The War of the Austrian Succession by Reed Browning - Historical Military Book (1993) | Perfect for History Buffs & European War Studies

What a wonderful book. Surely Browning has written the definitive account of the War of Austrian Succession (admittedly there are not a lot), worthy of sitting on the shelf next to CRMF Cruttwell’s A History of the Great War, or Chandler’s Campaigns of Napoleon. Clearly well researched, written in a manner which engages the reader, and for those not familiar with the war the narrative never spoils events further on in the book – it will keep you guessing “Which faction will Saxony join? Will Piedmont-Sardinia throw in the towel? Will the Scots win some form of independence? Will a peace treaty be signed prior to the United Provinces (Netherlands) being conquered by France?” etc.Browning tracks the war from its outbreak upon the Death of Charles the VI Emperor of Austria in 1740 through the Peace Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748 at both the strategic and operational levels. He then provides a recap of which countries achieved their aims (a couple) and which failed to do so (the majority), and the effective “reset” that was implemented at its conclusion as the spoils of war were swapped to again reestablish the status quo.Browning covers all the major theaters of the war in Central Europe, Northern Italian, the Low Countries, and even touches upon happenings around the world as the war spreads to the nascent colonies of Spain in Cartagena, France in Louisbourg, and Britain in India. And all throughout he constantly revisits the aims of each of the participants, the options they weighed, and the ultimate courses they decided to pursue as the fortunes of war ebbed and flowed across Europe.Browning is a deeply impressive author with his ability to keep the subject matter interesting. His vocabulary is vast, but he doesn’t talk down to the reader, rather you get the sense, that he is using his normal lexicon and carefully selecting the word he believes best describes the situation. He had me running for my dictionary several times for words such as “superannuated, putative, and sybaritic”, but each time I did I discovered he had chosen the perfect descriptor for the situation. Also Browning peppers the narrative with some whimsical turns of phrase which will bring a smile to your face, such as when he referred to the United Provinces as “a monument to decentralization” or when he refers to Charles Edward Stuart as “haphazardly brave”.The author also provides the reader with some historic parallels analogous to the situation of 1740-1748. For example, he deftly compares Britain & France to Athens & Sparta – maritime power vs land power. Furthermore, he ascribes the revolutions in Genoa, Scotland, Corsica, and the Netherlands as precursors to the larger revolutions on the horizon to give the reader some perspective on what European society was dealing with at that time.Browning also describes the pressures the combatants were under to end the war and seek peace as European society began to fray and unravel under inflation, famine, revolution, bankruptcy, and just general war fatigue.All the major figures of the time are discussed in detail, from the inept (Marquis d'Argenson), to the opportunist (Frederick II & Charles Emmanuel), to the brilliant (Maurice of Saxony & Admiral Anson).If I were to provide one criticism of the book it would be that the three maps provided are serviceable but not really enough. I would have liked to have seen a few more that provided more details of the major battles (such as Campo Santo or Mollwitz), or the sieges (such as Cartagena or Maastricht). But in the end, this is not a book about the tactics of individual battles but rather a higher operational level view of the war, so I cannot bring myself to deduct even a single star.If you are interested in this time period, I heartily recommend this book.