The Russo-Japanese War 1904-1905

History and English were my minors as an undergraduate. Within the History minor, my area of concentration was Russian History including the Russian Revolution of 1917. Historians have often called the Russian Revolt of 1905 was the prelude to the 1917 Revolution. In turn, the defeats in the 1904-1905 Russo-Japanese War was the immediate major cause of the Russian Revolt of 1905. Thus, my study of the Russo-Japanese War was limited to this narrow perspective.However, when I obtained this book, I learned a great deal of new material about the war itself. As with most of the books that are published by Osprey Publishing Co. and especially those books in the Essential Books series, this book contains plenty of maps and also a comprehensive chronology of the events. In this case, the chronology of events of the Russo-Japanese War was especially important because this was my first real study of the war. Additionally the maps of the military operations also added a great deal to my understanding of the war.Furthermore, the writing style of Geoffrey Jukes was like conversing with an old friend who has been out touch for some time. Back in the 1970s I collected a great number of the books published by Ballantine Books under its paperback series called "History of World War II" and later called "History of a Violent Century." Most of the books within that series which dealt with the Eastern front--the battle of Stalingrad, the battle of Kursk etc.--were written by Geoffrey Jukes. He became one of favorite writer in that series of books. Accordingly, when I recently obtained some of the books within the Osprey collection which had been written by Geoffrey Jukes, I was re-acquainted with the writing style of an old friend.

This book is an excellent addition to the (mostly) fantastic Ospery Series. The Russo-Japanese war is covered in a concise manner. Nevertheless, all of the essential aspects of the conflict are discussed. As reader's of other books in the Ospery series will recognize, this book is organized exactly the same as any other Ospery book. The straightforward, unadorned prose allows the reader to easily follow the events. The narrative is augmented by excellent maps. The conflict resulted in the first defeat of a major European imperialist power by a small Asian country. The almost total imcompetence of the Russian war machine is starkly contrasted with the highly motivated and well oiled Japanese armed forces. Both land and sea battles are described with just the right amount of detail. This book explains the background and outbreak of the war in a very balanced manner, The author provides conntext and perspective which enables the reader to gain unique insight and understanding of the course of the war and the diplomatic endevors which resulted in a negotiated settlement.The bottom line...........an excellent introduction to a largely unfamilier, yet significant, struggle.

I purchased this for a research paper. There are no sources but it's a good overview of the war for casual reading. There are also a lot of photos and it's a nice companion piece if you are interested in the Russo-Japanese War. I love studying that war since I think it was a major contributing factor to the citizen's dissatisfaction with Czar Nicholas. I also think there is a lot of importance if you study Manchuria in the 1930's or the causes of World War II. For a serious scholar, this book would be inadequate. No citations of any kind. I did not research the accuracy of the material in the book either. Since it lacks citations I recommend someone judge it on the merits of the publisher. I think if they do a new addition they should add citations. This might make a good book for a young student of history.

Not all books by Osprey Publishing are created equal. This book, however, is one of the better ones in the Essential Histories series. The book is well organized and follows a clear chronological path. The largest chapter in the book deals with Russian and Japanese maneuvers. Although the last four chapters are very short, they fit perfectly into the chronological order of the book. They also provide information on the less well covered areas of the war such as its impact on Chinese civilians, Russian diplomacy at the peace talks, and the domestic impact of this conflict in both Japan and Russia. As with all Osprey Publications, this book has color maps of the major battles, such as Sha-ho, Mukden, and Tsushima. These maps contain just the right amount of information. Unlike maps found in other books, these are not cluttered with extraneous and confusing details. The book also has a nice selection of photos and drawings to compliment the narrative. The author does a good job of illustrating how a professional and well disciplined Japanese military was able to soundly defeat the overconfident, and thus unprofessional Russian military. In the Battle of San-De-Pu, the Russian 14th Division launched its attack a day late and at the wrong village. As a result, its men were mown down. At another battle, the Russians failed to dig defensive entrenchments. The Russians preferred to wait and use conscripted Chinese labor for these duties. The Japanese, however, made their own entrenchments and were thus, much better at surviving defensive battles. The Japanese appear to have held an enormous advantage over the Russians in the area of espionage. This war was fought in China. As occupying armies go, the Japanese were far less onerous than the Russians. The Russians alienated the Chinese population by destroying their homes and stealing their livestock. This resulted in far greater human intelligence for the Japanese. The Russian navy had its share of problems as well. Japanese spies in Singapore knew the Russian 2nd Pacific Squadron was on its way. However, any sense of speed was lost at Cam Ranh Bay when Admiral Rozhestvensky found that one of his ships, the Alexander III, did not have enough coal. He had to wait several days for the arrival of the 3rd Squadron and its coal supplies. Thus, Admiral Togo had even more time to set a trap. Clearly, the Japanese were able to routinely beat the Russians in both speed and tempo. Bottom line: the book is an easy read that tells the story of the war in a clear and chronological fashion. The narrative is complimented by excellent maps and good quality photos. The book also provides insight into how this war affected future conflicts. The military observers of the western powers were too biased in favor of the Japanese. They drew the wrong lessons from the war in their after action reports. The French learned to favor the "offensive." A tactic that yielded catastrophic losses in World War I. For their part, the Japanese began to believe in the superiority of the "spiritual" aspects of war over "material" matters. No doubt, this was a precursor to their overconfident attitude in the early days of World War II.

I would give it five stars as a useful primer for those who know very little about this first major conflict of the C20th, using many of the weapons which played a huge role in WWI. It certainly encouraged me to buy a much more in-depth study of this conflict.

A good history book. A great introduction to the war, but there are other works that go into more detail about the topic. The book reads very quickly with a no nonsense and very "to the point".

Great introduction to the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05. A little known modern war with big implications for Russia. Excellent maps. It is pretty clear from reading it why Russia lost.

This is a very interesting, brief and clear account, of a long-forgotten war. Geoffrey Jukes is an author to watch out for

a bit skimpy, needs better maps. I went on Google Maps to figure out where everything was........the book did not explain.