Sign-In
Cart
When the Terrible Ifs Accumulate
Hardcover
General Political ScienceMilitary Strategy
ISBN13: 9781025112701
Publisher: Hutson Street Press
Published: May 22 2025
Pages: 72
Weight: 0.62
Height: 0.25 Width: 6.14 Depth: 9.21
Language: English
The ability to recognize a failing strategy is at least as important as the ability to compose a successful one. But despite its importance, this skill is underappreciated and difficult to develop. The existing literature on military failure obscures the true nature of defeat by focusing primarily on moral and physical deficiencies, or on personal and professional incompetence. The truth is that failure oftengradually emerges from the consequences of countless small actions and decisions; in Winston Churchill's phrase, The terrible Ifs accumulate. Thus, identifying the terrible Ifs may provide commanders with warning signs that portend potential failure. Disaster theory describes a concept similar to the terrible Ifs, an incubation period, during which events increasingly diverge from expectations. This paper examines three historical examples: theSicilian Expedition from the Athenian perspective, the Battle of Stalingrad from the German perspective, and the Battle of Dienbienphu from the French perspective. The present analysis identifies and describes the characteristics of the incubation period in each of the three examples just mentioned.
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.
This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.
As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
1 different editions
Also available
Also in
Military Strategy
Soul of the Samurai: Modern Translations of Three Classic Works of Zen & Bushido
Cleary, Thomas
Hardcover
Viking Warrior Operations Manual: The Life, Equipment, Weapons and Fighting Tactics of the Vikings
Konstam, Angus
Hardcover
Henry Knox's Noble Train: The Story of a Boston Bookseller's Heroic Expedition That Saved the American Revolution
Hazelgrove, William Elliott
Hardcover
U.S. Army Special Forces Guide to Unconventional Warfare: Devices and Techniques for Incendiaries
Army
United States Department of the Army
Paperback
Waging a Good War: How the Civil Rights Movement Won Its Battles, 1954-1968
Ricks, Thomas E.
Paperback
Left of Bang: How the Marine Corps' Combat Hunter Program Can Save Your Life
Riley, Jason A.
Van Horne, Patrick
Paperback
The Official U.S. Army Survival Manual Updated
Underwood, Peter T.
U S Department of the Army
Paperback
Art of War & Other Classics of Eastern Philosophy (Deluxe Leatherbound Edition)
Lao-Tzu
Confucius
Tzu, Sun
Hardcover
The Generosity of Scars: How Your Stories of Struggle Can Change Lives--Especially Your Own
Mann, Scott
Hardcover
The Code of the Samurai: A Modern Translation of the Bushido Shoshinshu of Taira Shigesuke
Cleary, Thomas
Hardcover
Great Power Diplomacy: The Skill of Statecraft from Attila the Hun to Kissinger
Mitchell, A. Wess
Hardcover
Three Days at the Brink: Fdr's Daring Gamble to Win World War II
Baier, Bret
Whitney, Catherine
Paperback
The Book of Five Rings: Including the Book of Family Traditions on the Art of War by Yagyu Munenori
Musashi, Miyamoto
Paperback
The Hour Strikes: Churchill, Roosevelt, and Hitler at the Hinge of History, 1941
Thomas, Evan
Thomas, Oscie
Hardcover
Special Reconnaissance and Advanced Small Unit Patrolling: Tactics, Techniques and Procedures for Special Operations Forces
Wolcoff, Edward
Paperback
The Other Side of the Mountain: Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War
Jalali, Ali Ahmad
Grau, Lester W.
Paperback
Such Troops as These: The Genius and Leadership of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson
Alexander, Bevin
Paperback
Spec Ops: Case Studies in Special Operations Warfare: Theory and Practice
McRaven, William H.
