HISTORY IS NOT JUST ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED. IT IS ABOUT WHAT WE LEARN FROM IT.

For generations, military leaders have studied battles and campaigns to understand how commanders make decisions when faced with uncertainty, incomplete information and the pressure of war.

The staff ride has long been one of the most powerful ways of doing this. By combining historical study, battlefield analysis and structured discussion, it turns the experience of past commanders into a practical tool for developing the leaders of today.

Through a series of carefully selected battles and campaigns, readers are placed at critical moments in the fight and asked to confront the decisions facing those in command. What would you do? What information would you need? What risks would you accept? And what happens when the plan meets the reality of war?

Each case combines an engaging historical narrative with decision points, challenging questions and facilitator guidance, making the book equally valuable for individual study, command teams, military education and battlefield staff rides.

The purpose is not to find easy answers—or to judge commanders with the benefit of hindsight. It is to develop the judgement to make better decisions when there is no perfect answer.

A practical resource for:

• Commanders and aspiring commanders developing judgement and decision-making skills

• Professional military educators and instructors looking for engaging case-based learning

• Staff ride facilitators seeking ready-to-use historical cases and discussion material

• Military units and headquarters wanting to stimulate meaningful professional debate

• Students of strategy and warfare seeking to connect military history with contemporary conflict

Study the decision. Challenge the assumption. Debate the outcome. Apply the lesson.

Publication: c. May 2027

*cover not yet available