Military Misfortunes: The Anatomy of Failure in War

by Eliot A. Cohen

Book Overview

Rejecting accepted theories for unexpected military disasters, the authors brilliantly analyze disasters of great magnitude. They assert that military misfortune turns not on individual or collective failure but is rooted in the nature of the complex interconnections between men, systems, and organizations.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0029060605
• ISBN13: 9780029060605
• Release Date: January 1990
• Publisher: Free Press
• Length: 296 Pages
• Weight: 1.33 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

brilliant for war or business strategy

As an ex army officer and a corporate strategist, I couldnt put this book down. what a great read with such a simple yet powerful framework backed up by some semi-quantitave analysis. I think the authors did themselves a dis-service limiting the title to military failure when in fact the framework applies equally as 'organisational failure'. Sure the Military has the absolute imperative to win - coming second is not just loss of market share or going bankrupt - it is the death and destruction of your people and culture. As Sun Tsu said 'a kingdom that has once been destroyed can never again come into being nor the dead brought back to life'. Thus read this book before deciding how your empire will survive and thrive. They list three basic types of failure that provide a simple yet powerful framework to assist in working through all the complexities of modern war and business. 1. failure to anticipate 2 failure to adapt 3 failure to learn all errors can be grouped into of one these. You can survive 'singular' failures and with luck even pull thru 'aggregate' failure of two. Committing all three totals to'catastrphic failure' and 'misfortune' is sure to follow. Now whenever I read history or look at corporate strategy, I always run thru this three part checklist to make sure we have covered off against them good reading david

Multidimentional Relevance

While this book deals with military failures, the paralels to running a business or a family are rich and rewarding. One example: The story of the US failure in Korea, and how certain branches of the armed forces prevailed but other failed was fascinating ... we tend to think of events as successes or failures, but really they are combinations of successes and failures -- studying in a granular, detailed way illuminates both and allows one to succeed overall by cutting failing tactics and replacing them with successful ones. Many other rich paralels here too.

Applies analytical model to six "military failures"

Military historians will enjoy this book. I read it as part of the Air War College curriculum. The theme of the book is that often military blunders are the result of or enhanced by institutional/organizational flaws. The first couple of chapters lay out an analytical model that is used in the remainder of the book. The model combines in-depth knowledge of the campaign with a tailored, layered critical approach for each campaign. In the remaining chapters the model is applied to the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Yom Kippur War 1973, the US anti-sub effort in 1942, the Brits' Sulva Bay enterprise at Gallipoli 1915, the US retreat from the Yalu River in Korea 1950, and the collapse of the French Army & Air Force in 1940. The six campaigns are very readable and enjoyable. The style is crisp and succint. I learned alot of interesting details about the campaigns. The Gooch & Cohen model is not a tool for prediction of the success of future campaigns - only for historical analysis. Nonetheless, once you get through the first two chapters, you'll be in for an enjoyable read. Try it.

Uses 20th-Century examples to determine battle failures.

Good use of historical examples to determine why 20th-Century battles have been lost. Good battle synopses. Moderate clarity of writing style. Unfortunately, analyses of the failure causes are sometimes weak. Some conclusions seem force-fitted into predetermined failure modes. Nonetheless, the analyses are thought-provoking and thorough. A good book overall.

Great Overview

A great analytic framework for looking at various battles over the last two millenia or so. Interesting to think about the various lessons that could be learned. I also thought the framework for how decisions get made to be super interesting. It is too bad that there aren't more analytic books like this rather than the straight narrative that is typical in military history books