The Great War in the Middle East - The Fall of the Ottomans

First rate telling of the host of problems and lack of solutions that swallowed this empire. Provides a much more detailed description of the individuals and issues that were, or were not, dealt with in the course of the power vacuum and collapse.

Riveting! It tells many small stories from first-hand accounts that all come together to show the big picture of the First World War and ultimately the formation of some of the modern countries in the Middle East.

An excellent history which helps explain the present situation in the Middle East, Russia, and elsewhere. It should be required reading for members of the State Department, Department of Defense, and the Pentagon. And it wouldn't hurt for the average citizen to read it too.

WWI on the western front was a rather straight forward affair of trench war attrition; events in the Middle East were more complicated, a story Rogan lays out with great clarity. Many aspects of this conflict in the region were a great con game, drawing other nations into alliances allegedly for their own benefit, only to see these schemes unravel in various battles across the region, destroying the old order in Germany, Austro-Hungary, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire. France and Britain, the "winners" in the war, then proceeded to betray their Arab allies, Wilson's call for self-determination was ignored, and the borders of Greater Syria and Iraq laid out to suit the whims of the victors, an imperial arrangement still unraveling today.

Tied together the reasons for the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Gives a historical base for the problems that we see today in the Middle East and the Balkans. Well worth the time invested reading this book.

Very well written and informative. I am a bit of a history buff and this helped fill some gaps in my understanding of Europe and Asia. .It certainly presented the story from a fresh (to me) perspective.

Rogan's history of the Ottomans helps to enlighten my take on the Middle East and enriches my travel to Turkey. I think this is history written for scholars and laymen alike. I hope our leaders are reading.

The book was an easy overview of the epoch encouraging further reading. The account of genocide was quite thorough. Like many wide horizons, one hoped for better maps. Kindle must find a way to include maps in historical texts.

Well written and comprehensive coverage of an important period in Turkey's history. The description of the Gallipoli campaign is very vivid and heartrending considering the futile waste of life on both sides. Should be read by every student of history.

If you want to try and understand the situation in the Middle East this book is a must.
It goes deep and very detailled into all the different miltary campaigns and political deals made in the region during and after the Great War.

Excellent, well balanced, great fast paced read. I read a lot of historical non-fiction and this is one of my favorites. The book presents all of the complex moving parts that were common to WWI, in a very readable and captivating manner.

A very well written, interesting, and insightful history. Rogan shows that the Ottoman Empire fought much harder and better in World War than is generally recognized, handing the British a series of defeats, some of historic proportions. This book is a much needed and welcome addition to our understanding of the Great War.

This account of the Ottomans in WWI gives us much of the background of the current problems in the Middle East. The colonial interests of the British and French predominated over the Arabs nationalistic needs

Fantastic history of the other part of the first world war.I learnt so much about the middle east involvement in the war that I had never known. As a Brit it as fasanating to learn the facts about the Armenian genocide and to the total involvement of "Lawrence"!.

Overall, I found The Fall of the Ottomans monotonous and boring. I purchased this book to learn more about the internal as well as external issues leading to the fall of the Ottoman Empire. However, almost the entire book is about the battles between Ottoman and British Imperial soldiers in Gallipoli, the Middle East, and Egypt. It is mostly from the British point of view. Apart from one chapter about the Armenian Genocide, all the rest is about battles, battles, and more battles. More a book about WWI than about the Ottomans.

Gave me the insight into the Ottomans and the 1900's Middle East that I wanted. Since I have Armenian friends who can trace to this time period, I was able to understand their families plight during the Turkish genocide.

If you feel a need to better understand the dynamics of the ever evolving Middle East situation, this is an easy read that traces the machinations of the Colonial Powers, particularly Britain, France, and Russia, to benefit from the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. After 800 years of dominance and relative peace, the collapse of Turkey just before and during WWI ended the Ottoman Empire which covered the whole area from Persia across Asia to the Mediterranian Sea as well as the whole of North Africa to the Atlantic Ocean. An arbitrary division of territory without acknowledging historical,tribal, and cultural heredity of various entities contained therein resulted in an unstable balance within and between the resultant states. The discovery of vast oil fields thereafter added to the instability in this area. The world is paying dearly for the greed of the Colonial Powers and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

The book provides a fascinating insight into the war in the Middle East, what drove the Ottomans in this conflict and the machinations of the imperial powers... Essential to understand what is still playing out in the Middle East and the involvement of many of the same actors.

Having seen the movie " The Water Diviner" of which most took place in Gallipoli I realized my knowledge of the Ottoman Empire was very limited. I happened to see a good review of this book "The Fall of the Ottoman Empire" so I ordered it. I was pleasantly surprised at how a story of history kept my interest! It is a story of the Great War in the Middle East, brilliantly researched and a told in a story format revealing the management, terrible human waste of the war and outcomes which still impact the world today. I could hardly put the book down until I finished it!