Paperback
Bushido: The Samurai Code of Japan: With an Extensive Introduction and Notes by Alexander Bennett
Nitobe, Inazo
Hardcover
On War (Royal Collector's Edition) (Annotated) (Case Laminate Hardcover with Jacket)
Von Clausewitz, Carl
Hardcover
The CIA PSYOP Manual - Psychological Operations in Guerrilla Warfare: Updated 2017 Release - Newly Indexed - With Additional Material - Full-Size Edit
Agency, Central Intelligence
Paperback
The Strategists: Churchill, Stalin, Roosevelt, Mussolini, and Hitler--How War Made Them and How They Made War
O'Brien, Phillips Payson
Hardcover
Learning to Eat Soup with a Knife: Counterinsurgency Lessons from Malaya and Vietnam
Nagl, John A.
Paperback
The Way of the Warrior: The Way of the Samurai, the Art of War, the Book of Five Rings
Tzu, Sun
Nitobe, Inazo
Musashi, Miyamoto
Hardcover
Mahan on Naval Strategy: Selections from the Writings of Rear Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan
Mahan, Alfred Thayer
Paperback
The Myth of the Great War: A New Military History of World War I
Mosier, John
Literary Group International
Paperback
Sun Tzu's Art of War for Women: Strategies for Winning Without Conflict - Revised with a New Introduction
Rosenberg, A. D.
Huang, Catherine
Paperback
Psyop: Military Psychological Operations Manual: Military Psychological Operations Manual
U S Army
Paperback
The Burma Road: The Epic Story of the China-Burma-India Theater in World War II
Webster, Donovan
Paperback
Brothers in Arms: One Legendary Tank Regiment's Bloody War from D-Day to Ve-Day
Holland, James
Paperback
The New Rules of War: How America Can Win--Against Russia, China, and Other Threats
McFate, Sean
Paperback
Scripture and the Sword: Tactical, Practical and Spiritual Lessons from the Bible's Greatest Warriors
Hix, Jordan
Paperback
Chamber Divers: The Untold Story of the D-Day Scientists Who Changed Special Operations Forever
Lance, Rachel
Paperback
The Art of War: The Definitive Interpretation of Sun Tzu's Classic Book of Strategy
Tzu, Sun
Hardcover
U.S. Army Special Forces Guide to Unconventional Warfare: Devices and Techniques for Incendiaries
U S Department of the Army
Paperback
Defense Against Drones: Defending Against Threats From The Air - Combatting Scout and Attack Drones
Nagy, Kristóf
Reisner, Markus
Paperback
Empires in World History: Power and the Politics of Difference
Burbank, Jane
Cooper, Frederick
Paperback
The Art of War: A Classical Treatise on Strategy and Military Science
de Jomini, Baron Antoine-Henri
Paperback
Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics, and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887-1941
Evans, David C.
Peattie, David
Paperback
Verdun: The Lost History of the Most Important Battle of World War I, 1914-1918
Mosier, John
Paperback
Collected Writings of Chairman Mao: Volume 3 - On Policy, Practice and Contradiction
Zedong, Mao
Tse-Tung, Mao
Paperback
The Skulking Way of War: Technology and Tactics Among the New England Indians
Malone, Patrick M.
Paperback
Napoleon Bonaparte's First Campaign: Italy 1796-97 and the Defeat of the Austrian Armies
Sargent, Herbert H.
Paperback
Sipri Yearbook 2025: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Hardcover
Five Rings: The Classic Text on Mastery in Swordsmanship, Leadership and Conflict: A New Translation
Musashi, Miyamoto
Hardcover
Red Star Over the Pacific, Third Edition: China's Rise and the Challenge to U.S. Maritime Strategy
Holmes, James R.
Yoshihara, Toshi
Paperback
Military History for the Modern Strategist: America's Major Wars Since 1861
O'Hanlon, Michael
Paperback
The Book of Ninja: The Bansenshukai - Japan's Premier Ninja Manual
Minami, Yoshie
Cummins, Antony
Hardcover
Abraham Lincoln and the Heroic Legend: Reconsidering Lincoln as Commander in Chief
Noe, Kenneth W.
Hardcover
The Art of War (Royal Collector's Edition) (Annotated) (Case Laminate Hardcover with Jacket)
Tzu, Sun
Hardcover