Rating: 
Summary: March Toward Armageddon
Review: Despite the grand title, "Dreadnought" is not a maritime shoot-'em-up in the grand tradition of naval battles. The book's prologue, however, is about the battle of Trafalgar, the most significant naval confrontation of the nineteenth century, and thus sets the stage for the book's theme: maintaining Britain's mastery of the oceans at a time when Germany, the emerging economic center of gravity of the Continent, was beginning to establish an aggressive colonial policy. This book should not be read solely to gain some insight about the battleship Dreadnought. Naval enthusiasts may be slightly disappointed because of the paucity of ship photographs and the relative deficiency of discussion regarding German naval matters. This colossal volume is, to a significant extent, about the building of the Dreadnought and the Anglo-German naval arms race. But most of the book is devoted to Machiavellian machinations among the major European and British players at the turn of the twentieth century. The crescendo of events leading to the Great War is made more accessible to the layman through biographical vignettes of the major personalities that shaped Continental and British diplomacy and public policy at the time. The story begins four decades before the Great War. Bismarck, the Prussian premier whose politics were partly shaped by the events of 1848, initiated three wars--against Denmark in 1864, against Austria in 1866 and against France in 1870--with one ultimate objective in mind: German unification. Unification under the Prussian aegis set the stage for the 'conservative modernization' of the German state. In turn, rapid industrialization allowed for the establishment of a robust military-industrial complex and facilitated a shift toward overseas adventurism. The rising economic might of the Empire would allow Kaiser William II to argue for Germany's "place under the sun"--and set her on a collision course with Britain. The appearance of Mahan's book "The Influence of Sea Power Upon History" challenged accepted wisdom about the role of a navy in national affairs. Mahan argued that domination of the seas would be highly critical to national welfare. Given this impetus, the two major powers, Germany and Britain, began a naval buildup which would see the emergence of HMS Dreadnought. Unfortunately for Europe, the arms race coincided with several diplomatic gaffes, regional conflicts, and errors of judgment: the expiration of Bismarck's Reinsurance Treaty with Russia; the 1905 Tangier crisis over Morocco's ties with France; the Russo-Japanese war; the Daily Telegraph affair; the 1911 Agadir crisis; and so on. Massie discusses all of these discordant, inauspicious events with all of the panache of a cinematic auteur. A front seat to the drama is provided for, and the thoughts and motivations of the various dramatis personae are laid out. In view of the climate of distrust and the preponderance of secret alliances, all it would take to ignite this powder keg and usher in a conflict of a global scale would be a tiny spark. Bismarck himself foresaw that the struggle will begin in eastern Europe. Admiral Fisher, who oversaw the creation of HMS Dreadnought, was no less prescient: he predicted that the world war would begin in 1914 upon completion of the expansion of the Kiel Canal. Was the First World War was an inexorable, Manichaean contest between democracy and autocracy? The book certainly gives the impression that, given the unique combination of personalities in the world stage at the time, and in view of the circumstances, a Great War was unavoidable. Austria's resolve to conduct a preemptive war against Serbia for its pan-Slavic nationalism, France's decisive defeat in the Franco-Prussian war which led to revanchism against Germany, Germany's professed entitlement to "a place under the sun," and Russia's aversion to intimidation and humiliation following its 1905 defeat in Asia all precluded a limited conflict. This book is a magnificent jump-off point for a reexamination of the causes of World War One. Massie is indeed a fine writer, and I look forward to reading his account of the battle of Jutland, which Admiral Fisher termed "the battle of Armageddon," in "Castles of Steel."
