Phillips Payson O'Brien – författare

'Phillips O'Brien is one of the keenest observers of modern strategy, and his new book takes a deep historical look at the evolution of warfare and its implications for conflicts like the ongoing one in Ukraine' Francis Fukuyama--------------------War and power are two of the most-widely discussed issues in all of human history, and yet they are, time and again, misunderstood — often disastrously so.Whilst we might think the outcome of war is determined by so-called ‘Great Powers’ who dominate their opponents with their impressive size and military prowess, the reality of modern conflict, as renowned strategic historian Professor Phillips Payson O’Brien demonstrates, is very different. He urges us instead to look for ‘Full Spectrum Powers’.For if we are considering how powerful a nation is and who will win a war, we need to think less about weapons, and more about the economies and societies that produce them; less about individual battles, and more about sustaining campaigns and alliances in which states operate.Using fascinating examples from the late 19th century to the present day, War and Power explains how misunderstanding war and power has led to terrible, even preventable conflicts – such as the war in Ukraine – and how more accurate analysis can help us consider the potential conflict between the US and China.War and Power provides a bold new way of understanding the dangerous world around us.--------------------'Phillips O'Brien is always fantastic. Heterodox. He's pretty scathing, even about Biden administration policy . . . A really interesting book' Paul Krugman, Distinguished Professor of Economics'As Phillips O'Brien points out in this important book, the character of war evolves, but some of the underlying truths, particularly from the second World War, are still very much with us.' Eliot Cohen, Professor Emeritus at Johns Hopkins SAIS

The life of Franklin Roosevelt''s most trusted and powerful advisor, Admiral William D. Leahy, Chief of Staff to the Commander-in-ChiefAside from FDR, no American did more to shape World War II than Admiral William D. Leahy--not Douglas MacArthur, not Dwight Eisenhower, and not even the legendary George Marshall. No man, including Harry Hopkins, was closer to Roosevelt, nor had earned his blind faith, like Leahy. Through the course of the war, constantly at the president''s side and advising him on daily decisions, Leahy became the second most powerful man in the world.In a time of titanic personalities, Leahy regularly downplayed his influence, preferring the substance of power to the style. A stern-faced, salty sailor, his U.S. Navy career had begun as a cadet aboard a sailing ship. Four decades later, Admiral Leahy was a trusted friend and advisor to the president and his ambassador to Vichy France until the attack on Pearl Harbor. Needing one person who could help him grapple with the enormous strategic consequences of the war both at home and abroad, Roosevelt made Leahy the first presidential chief of staff--though Leahy''s role embodied far more power than the position of today. Leahy''s profound power was recognized by figures like Stalin and Churchill, yet historians have largely overlooked his role. In this important biography, historian Phillips Payson O''Brien illuminates the admiral''s influence on the most crucial and transformative decisions of WWII and the early Cold War. From the invasions of North Africa, Sicily, and France, to the allocation of resources to fight Japan, O''Brien contends that America''s war largely unfolded according to Leahy''s vision. Among the author''s surprising revelations is that while FDR''s health failed, Leahy became almost a de facto president, making decisions while FDR was too ill to work, and that much of his influence carried over to Truman''s White House.

This work examines how the navies of Great Britain, the USA, Germany, Japan, the Soviet Union, France and Italy confronted the various technological changes posed during different periods in the 20th century.

This work examines how the navies of Great Britain, the USA, Germany, Japan, the Soviet Union, France and Italy confronted the various technological changes posed during different periods in the 20th century.

World War II is usually seen as a titanic land battle, decided by mass armies, most importantly those on the Eastern Front. Phillips Payson O'Brien shows us the war in a completely different light. In this compelling new history of the Allied path to victory, he argues that in terms of production, technology and economic power, the war was far more a contest of air and sea than of land supremacy. He shows how the Allies developed a predominance of air and sea power which put unbearable pressure on Germany and Japan's entire war-fighting machine from Europe and the Mediterranean to the Pacific. Air and sea power dramatically expanded the area of battle and allowed the Allies to destroy over half of the Axis' equipment before it had even reached the traditional 'battlefield'. Battles such as El Alamein, Stalingrad and Kursk did not win World War II; air and sea power did.

This work examines how the navies of Great Britain, the USA, Germany, Japan, the Soviet Union, France and Italy confronted the various technological changes posed during different periods in the 20th century.

This work examines how the navies of Great Britain, the USA, Germany, Japan, the Soviet Union, France and Italy confronted the various technological changes posed during different periods in the 20th century.

'Entirely fresh, brilliantly insightful and utterly compelling ' James HollandChurchill. Hitler. Stalin. Mussolini. Roosevelt. Five of the most impactful leaders of WW2, each with their own individualistic and idiosyncratic approach to warfare. But if we want to understand their military strategy, we must first understand the strategist.In THE STRATEGISTS, Professor Phillips Payson O'Brien shows how the views these five leaders forged in WW1 are crucial to understanding how they fought WW2. For example, Churchill's experiences of facing the German Army in France in 1916 made him unwilling to send masses of British soldiers back there in the 1940s, while Hitler's mistakes on the Eastern Front were influenced by his reluctance to accept that conditions had changed since his own time fighting.The implications of the power of leaders remain with us to this day: to truly understand what is happening in Ukraine, for example, requires us to know what has influenced the leaders involved.This is a history in which leaders – and their choices – matter. For better or worse.

