To begin impatiently is the worst mistake a writer can make

The British bombing of Caen beginning on D-Day in particular was stupid, counter-productive and above all very close to a war crime.

The great European dream was to diminish militant nationalism. We would all be happy Europeans together. But we are going to see the old monster of militant nationalism being awoken when people realise how little control their politicians have.

I think it's outrageous if a historian has a 'leading thought' because it means they will select their material according to their thesis

I feel slightly uneasy at the way historians are consulted as if history is going to repeat itself. It never does.

It was only after five years in the army, when I was having to do a very boring job in a very boring place, that I thought: 'Why not try writing a novel?' partly out of youthful arrogance and partly because there had been a long line of writers in my mother's family.

I think one of the great disasters (in military history) is the way that the Second World War has become the defining reference point for every crisis and every conflict.