Bøker av William Nester

For General George S. Patton, "Leadership is the thing that wins battles. I have it-but I'll be damned if I can define it. Probably it consists in knowing what you want to do and then doing it and getting mad if anyone steps in the way. Self-confidence and leadership are twin brothers."Indeed, Patton excelled at virtually every dimension of leadership, most vitally as a war commander. His record as a general is clear. The larger, more armored, and better supplied his armies, and the freer he was to decide what to do with them, the more rapid and further they advanced to inflict more defeats on the enemy. In that no other American army commander matched him during World War II. That ranks Patton among the Valhalla of America's greatest generals, with him most resembling Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson and Nathan Bedford Forrest as a fast-moving, hard-hitting commander who repeatedly outflanked and devastated enemy forces. Patton led from the front and tried to inspire his troops by being a model officer who exemplified bravery, problem-solving, tactical brilliance, and decisiveness. He was in near constant motion from his headquarters to rear echelon and front line troops, everywhere exhorting them to greater efforts and overcoming challenges, at times enduring shell fire, strafing, mines, snipers, and other dangers. His greatest attribute was his drive to be the best at whatever he chose or was ordered to do. He recognized that developing a successful military career depended not just on will and chance but on incessant training and study. Yet he believed that instincts were just as vital as skills in being a successful leader: "I have a sixth sense in war and...can put myself in the enemies head and I am also willing to take chances."Patton harbored plenty of flaws. He was a narcissist who constantly strove to be center-stage and outshine his rivals. He contrived an idealized version of himself as the epitome of the brilliant general and fearless soldier, immaculately dressed, and spent his life playing that role. He was a braggart who regaled listeners with at times exaggerated tales of his past deeds and those yet to come. His boasting did have one positive element. He sought to surpass his past glories with greater future victories. Patton seesawed between elation and despair, rage and compassion. He could chew out a subordinate for some mistake in the morning and comfort him for a similar mistake in the afternoon. His quick-temper and provocative views often overpowered his self-control. Twice that cost him an army command. During Germany's occupation in August 1945, he casually quipped to several reporters that being a Nazi in Germany was no different from being a Republican or Democrat in the United States. For that Eisenhower relieved him from Third Army's command. Most notoriously, during the Sicily campaign he slapped two soldiers suffering combat fatigue that he accused of malingering. General George S. Patton and the Art of Leadership is his most psychologically penetrating biography that captures the paradoxical character behind his brilliant military feats and often dismaying failures. Throughout Patton explains his values and deeds through hundreds of quotes along with scores of insights from those who knew him-comrades and critics alike.

World of War explores the violent conflicts of the United States--on land, at sea, and in the air --with meticulous scholarship, thought-provoking analysis, and vivid prose.

Britain alone could not hope to defeat the might of Napoleonic France which, through enforced conscription, had become a nation in arms. But British leaders had a long history of forging alliances to counter their rivals.

This book is unique among thousands of books on the subject. None before has explored the Civil War's related and enduring conflicts of ideas and principles through four centuries of a nation's history.

Delves deeply into Churchill's early years and his determination to become one of Britain's greatest heroes.

Explores all of Britain's key land and sea campaigns and the dynamic relation among them during the Age of Revolution and Napoleon. Reveals how two military geniuses were the reason why Britain and its allies vanquished France when and how they did.

For Britain, the last French and Indian War of 1754-1760 dwarfed all earlier conflicts. From a wider historical perspective, this text studies the struggle for North America in the previous two centuries, such as the French-British conflict and the role of the Amerindians and other European powers.

During 1763 and 1764, a loose coalition of Native American tribes ranging from the Appalachian Mountains to the Mississippi River and from the Ohio Valley to the Great Lakes revolted against the oppression and neglect of their newly installed British masters.

By 1756 the wilderness war for control of North America that erupted two years earlier between France and England had expanded into a global struggle among all of Europe's Great Powers.