Conquer We Must: A Military History of Britain, 1914-1945

by Robin Prior

A major new account of Britain’s military strategy between 1914–1945, including the two world wars and everything between

The First and Second World Wars were separated by a mere two decades, making the period 1914–1945 an unprecedentedly intense and violent era of history. But how did Britain develop its complex military strategy during these wars, and how were decisions made by those at the top?
 
Robin Prior examines the influence politicians had on military operations, in the first history to assess both world wars together. Drawing uniquely on both military and political archives and previously unexamined sources Prior explores the fraught relationships between civilian and military leaders: from Lloyd George’s remarkably interventionist stance on military tactics during the First World War to Churchill’s near-constant arguments with American leaders during the Second. Conquer We Must tells the complex story of this military decision-making, revealing how politicians attempted to control strategy—but had little influence on how the army, navy, and air force actually fought.

Genres: History, Military Fiction, Military History, World War II, World War I, British Literature

832 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2023

About the author

Robin Prior was born in rural South Australia and has been a farmer, shopkeeper, librarian and an academic. He was educated at Kapunda High School and at the University of Adelaide where he obtained a degree in 1972, an honours degree in 1974 and a PhD in 1979 (all in Arts/History).

Reviews

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. Very well written, although there were lots of typos. I've read a few of Robin Prior's books now and am very impressed with his writing and his arguments. Would read anything by this author.

[Jeffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unlike many military histories, this book covers Britain’s role in both World War I *and* World War II, which really helped provide context for the author’s arguments. The emphasis was on strategic decision making between the civilian (eg Churchill) and military (eg Montgomery) authorities within the British government. Still, there was plenty of discussion about various battles.

This book didn’t fully hook me like some other military histories (plus I listened to it over the span of several months), so I’m knocking it down to 4 stars per my rating scale, but overall this was solid. It seemed well researched, but note that it did at times presuppose a familiarity with many of the participants—there was not much exploration of characters’ backgrounds in this one.

I appreciated the author’s willingness to take positions and offer opinions at times (and in fact wish he did it more often), since it provided much needed “flavor” to what can be a rather dry genre at times.

[Peter S · Rating 5 out of 5]

A concise, well researched and readable book on Britains involvement in both wars.