István Deák examines the Habsburg officer corps and the way in which it became the foremost preserver of the multi-ethnic Austro-Hungarian empire from the mid-nineteeth century to the empire's defeat in 1918. The officer corps was an important cohesive force in the empire, for it created a unified and loyal army from recruits representing all the different nationalities and ethnic groups of Austro-Hungary.

The policies, character, social structure, and self-image of the Habsburg army have been neglected in the extensive literature on the origins of the First World War. Deák provides the most comprehensive social and cultural portrait to date of this important institution.