Ian Speller

Understanding Modern Warfare has established itself as a leading text in professional military education and undergraduate teaching. This third edition has been revised throughout to reflect dramatic changes during the past decade. Introducing three brand new chapters, this updated volume provides in-depth analysis of the most pertinent issues of the 2020s and beyond, including cyber warfare, information activities, hybrid and grey zone warfare, multi-domain operations and recent conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, and Syria. It also includes a range of features to maximise its value as a learning tool: a structure designed to guide students through key strategic principles; key questions and annotated reading guides for deeper understanding; text boxes highlighting critical thinkers and operational concepts; and a glossary explaining key terms. Providing debate driven analysis that encourages students to develop a balanced perspective, Understanding Modern Warfare remains essential reading both for officers and for students of international relations more broadly.

Understanding Modern Warfare has established itself as a leading text in professional military education and undergraduate teaching. This third edition has been revised throughout to reflect dramatic changes during the past decade. Introducing three brand new chapters, this updated volume provides in-depth analysis of the most pertinent issues of the 2020s and beyond, including cyber warfare, information activities, hybrid and grey zone warfare, multi-domain operations and recent conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, and Syria. It also includes a range of features to maximise its value as a learning tool: a structure designed to guide students through key strategic principles; key questions and annotated reading guides for deeper understanding; text boxes highlighting critical thinkers and operational concepts; and a glossary explaining key terms. Providing debate driven analysis that encourages students to develop a balanced perspective, Understanding Modern Warfare remains essential reading both for officers and for students of international relations more broadly.

This updated new edition of Understanding Naval Warfare offers the reader an accessible introduction to the study of modern naval warfare, providing a thorough grounding in the vocabulary, concepts, issues and debates, set within the context of relevant history. The third edition explains traditional concepts and explores current and emerging ideas concerning the theory and practice of naval warfare, relating these to recent events including Sino-American naval competition and the Russian-Ukraine War. Navies operate in an environment that most people do not understand and that many avoid. They are equipped with a bewildering range of ships, craft and other vessels and types of equipment, the purpose of which is often unclear. Writings on naval warfare are usually replete with references to esoteric concepts explained in specialist language that can serve as a barrier to understanding. This book cuts through the obscure and the arcane to offer a clear, coherent and accessible guide to the key features of naval warfare which will equip the reader with the knowledge and understanding necessary for a sophisticated engagement with the subject. The new edition is divided into two key parts. The first focuses on concepts of naval warfare and introduces readers to the ideas associated with the theory and practice of naval operations and includes a chapter where the history of the last century of naval warfare is explored in order to illustrate the key concepts. The second part focuses on the conduct of war at sea and on peacetime roles for contemporary navies and now includes new material on hybrid warfare and grey zone operations and on joint warfare, multi-domain operations and integrated deterrence within the context of evolving great power rivalry at sea. This textbook will be essential reading for students of naval warfare, sea power and maritime security and is highly recommended for those studying military history, strategic studies and security studies in general.

This updated new edition of Understanding Naval Warfare offers the reader an accessible introduction to the study of modern naval warfare, providing a thorough grounding in the vocabulary, concepts, issues and debates, set within the context of relevant history. The third edition explains traditional concepts and explores current and emerging ideas concerning the theory and practice of naval warfare, relating these to recent events including Sino-American naval competition and the Russian-Ukraine War. Navies operate in an environment that most people do not understand and that many avoid. They are equipped with a bewildering range of ships, craft and other vessels and types of equipment, the purpose of which is often unclear. Writings on naval warfare are usually replete with references to esoteric concepts explained in specialist language that can serve as a barrier to understanding. This book cuts through the obscure and the arcane to offer a clear, coherent and accessible guide to the key features of naval warfare which will equip the reader with the knowledge and understanding necessary for a sophisticated engagement with the subject. The new edition is divided into two key parts. The first focuses on concepts of naval warfare and introduces readers to the ideas associated with the theory and practice of naval operations and includes a chapter where the history of the last century of naval warfare is explored in order to illustrate the key concepts. The second part focuses on the conduct of war at sea and on peacetime roles for contemporary navies and now includes new material on hybrid warfare and grey zone operations and on joint warfare, multi-domain operations and integrated deterrence within the context of evolving great power rivalry at sea. This textbook will be essential reading for students of naval warfare, sea power and maritime security and is highly recommended for those studying military history, strategic studies and security studies in general.

