When a structural fracture failure occurs in normal service, the failure mechanism takes the form of progressive crack extension. Thus, the subject of this review has always possessed a direct practical appeal. Nevertheless, before the publication of the work by Griffith in 1920 and Weibull in 1939 appropriate analytical viewpoints were lacking and subsequent developments based on these ideas have been slow relative to rates of progress in other fields. In 1892 Love wrote in his book, “A Treatise on the Mathematical Theory of Elasticity”, that “the conditions of rupture are but vaguely understood”. Love's comment was still valid when the fourth edition of his book was published in 1926. In terms of behaviour on an atomic scale, it is still valid today. However, present knowledge does permit a fairly comprehensive understanding of macroscopic fracture behaviour, which is of substantial practical value.
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