“Mr. Davies’s superb analysis, though centering on the British experience, implicitly raises broader concerns. How, during peacetime, can armies and the civilian authorities overseeing them avoid the errors of groupthink and sustain military capabilities? It is a perennial question to which . . . there is no easy answer.”—William Anthony Hay, Wall Street Journal
The Templer Medal was established by The Society for Army Historical Research in 1981 to commemorate the life and achievements of Field Marshal Sir Gerald Templer KG (1898-1979) (pictured) and to mark his Presidency of the Society between 1965 and 1979.
The medal is awarded annually to the author of the book published during that year that has made the most significant contribution to the history of the British Army.
“In this wide ranging and important study, Huw Davies assesses an improvement in military proficiency that was highly significant for global as well as British history. It deserves considerable attention.”—Jeremy Black, author of Military Strategy
“An eminently readable book, offering an important new perspective on Britain’s military leadership and warfare strategies in a period of significant change. Davies gives us a rare front-row seat at mess tables, desks, and command tents of eighteenth-century army personnel around the globe.”—Jennine Hurl-Eamon, author of Marriage and the British Army in the Long Eighteenth Century
“This well-researched, well-written and profoundly thought-provoking and stimulating book will force us to reappraise the whole area of the British Army’s evolution from the eve of the Seven Years’ War to that of the Crimean War.”—Andrew Roberts, author of Napoleon: A Life
“An important exploration of how formal and informal networks shaped knowledge exchange and institutional learning during the British military enlightenment of the mid-18th century. Davies has brought together an impressive expanse of archival research in order to show how the British army learned and adapted in its first series of global imperial wars.”— Anna Brinkman-Schwartz, King’s College London
“In this wide ranging and important study, Huw Davies assesses an improvement in military proficiency that was highly significant for global as well as British history. It deserves considerable attention.”—Jeremy Black, author of Military Strategy
~Jeremy Black
“An eminently readable book, offering an important new perspective on Britain’s military leadership and warfare strategies in a period of significant change. Davies gives us a rare front-row seat at mess tables, desks, and command tents of eighteenth-century army personnel around the globe.”—Jennine Hurl-Eamon, author of Marriage and the British Army in the Long Eighteenth Century
~Jennine Hurl-Eamon
“This well-researched, well-written and profoundly thought-provoking and stimulating book will force us to reappraise the whole area of the British Army’s evolution from the eve of the Seven Years’ War to that of the Crimean War.”—Andrew Roberts, author of Napoleon: A Life
~Andrew Roberts
“An important exploration of how formal and informal networks shaped knowledge exchange and institutional learning during the British military enlightenment of the mid-18th century. Davies has brought together an impressive expanse of archival research in order to show how the British army learned and adapted in its first series of global imperial wars.”— Anna Brinkman-Schwartz, King’s College London
~Anna Brinkman-Schwartz
