Barbara W. (Barbara Wertheim) Tuchman

The author presents the fateful quarter-century leading up to the War, concentrating on the social aspects, not the state aspects, of history.

In The March of Folly, two-time Pulitzer Prize—winning historian Barbara Tuchman tackles the pervasive presence of folly in governments through the ages. Defining folly as the pursuit by governments of policies contrary to their own interests, despite the availability of feasible alternatives, Tuchman details four decisive turning points in history that illustrate the very heights of folly in government: the Trojan War, the breakup of the Holy See...

Intensive study of the background of the first World War, and of the battles of Liege, Tannenberg, Mons and others fought during the first 30 days.

Master historian Barbara W. Tuchman looks at history in a unique way and draws lessons from what she sees. This accessible introduction to the subject of history offers striking insights into American's past and present, trenchant observations on the international scene, and thoughtful pieces on the historian's role. History should not just be a series of facts, names, and dates-it should be a flowing narrative, the story of humanity, written as vividly...