The Pity of War

Explaining World War I

By: Niall Ferguson

Narrated by: Graeme Malcolm

Length: 21 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

From a best-selling historian, a daringly revisionist history of World War I

The Pity of War makes a simple and provocative argument: the human atrocity known as the Great War was entirely England's fault. According to Niall Ferguson, England entered into war based on naive assumptions of German aims, thereby transforming a Continental conflict into a world war, which it then badly mishandled, necessitating American involvement. The war was not inevitable, Ferguson argues, but rather was the result of the mistaken decisions of individuals who would later claim to have been in the grip of huge impersonal forces. 

That the war was wicked, horrific, and inhuman is memorialized in part by the poetry of men like Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon, but also by cold statistics. Indeed, more British soldiers were killed in the first day of the Battle of the Somme than Americans in the Vietnam War. And yet, as Ferguson writes, while the war itself was a disastrous folly, the great majority of men who fought it did so with little reluctance and with some enthusiasm. For anyone wanting to understand why wars are fought, why men are willing to fight them and why the world is as it is today, there is no sharper or more stimulating guide than Niall Ferguson's The Pity of War.

©2008 Niall Ferguson (P)2020 Basic Books

Ferguson wouldn’t know history if it hit him in the head

Niall Ferguson is rightly regarded by historians (including myself) as a right wing hack who uses facts to create a false narrative. His anti communist vendetta is clear in his treatment and lumping together of all socialists. He fundamentally misunderstands the socialist theory of why the war started, and always straw mans socialists whenever they appear. While he does point out the fact that War wasn’t universally heralded as good, overall his history is utter drivel. If I hadn’t needed to read this for a class, I would never have. Unless you are assigned this book, DO NOT READ IT.

Elegant Narrative - Answers to Compelling Questions

This book answers many of the big, important questions about the war rather than being a straight narrative. It’s written in an elegant style that is entertaining and invigoratingly fresh considering the near ancient topic. It’s worth a read if you’re interested in World War 1.

Excellent thought provoking book 🙂

Niall Ferguson delivers an excellent analysis of the First World War which illustrates that the Central Powers were more effective in conducting The First World War on the battlefield. He also toys with the idea what would had happened if Britain had not joined the war. Very good narrator as well 🙂.