Vols. for 1871-76, 1913-14 include an extra number, The Christmas bookseller, separately paged and not included in the consecutive numbering of the regular series.

This is the first English-language general bibliography on military fortifications. It deals with the history of fortifications from the earliest times to the present throughout the world. Design, construction, and maintenance of all types of fortifications are noted, from permanent to temporary, from earthworks to fortifications of wood and stone. Although the work mainly cites English-language sources, numerous useful foreign-language publications are noted as well. Materials included range from books and pamphlets to essays, periodicals, book chapters, dissertations, and videos. After the frontmatter, which provides an overview of the subject, the volume consists of six major sections: general works are cited first, followed by chapters on fortifications in the Eastern Hemisphere, Europe, the Pacific, the Western Hemisphere, and specific topics. Each entry contains an annotation which notes the work's content, assesses its usefulness, and notes any unique features. Access to the contents of the volume is augmented through an author index and a subject index. This bibliography should prove invaluable to scholars and researchers concerned with military history, and the place of fortifications in warfare.

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Volumes for 1898-1968 include a directory of publishers.