Landing on a hostile beach is one of the most ancient forms and still most difficult forms of warfare. It requires unparalleled levels of planning, organisation, coordination and cooperation between the services. After the disasters of Gallipoli and Zeebrugge in the World War I, amphibious operations reached their maturity in World War II, and were essential in the defeat of Japan, while the D-Day landings signaled the beginning of the end for Hitler. Since 1945, myriad expeditionary naval forces have set off for a wide range of destinations, including Korea, Vietnam, the Falkland Islands, Grenada, the Balkans and Iraq in 2003. In the post-Cold War era, amphibious warfare has reached new heights of importance in its ability to intervene rapidly in crisis situations. Rather than following a narrative history, Amphibious Warfare takes the unique approach of building up the different stages of an amphibious campaign chapter by chapter, illustrating each with case studies. From planning and preparation to reaching landing zones, from beachhead consolidation to securing a target, Amphibious Warfare offers the complete picture of the people, strategy and tactics, ships and landing craft, tanks and aircraft, as well as the assaults involved. Illustrated with more than 150 photographs and including a colour plate section of more than 40 artworks, Amphibious Warfare is the complete guide to a form of conflict of increasing relevance to the modern world.

Understanding Modern Warfare has established itself as the leading introduction to the issues, ideas, concepts and context necessary to understand the theory and conduct of warfare in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. It is an invaluable text for military professionals and students of military history. Key features include: incisive coverage of the debates surrounding contemporary and future warfare; accessible, yet sophisticated, discussion across the land, sea, and air environments; and coverage of contemporary topics such as drones, cyber warfare, and hybrid warfare. The book makes extensive use of text boxes to explain key concepts and to reference extended examples, and it includes annotated guides to further reading and key questions to promote the reader's further thinking. This second edition has been fully revised and updated to take into account new debates and recent events in Syria, Iraq and Ukraine, and it has also been restructured to further improve its usefulness as a teaching tool.

Whilst maritime studies tend to reflect the dominance of large navies, history shows how relatively small naval forces can have a disproportionately large impact on global events. From Confederate commerce raiders in the nineteenth century, to Somali pirates today, even the most minor of maritime forces can become a key player on a global stage. Examining a broad range of examples, this volume addresses the roles and activities of small navies in the past and the present at the national, regional and international level. In particular, it focusses on the different ways in which such forces have identified and addressed national and international security challenges and the way in which they interact with other navies and security agencies. In addition the collection also investigates the relationship of such navies with non-governmental organisations, institutions and bodies in pursuit of broader maritime goals, be they political, financial or environmental. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach drawing on the best new research from the fields of international relations, security studies, strategic studies and maritime history, the book examines the diversity of experience amongst different smaller navies and also establishes areas of similarity. Divided into two sections, part one begins with a number of chapters that are theoretical in nature, whilst part two provides case studies that offer a more regional focus, including analysis of the challenges facing contemporary navies and historical case studies designed to reveal the experience of small navies over time. By adopting an approach that combines historical considerations with analysis of current events, the collection offers a unique perspective on the role that small navies have played in wider nautical affairs and their continued impact upon global maritime strategies.

Landing on a hostile beach is one of the most difficult and ancient forms of warfare. It requires unparalleled levels of planning, organisation, coordination, and cooperation between the services. Amphibious Warfare takes the unique approach of building up the different stages of an amphibious campaign chapter by chapter, from the planning and preparation, to landing on the beach, through to achieving the objective and the final withdrawal. Using case studies from history, ranging from Gallipoli to the Gulf, to illustrate the successes and mistakes of individual campaigns, and accompanied by over 150 black-and-white photographs, maps and battles plans, Amphibious Warfare is the complete and essential guide to the theory and practice of amphibious operations in the 20th century.