrophe.
Catalysts for Catastrophe presents a penetrating academic study of the interconnected regional conflicts and military transformations that culminated in the outbreak of World War I. In this comprehensive historical analysis, Allie Povall traces the trajectory from the Franco-Prussian War to the Balkan Wars, revealing how a sequence of limited confrontations evolved into a systemic collapse of international stability.
Drawing upon extensive archival research and a comparative approach to military history, Povall examines how technological advancements, strategic experimentation, and diplomatic misjudgments converged to reshape the balance of power in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The work highlights how these wars not only redefined the nature of combat but also accelerated the rivalries and alliances that would ultimately engulf the world in 1914.
Through in-depth case studies of the Franco-Prussian War, the Spanish-American War, the Russo-Japanese War, and the Balkan Wars, Catalysts for Catastrophe situates each conflict within the broader geopolitical and ideological currents of its time. Povall demonstrates how the interplay of nationalism, imperial ambition, and evolving military doctrine forged the conditions for global catastrophe--transforming the modern age of warfare.
A vital contribution to the study of pre-World War I geopolitics and military evolution.
Allie Stuart Povall is a native Mississippian who holds degrees from the University of Mississippi and the Yale Law School. In addition, he studied in the graduate history program at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. He served in the United States Navy for five years and saw service in Vietnam then practiced law for 25 years. After his retirement he began writing, and Catalysts for Catastrophe is his seventh book and third military history.
Contributor(s)
Author
Free shipping on orders over $75. Standard shipping takes 3-7 business days. Eligible items may be returned within 30 days of delivery. Conditions apply.