Rating:
Summary: March Toward Armageddon
Review: Despite the grand title, "Dreadnought" is not a maritime shoot-`em-up in the grand tradition of naval battles. The book's prologue, however, is about the battle of Trafalgar, the most significant naval confrontation of the nineteenth century, and thus sets the stage for the book's theme: maintaining Britain's mastery of the oceans at a time when Germany, the emerging economic center of gravity of the Continent, was beginning to establish an aggressive colonial policy. This book should not be read solely to gain some insight about the battleship Dreadnought. Naval enthusiasts may be slightly disappointed because of the paucity of ship photographs and the relative deficiency of discussion regarding German naval matters. This colossal volume is, to a significant extent, about the building of the Dreadnought and the Anglo-German naval arms race. But most of the book is devoted to Machiavellian machinations among the major European and British players at the turn of the twentieth century. The crescendo of events leading to the Great War is made more accessible to the layman through biographical vignettes of the major personalities that shaped Continental and British diplomacy and public policy at the time. The story begins four decades before the Great War. Bismarck, the Prussian premier whose politics were partly shaped by the events of 1848, initiated three wars--against Denmark in 1864, against Austria in 1866 and against France in 1870--with one ultimate objective in mind: German unification. Unification under the Prussian aegis set the stage for the `conservative modernization' of the German state. In turn, rapid industrialization allowed for the establishment of a robust military-industrial complex and facilitated a shift toward overseas adventurism. The rising economic might of the Empire would allow Kaiser William II to argue for Germany's "place under the sun"--and set her on a collision course with Britain. The appearance of Mahan's book "The Influence of Sea Power Upon History" challenged accepted wisdom about the role of a navy in national affairs. Mahan argued that domination of the seas would be highly critical to national welfare. Given this impetus, the two major powers, Germany and Britain, began a naval buildup which would see the emergence of HMS Dreadnought. Unfortunately for Europe, the arms race coincided with several diplomatic gaffes, regional conflicts, and errors of judgment: the expiration of Bismarck's Reinsurance Treaty with Russia; the 1905 Tangier crisis over Morocco's ties with France; the Russo-Japanese war; the Daily Telegraph affair; the 1911 Agadir crisis; and so on. Massie discusses all of these discordant, inauspicious events with all of the panache of a cinematic auteur. A front seat to the drama is provided for, and the thoughts and motivations of the various dramatis personae are laid out. In view of the climate of distrust and the preponderance of secret alliances, all it would take to ignite this powder keg and usher in a conflict of a global scale would be a tiny spark. Bismarck himself foresaw that the struggle will begin in eastern Europe. Admiral Fisher, who oversaw the creation of HMS Dreadnought, was no less prescient: he predicted that the world war would begin in 1914 upon completion of the expansion of the Kiel Canal. Was the First World War was an inexorable, Manichaean contest between democracy and autocracy? The book certainly gives the impression that, given the unique combination of personalities in the world stage at the time, and in view of the circumstances, a Great War was unavoidable. Austria's resolve to conduct a preemptive war against Serbia for its pan-Slavic nationalism, France's decisive defeat in the Franco-Prussian war which led to revanchism against Germany, Germany's professed entitlement to "a place under the sun," and Russia's aversion to intimidation and humiliation following its 1905 defeat in Asia all precluded a limited conflict. This book is a magnificent jump-off point for a reexamination of the causes of World War One. Massie is indeed a fine writer, and I look forward to reading his account of the battle of Jutland, which Admiral Fisher termed "the battle of Armageddon," in "Castles of Steel."
Rating:
Summary: Highly readable popular history
Review: Folks who would like history to be an impersonal sweep of Great Movements and Significant Trends will doubtless dislike Massie's treatise on the Anglo-German naval arms race and the coming of the Great War. In contrast, for those of us who believe that history has a face (and often a street address) this is a fascinating and highly informative discussion of a critical period in world history. Massie stresses the very personal nature of power politics in pre-war Europe -something that I suspect modern readers (and reviewers)born into an age of "focus groups" and party politics may tend to discount. Before 1918 much of the power in Europe (and by extension the rest of the world) was wielded by a handful of individuals, many of whom were closely related. Victoria's children and grandchildren were alas NOT one big happy family, and Massie shows us how suspected slights and jealousies propelled whole governments towards foolish decisions. The creation of the German High Seas Fleet was largely the product of the Kaiser's feeling that he was being snubbed by his Uncle (Edward VII). Any pretence that this fleet was NOT aimed at contesting Britain in the North Sea is disproved by the decision to emphasize armor and internl compartmentalization within the German capital ships at the cost of cramped quarters and limited fuel storage that made the ships unlivable (and un-navigable) for more than a few days. As Massie shows, Wilhelm's decision to build a massive short-range fleet was opposed by many of his own ministers and ultimately ensured that Britain and Germany would come to blows. It would have been interesting if Massie had chosen to give us more of a "postscript" -what actually happened to this enormous expenditure of capital and energy- rather than ending things with the outbreak of war, but for that one need only look at the many books analyzing the battle of Jutland etc.
Rating: 
Summary: Very good, but a bit slow
Review: I enjoyed Dreadnought, although I also found it to be a heavy read. Massie's command of the era is superb and this is a book which goes far beyond its title. However, it seemed to me that at times, Massie got bogged down in side stories, mainly concerning historical figures. You'll sometimes find him spending pages and pages on a single diplomat or politician where maybe one or two pages would suffice. In the area of historical narrative, Massie is almost on par with Barbara Tuchman. On the whole, Dreadnought is a very good book and I would recommend it to any lover of historical narrative.