'Entirely fresh, brilliantly insightful and utterly compelling ' James HollandChurchill. Hitler. Stalin. Mussolini. Roosevelt. Five of the most impactful leaders of WW2, each with their own individualistic and idiosyncratic approach to warfare. But if we want to understand their military strategy, we must first understand the strategist.In THE STRATEGISTS, Professor Phillips Payson O'Brien shows how the views these five leaders forged in WW1 are crucial to understanding how they fought WW2. For example, Churchill's experiences of facing the German Army in France in 1916 made him unwilling to send masses of British soldiers back there in the 1940s, while Hitler's mistakes on the Eastern Front were influenced by his reluctance to accept that conditions had changed since his own time fighting.The implications of the power of leaders remain with us to this day: to truly understand what is happening in Ukraine, for example, requires us to know what has influenced the leaders involved.This is a history in which leaders – and their choices – matter. For better or worse.

War and power are two of the most-widely discussed issues in all of human history, and yet they are, time and again, misunderstood — often disastrously so.Whilst we might think the outcome of war is determined by so-called ‘Great Powers’ who dominate their opponents with their impressive size and military prowess, the reality of modern conflict, as renowned strategic historian Professor Phillips Payson O’Brien demonstrates, is very different. He urges us instead to look for ‘Full Spectrum Powers’.For if we are considering how powerful a nation is and who will win a war, we need to think less about weapons, and more about the economies and societies that produce them; less about individual battles, and more about sustaining campaigns and alliances in which states operate.Using fascinating examples from the late 19th century to the present day, War and Power explains how misunderstanding war and power has led to terrible, even preventable conflicts – such as the war in Ukraine – and how more accurate analysis can help us consider the potential conflict between the US and China.War and Power provides a bold new way of understanding the dangerous world around us.

'Phillips O'Brien is one of the keenest observers of modern strategy, and his new book takes a deep historical look at the evolution of warfare and its implications for conflicts like the ongoing one in Ukraine' Francis Fukuyama--------------------War and power are two of the most-widely discussed issues in all of human history, and yet they are, time and again, misunderstood — often disastrously so.Whilst we might think the outcome of war is determined by so-called ‘Great Powers’ who dominate their opponents with their impressive size and military prowess, the reality of modern conflict, as renowned strategic historian Professor Phillips Payson O’Brien demonstrates, is very different. He urges us instead to look for ‘Full Spectrum Powers’.For if we are considering how powerful a nation is and who will win a war, we need to think less about weapons, and more about the economies and societies that produce them; less about individual battles, and more about sustaining campaigns and alliances in which states operate.Using fascinating examples from the late 19th century to the present day, War and Power explains how misunderstanding war and power has led to terrible, even preventable conflicts – such as the war in Ukraine – and how more accurate analysis can help us consider the potential conflict between the US and China.War and Power provides a bold new way of understanding the dangerous world around us.--------------------'Phillips O'Brien is always fantastic. Heterodox. He's pretty scathing, even about Biden administration policy . . . A really interesting book' Paul Krugman, Distinguished Professor of Economics'As Phillips O'Brien points out in this important book, the character of war evolves, but some of the underlying truths, particularly from the second World War, are still very much with us.' Eliot Cohen, Professor Emeritus at Johns Hopkins SAIS

Brought to you by Penguin. War and power are two of the most-widely discussed issues in all of human history, and yet they are, time and again, misunderstood - often disastrously so.Whilst we might think the outcome of war is determined by so-called 'Great Powers' who dominate their opponents with their impressive size and military prowess, the reality of modern conflict, as renowned strategic historian Professor Phillips Payson O'Brien demonstrates, is very different. He urges us instead to look for 'Full Spectrum Powers'.For if we are considering how powerful a nation is and who will win a war, we need to think less about weapons, and more about the economies and societies that produce them; less about individual battles, and more about sustaining campaigns and alliances in which states operate.Using fascinating examples from the late 19th century to the present day, War and Power explains how misunderstanding war and power has led to terrible, even preventable conflicts - such as the war in Ukraine - and how more accurate analysis can help us consider the potential conflict between the US and China.War and Power provides a bold new way of understanding the dangerous world around us.'Phillips O'Brien is one of the keenest observers of modern strategy, and his new book takes a deep historical look at the evolution of warfare and its implications for conflicts like the ongoing one in Ukraine' Francis Fukuyama'Phillips O'Brien is always fantastic. Heterodox. He's pretty scathing, even about Biden administration policy . . . A really interesting book' Paul Krugman, Distinguished Professor of Economics'As Phillips O'Brien points out in this important book, the character of war evolves, but some of the underlying truths, particularly from the second World War, are still very much with us.' Eliot Cohen, Professor Emeritus at Johns Hopkins SAIS(c) Phillips Payson O'Brien 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Churchill. Hitler. Stalin. Mussolini. Roosevelt. Five of the most impactful leaders of WW2, each with their own individualistic and idiosyncratic approach to warfare. But if we want to understand their military strategy, we must first understand the strategist.In The Strategists, Professor Phillips Payson O'Brien shows how the views these five leaders forged in WW1 are crucial to understanding how they fought WW2. For example, Churchill's experiences of facing the German Army in France in 1916 made him unwilling to send masses of British soldiers back there in the 1940s, while Hitler's mistakes on the Eastern Front were influenced by his reluctance to accept that conditions had changed since his own time fighting. The implications of the power of leaders remain with us to this day: to truly understand what is happening in Ukraine, for example, requires us to know what has influenced the leaders involved.This is a history in which leaders—and their choices—matter. For better or worse.