The Hinge Factor: How Chance and Stupidity Have Changed History

Durschmied, Erik

ISBN 10: 1559705159 / ISBN 13: 9781559705158

Published by Arcade Publishing, 2000

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Synopsis:

From the wooden horse at Troy to a harrowing photograph snapped in Vietnam, from Robert E. Lee’s lost battle plans to the evacuation of Dunkirk, world history has been shaped as much by chance and error as by courage and heroism. Time and again, invincible armies fall to weaker opponents in the face of impossible odds, when the outcome had seemed a foregone conclusion. How and why does this happen? What is it that decides the fate of battle?

Writing with the style and flair that has made him an award-winning war correspondent, Durschmied takes us through the major battles of history, from the battlefields of ancient Greece to the Gulf War. In a series of gripping narratives, he vividly recreates the crucial events in all their mayhem and confusion while pointing out the decisive moments that changed the course of history. We see Agincourt, where rain combined with French arrogance to give Henry V the day; the Crimea, where a badly worded order led to the disastrous charge of the Light Brigade; and colonial Africa, where an attack by African killer bees, described by theLondon Times as Germany’s secret weapon, repulsed an Allied invasion. And in a chilling epilogue, we are given a disturbing glimpse of the secret attempt by Libya to buy atomic weapons from China for use against Israel.

Drawing from a variety of sources, including personal accounts such as soldiers’ diaries and letters home,The Hinge Factor is an instructive, fascinating look at how the unpredictable, the absurd, and the bizarre have shaped the face of history in war.

Review: What if it hadn't rained at Agincourt in 1415 and the French had, as expected, won the day? What if one of Napoleon's most trusted commanders had spiked Wellington's guns with a handful of nails at Waterloo in 1815, handing victory to his Emperor? What if Hitler hadn't paused for three vital days in his invasion of France in May 1940, allowing the British Expeditionary Force precious time to evacuate from Dunkirk? It is moments like these, argues Erik Durschmied, that provide The Hinge Factor in history: moments of stupidity, chance or accident which have irrevocably changed the outcome of human history, for better or for worse.

Drawing on his extensive experience as a war correspondent with the BBC and CBS, Durschmied's compelling book moves from ancient Troy and the Trojan Horse to Iraq and Operation Desert Storm, offering a persuasive and at times wry account of the ways in which chance affects the ways in which history unfolds. Recounting 17 key moments in the history of human conflict and warfare, The Hinge Factor is not just an amusing meditation on what might have been in history; it is also a poignant and vivid account of the brutality and stupidity which comes with war. More than just an account of accidents in history, this is a thoughtful and absorbing book. --Jerry Brotton

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Hinge Factor: How Chance and Stupidity ...
Publisher: Arcade Publishing
Publication Date: 2000
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Very Good