The Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871 violently changed the course of European History. Alarmed by Bismarck's territorial ambitions and the Prussian army's crushing defeats of Denmark in 1864 and Austria in 1866, French Emperor Napoleon III vowed to bring Prussia to heel. Digging into many European and American archives for the first time, Geoffrey Wawro's The Franco-Prussian War describes the war that followed in thrilling detail. While the armies mobilized in July 1870, the conflict appeared 'too close to call'. Prussia and its German allies overwhelmingly outnumbered the French. But Marshal Achille Bazaine's grognards ('old grumblers') were the stuff of legend, the most resourceful, battle-hardened, sharp-shooting troops in Europe. From the political intrigues that began and ended the war to the bloody battles at Gravelotte and Sedan and the last murderous fights on the Loire and in Paris, this is a stunning, authoritative history of the Franco-Prussian War.

【作者简介】

杰弗里·瓦夫罗（Geoffrey Wawro），毕业于耶鲁大学。目前担任北德州大学军事史中心主任，主攻战略研究。著有《普奥战争》（The Austro-Prussian War）、《欧洲的战争与社会，1792-1914》（War and Society in Europe, 1792-1914）、《哈布斯堡的灭亡》（A Mad Catastrophe）等。他所获奖项众多，其中就包括了奥地利文化研究院的大奖以及军事历史学会的蒙卡多大奖。他还是历史频道“精装历史”节目的主持人，这档每周访谈节目的受访者均是一流史学家、政治家和新闻人士。

【译者简介】

林国荣，哲学博士。