Worst Military Leaders in History

John M. Jennings (Anthology Editor) John M. Jennings is Professor of History at the United States Air Force Academy, where he specializes in modern Japanese history. He is the author of The Opium Empire: Japanese Imperialism and Drug Trafficking in Asia, 1895–1945, and lives in Colorado.Chuck Steele (Anthology Editor) Chuck Steele is Associate Professor of History at the United States Air Force Academy, and lives in Colorado.

• Foreword Vice Admiral (Retd) Sir Jeremy BlackhamIntroduction John M. Jennings and Chuck SteelePART 1: CRIMINALS1 Roman Fedorovich von Ungern-Sternberg John M. Jennings2 Nathan Bedford Forrest Christopher M. Rein3 John M. Chivington Courtney A. ShortPART 2: FRAUDS4 David Beatty Chuck Steele5 Gideon J. Pillow Robert P. Wettemann Jr6 Antonio López de Santa Anna Gates BrownPART 3: THE CLUELESS7 Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf Mark E. Grotelueschen and Derek Varble8 Lewis Brereton John J. Abbatiello9 George A. Custer David W. MillsPART 4: POLITICIANS10 Marcus Licinius Crassus Gregory S. Hospodor11 Nikias James Tucci12 Raymond vi, Count of Toulouse Laurence W. MarvinPART 5: BUNGLERS13 Nogi Maresuke Danny Orbach14 Romanus iv Diogenes Andrew Holt15 Lord Wolseley Joseph MoretzREFERENCESBIBLIOGRAPHYCONTRIBUTORSACKNOWLEDGEMENTSPHOTO ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

On the night Russia invaded Ukraine, I was reading a new book, The Worst Military Leaders in History, edited by John M Jennings and Chuck Steele. The monumental failings of leadership described range from the well-known death of General Custer and all his men to the less remembered Athenian leader, Nikias, whose disastrous attempt to capture Syracuse led to the collapse of the entire Athenian empire. Three weeks on, it seems like a second edition might have to include the Russian defence minister, Sergei Shoygu, and his top brass.