Battle Exhortation

"Yellin has produced the most comprehensive study of battle exhortations that I've ever read. . . . Leaders at any level, in uniform or mufti, will benefit from this enjoyable work. It is a treasure that should grace the libraries of those who lead or aspire to lead."—Brigadier General Thomas Draude, USMC (Ret.)

"Battle Exhortation is a fascinating and wide-ranging book on a neglected, but important, topic: the rhetoric at work in the speeches of military commanders bracing their men for imminent combat. With its well-chosen examples spanning three millennia, its insightful readings, and interdisciplinary approach this lively study will be of great interest to students and scholars of military history, the literature of war, sociology, and rhetoric."—Peter Hunt, author of War, Peace, and Alliance in Demosthenes' Athens

"In Battle Exhortation Keith Yellin develops an area that has been but a sidebar in the study of military leadership and raises it to the same level of importance as the execution of military plans. Success on the battlefield is much more than understanding the enemy and appreciating the weather and terrain. Words are important. Yellin provides the 'soul dimension' to the study of military history and leadership. This work is a must-read for practitioners and students of military leadership."—Colonel Benjamin L. Abramowitz, USA (Ret.)