Clausewitz was a prussian officer who witnessed the destruction of the old european order by the french armies under napoleon, and on. It is an extraordinary attempt to construct an allembracing theory of how war works. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. Edited and translated by michael howard and peter paret princeton, nj. Clausewitz, who fought in the napoleonic wars, sought to understand and analyze the phenomenon of war so that future leaders could win conflicts more effectively. This abridged edition by beatrice heuser, using the acclaimed translation by michael howard and peter paret, selects the central books in which clausewitz s views on the nature and theory of war are developed. Hes the last guy you would expect to be todays war analyst of. The translation of clausewitzs on waris the 1943 version done by german literary scholar o. A biography the first american edition by atlantic monthly press, distributed by publishers group west, 2007 is fresh, clear, concise, and. Two classic works of military strategy that shaped the way we think about warfare. Graham translation of clausewitzs vom kriege 1832 published in london in 1873. The participants in this roundtable refuted that assertion. Book description penguin books ltd, united kingdom, 1982. Published in 1832, a year after his death, on war is regarded by military experts even today as the definitive study of warfare.
Published posthumously between 1832 and 1835 by clausewitz s wife, on war delivers a deep insight into various concepts and schools of thought connected to war. Clausewitz, a prussian general who fought against napoleon, quite literally wrote the book on war. He was a professional soldier but his legacy is that of a military strategist and theorist. Public domain recording by librivox from the 1874 translation by j.
Buy the standard english translation of clausewitzs on war, by michael howard and peter paret princeton university press, 197684. On war continues to be read by military strategists, politicians, and others for its timeless insights. Clausewitzs on warand sun tzus art of war in one volume. On war is one of the most important books ever written on the subject of war. Mobile compatible presented by the clausewitz homepage note. Vom kriege is the basic work on the western way of war.
It does not consist of a single instantaneous blow. This is a dense work that should only be undertaken once a leader has a firm foundation in clausewitz and other theorists of war, but is critical to understanding how senior military leaders must transition from. Clausewitz was a realist in many different senses and. He did not live to see the book appear in print but its influence was profound in prussia and then in the unified german nation state during the course of the 19th century. It only contains the first 4 volumes, pages do not align with the table of contents, and it is inadequate for scholarly use it was clearly printed from a. Princeton university press, 1976 books one and two.
Graham translation of clausewitzs vom kriege 1832 published in london in. Its coherence and ambition are unmatched by other military literatureon war. Graham 1808 1883 a classic work on military strategy by a veteran of the napoleonic wars. On war is widely regarded as clausewitzs premier work on the philosophy of war and the first modern book of you may also like. It is a difficult and dense book that few dare to explore entirely, but many of its ideas have become widely known, principally that famous aphorism. Feb 26, 2006 free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg.
His ideas remain widely taught in military schools, and are, more than ever, essential to the modern strategist. Since the works first appearance in 1832, it has been read throughout the world, and has stimulated generations of. Clausewitz s book on war aims to formulate a coherent and comprehensive theory of war. Kindhearted people might of course think there was some ingenious way to disarm or defeat the enemy without too much bloodshed, and might imagine this is the true goal of the art of war. Clausewitz for trigger pullers modern war institute. Graham translation published by nicholas trubner in london in 1873.
Clausewitz constantly sought to revise the text, particularly between 1827 and his departure on his last field assignments, to include more material on peoples war and forms of war other than highintensity warfare between states, but relatively little of this material was included in the book. On war is full of sharp observation, biting irony, and memorable phrases, the most famous being, war is a. He served in the campaigns of 179394 on the rhine, after which he seems to have devoted some time to the study of the scientific branches of his profession. Buy the best translationrecommended for serious readers. The woman behind the making of on war oxford university press, 2015, isbn.
Matthijs jollesat the university of chicago during world war iinot todays standard. To achieve victory we must mass our forces at the hub of all power and movement. His most notable work, vom kriege on war, was unfinished at his death. Reading on war with a likeminded group, committed to taking clausewitz seriously, in his own words, without relying on secondary sources, was an intellectual adventure. On war also widely known by its german name vom kriege is considered to be clausewitz s magnum opus, despite the fact it remained unfinished at the time of his death. This abridged edition selects the books in which the nature and theory of war are developed and explains the originality his ideas. It has been translated into english several times as on war. It concentrates on defeating the enemy by massing overwhelming force at the enemys weak point. On war 1832, book 1, chapter 1, section 3, paragraph 1. Clausewitz had set about revising his accumulated manuscripts in 1827, but did not live to finish the task.
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