Rating:
Summary: Information overload
Review: I learned more about world history by reading this book than I think I ever did in High School. This book was a plethora of knowledge. Every chapter reveled the life of a new person and player in the world of politics at the turn of the century. The dynamics of the European stage and tangled web, which led to war, was made clear. Although I was exhausted at the end of each chapter from all the info and had to take some time to digest it I believe Mr. Massie definitely did his homework. This book is a must for History buffs.
Rating:
Summary: How did he do it?!?
Review: I recieved this book as a birthday gift from a friend of mine whose taste I trust when it comes to history. However, I had my doubts about the entertainment value of a subject as dry as the pre-WWI naval buildup between Britian and Germany. Nonetheless, Massie's ability to take the reader inside the halls of power and to introduce an intimate portrait of the major players makes this read as fascinating as any Clancy novel.
Rating:
Summary: Long Yet Very In
Review: Like my title suggests, the book was a very long one [908 pages in my copy]. Even so, I could not put it down. It was very well written and there were numerous pictures. Massie even included many quotes and letters, diary entries, and the like. I especially liked how he divided the book into a British section and a German one. All in all, if one is interested in this type of book, I highly recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: Shallow, second hand treatise
Review: Massie is no serious historian. He never does any researches of his own, and just about copies everything from other published titles.He is so lazy that he even skipped the Bibiography section. As for the book proper,it's just recycling of some of the silliest propaganda rubbish by the British on the Germans (read Lamar Cecil's book on Kaiser Wilhelm I for a substantive, informative look into the jealousies, animosities and rivlaries between the House of Windsor and Hohenzollern, which addedmfuel to fire between the 2 nations).
Go read the book Germany's High Seas Fleet in the World War by Admiral Reinhard Scheer instead. Or the book by Allies-centric book by Paul Halpern.
Rating:
Summary: The Great Naval Arms Race Between Tirpitz and Fisher
Review: Massie's "Dreadnought" is, on one level, the stirring and fascinating tale of how two navies - British and German - evolved in the late part of the 19th century and emerged, in the 1910s, as two closely-matched, high-tech capital fleets at either end of the North Sea. On a deeper level, however, this history revises - or at least places in context - the land-borne histories of Barbara Tuchman and John Keegan, which explain the roots of World War One in terms of the "Guns of August" and the armies that mobilized over the summer of 1914. As Massie shows, the rivalry between Britan and Germany arose much earlier, and was borne not of competing General Staff plans but a bureaucratic desire - on both sides of the dispute, but more so on Tirpitz - to acquire more funding for the naval constuction programs. In order to acquire more funding, Tirpitz and his British counterparts had to identify a present or potential threat that justified a buildup in defense spending, and so the need to identify a potential naval adversary dictated that the parties would soon find themselves adverse to one another. Although Massie introduces the Prussian characters with panache - the walrus-mustached Bismarck; the fork-bearded Tirpitzm; the deformed Kaiser - he is best when describing the British rulers of the early twentieth century: Campbell-Bannerman, Asquith, Lloyd-George and the brilliant Sir Edward Grey. The clear "hero," however, is the brilliant Jacky Fisher, inventor of the epynomous "Dreadnought" battleship class, sponsor of the all-diesel turbine engine and relentless modernizer: if World War One turned entirely on the naval campaign (a thesis Massie pursues in the sequel, "Castles of Steel"), truly it was Fisher who saved the Empire from German aggression. A magisterial work, with much color and light, as well as many classic social vignettes.
Rating:
Summary: Dreadnaught
Review: Often, non-military historians dismiss wars as "boring" and state the real "history" is what happens before or after the conflict. In Dreadnaught, Robert Massie thoroughly analyzes the decades before the Great War to illustrate how the war occurred. While the underlying theme is the naval arms race between Britain and Germany, Massie covers the royal family relationships across the continent, geo-political ambitions of the several European powers, the build up of armies, and the economic situation. Each of these elements contributed to the coming of war. Dreadnaught is perhaps the most detailed account presently available in a single volume, and it is worth the time to read this fine book. From clshes in eastern Europe to north Africa that were precursors to global conflict, to the heads of state involved to the military leaders, this book covers the entire historical landscape that puts World War I in proper perspective. Massie's work should remain the standard in its field for years to come. Though it is long, the reader will yearn for more when finished.
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