Collins Encyclopedia of Military History

 I'd not come across this book before but John A saw a copy in a local charity shop and asked if I wanted one. 

The Collins Encyclopedia of Military History by R and T Dupuy, the latter obviously famous for his work on military science, "Numbers Prediction and War" etc.

I've got several military encylopedias already, but they tend to be period specific and of distinctly patchy quality. This one covers a vast period, from the earliest recorded history (Sumerians etc) up to 'the present day', which apparently means 1991. I guess they are subscribers to the End of History thesis. It covers the first Gulf War anyway.

Ignoring the missing ultra modern stuff, this is a really, really good encyclopedia. Each military epoch has a chapter on significant military methods and developments in the period. This one is explaining the Philip IIs, Macedonian Army.

And then there are fairly standard encyclopedia type pages covering the few hundred years of ensuing military history, covering the entire globe, as far as we know about it anyway. Where appropriate, key battles are illustrated, but for me the fascinating thing was the coverage of areas I know little about (India, China, South America etc) and it also filled in lots of gaps about periods I do have some knowledge of (who on earth were the Phoenecians?)

You also get the inevitable campaign and regional maps, which are also very useful. 

I really can't recommend this highly enough. I'm sure wikipedia covers a lot of this stuff these days, but you need a starting point about what to look for, and this is as good as any. What a great book, thanks very much John!