This examination of the history of the 20th century and the place of war in its unfolding presents an unorthodox interpretation of both. With provision for seeing 1945 as the proper starting point for the 20th century and 1968 as the year that marked the end of the Age of Reason, this study portrays World War I as the first war of the 20th century and World War II as the last war of the 19th. It also provides a counterview of World War II as merely one part of a series of conflicts that lasted between 1931 and 1975 and the Cold War as the time when real hatreds were suspended. Moving through various insurgency campaigns, Willmott subjects the Gulf campaign of 1991 to skeptical analysis.