Ring of Fire

The dramatic story of 1914—the start of World War I—presenting a comprehensive, dynamic history of the start of this truly global conflict. Most people did not know what the world was getting itself into in 1914. Everyone thought they knew the sort of war they were going to get—a short conflict that would settle old scores in a matter of weeks—but it was soon clear that was not going to be the case. From the Balkans to East Prussia, France, and Belgium, nineteenth-century warfare came face to fa