The Father of Us All: War and History, Ancient and Modern

by Victor Davis Hanson

  War of 1812, 113

  war on terror, 42–43, 85, 127

  Warren, Rick, 45

  Warsaw Pact, 112, 144

  Waterloo, Battle at, 27, 110

  weaponry: and asymmetrical wars, 228, 229; and contradictions and paradoxes of war, 244; costs of, 151; and future of American warfare, 151–52; and future of battles, 116; and military errors, 172–73; and paradoxes of the present, 239; and present wars as reflective of origins of war, 242; and technology, 125–26, 129, 130; and war as “human thing,” 155; and way of war in America, 151–52

  Weigley, Russell F., 27, 110

  Weinberg, Gerhard, 28

  Wellington, Duke of, 28, 29, 43, 69

  West: advantages of, 233–35; and asymmetrical wars, 229–30, 232; blame on, 229; and decisive battles, 112–13; definition of, 216; divisions within the, 230; future wars in, 208, 244–45; guilt in, 220, 225, 226; and homeland as battlefield, 234–35; as immune from foreign attack, 226; as monolithic, 241; nations included in, 112–13; and paradoxes of the present, 238; self-censorship in, 220; “sort of,” 240; war as reflection of culture in, 138–39; wealth of, 225–26; and West-West fighting, 113, 241–42. See also specific nation or topic

  Western exceptionalism, 45–49, 221

  Westmoreland, William, 175

  Whitby, Michael, 68

  Wilder, Geert, 218

  Wilson, Woodrow, 217, 232

  Winchell, Walter, 176

  With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa (Sledge), 26, 71–82, 83

  World War I: anomalies in, 22; and anti-classical view of war, 44; casualties in, 15, 44, 171; and classical lessons about modern wars, 87; decisive battles in, 107, 108, 111; and democracy, 198; and military errors, 165, 169, 171, 172, 180; and security versus freedom, 216, 217; as turning point in history, 87; and utility of military history, 14, 15; and Versailles Treaty, 22; and way of war in America, 141–42, 146, 148; where to start studying about, 27, 29; winning of, 22. See also specific battle

  World War II: anomalies in, 22; and anti-classical view of war, 44; casualties in, 13, 44, 75, 76, 166, 167, 168–69, 170, 171, 175, 179; decisive battles in, 108; and democracy, 196, 198, 202; Iraq War compared with, 13; and military culture, 190–91; and military errors, 162, 163, 165, 166–70, 171, 172–73, 175, 177, 178, 179, 180–81, 183; and military liberalism, 192; and neglect of study of military history, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13; and roots of war, 37, 41; and security versus freedom, 216, 217; Sledge’s views about, 26, 71–82; and technology, 124, 129, 130–31; and way of war in America, 140, 142–44, 146, 148, 151–52; where to start studying about, 26, 27, 28, 29. See also specific battle

  Wright, Jeremiah, 219

  Xenophon: Anabasis of, 27, 65–70; and classical foundation for studying past wars, 31; and classical lessons about modern wars, 33; as inspiration for modern authors, 69–70; and lack of knowledge about classical world, 5; The Long March essays about, 67–69; memoir of, 27, 65–70; and Peloponnesian War, 63–64, 85, 92; and Persian Wars, 65–67, 69, 70; and reasons for neglect of military history, 6; and security versus freedom, 216; and Ten Thousand, 27, 63–70, 139; Thucydides compared with, 63, 70

  Xerxes, 16, 34, 36, 41, 46, 47, 52, 54, 87, 88, 90, 139

  Yahara, Hiromichi, 77

  Yom Kippur War (1973), 109, 117

  Zarqawi, Abu Musab al-, 135

  Zawahiri, Ayman al-, 47–48, 232, 244

  Zulu War (1879), 27, 135

  A NOTE ON THE AUTHOR

  Victor Davis Hanson is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow in Residence in Classics and Military History at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and the codirector of the Group in Contemporary Conflict and Military History, a professor of classics emeritus at California State University, Fresno, and a nationally syndicated columnist for Tribune Media Services. He is also the Wayne and Marcia Buske Distinguished Fellow in History, Hillsdale College, where he teaches each fall semester courses in history and classics.

  Copyright © 2010 by Victor Davis Hanson

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without

  written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles

  or reviews. For information address Bloomsbury Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

  Published by Bloomsbury Press, New York

  LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

  Hanson, Victor Davis.

  The father of us all : war and history, ancient and modern / by Victor Davis Hanson.—1st ed.

  p. cm.

  ISBN 978-1-60819-165-9 (hardback : alk. paper)

  1. War—History. 2. Military history. I. Title.

  U27.H378 2010

  355.0209—dc22

  2009041714

  First published by Bloomsbury Press in 2010

  This e-book edition published in 2010

  E-book ISBN: 978-1-60819-294-6

  www.bloomsburypress.com