The franco-prussian war was just a few decades prior and had a lot of lessons for those who were willing to learn. Sounds like the biggest lessons learned were

The franco-prussian war was just a few decades prior and had a lot of lessons for those who were willing to learn. Sounds like the biggest lessons learned were more at the strategic / organizational level. I'd argue that the Germans learned those lessons VERY well and came within a hairs-breadth of winning WW1 in the first month or two. Largely on the basis of their impeccably planned and well-prepared invasion of france. Even closer in time was the russo-japanese war. The fighting around port arthur and Liaoyang should have showed the european forces what modern infantry assaults were and were not capable of doing. Actually - I suspect the lessons of the naval fighting in the russo-japanese war WERE learned. In that war, the eastern russian fleet was sunk at anchor in a suprise attack, and the reinforcing fleet, assembled at incredible cost, was sunk and destroyed in a single battle. I wouldn't be surprised if those stories had a lot to do with the German fleet staying bottled up so tightly for the majority of the war. That said - I do agree with you that no one really knows what a great power war would look like in 2019, and that the wars we have been fighting don't shed much light, either on the tactical or strategic scale. How long would the US fleet last once they get within cruise missile range of the Chinese coast? A day? Indefinitely?