On War Paperback – January 21, 2012

This is a classic book, and one of the three main books on military theory. Clausewitz takes a different view than most, and while he spends quite a lot of time on strategy and tactics, these are not what he is mainly interested in. Most people will think Clausewitz is out of date, and of course some of the references to battles are of specific battles where the then-used tactics no longer specifically apply. This is because now, from WW 1 at least, armies do not seek specific battles in a specific spot, but rather they look for weaknesses in a long front-line. That is because motors permit much faster movement. However, when you read his thoughts on how wars start, how they progress, and what it takes to finish them, then look at the current situation in Ukraine you will see it is not completely out of date. It is also of considerable historical interest. Clausewitz' analysis of the aftermath of the Battle of Borodino is of particular interest. While Napoleon won it, according to Clausewitz it was not a complete victory because he lost too many of his own troops to offer a strong pursuit. Instead, he thought if he took Moscow he would win, or at least force the Russians to the negotiating table. He was wrong.The book covers a lot of territory, and it was evidently published by Clausewitz' wife after his death. I do not know whether it was the German or the translation, but the book reads in long sentences that are a bit convoluted. In my opinion, German sentence structure with its compound words and the tendency to put verbs at the end of a sentence requires the sentence to be reconstructed completely, and the translator needs to be a writer of English, and I don't think this translator was. To follow this it is necessary to pay attention, so to speak. A further problem is it follows Clausewitz' thoughts, and these tend to wander, and with conditional clauses within conditional clauses it can be tough to follow. As to how dated the book is, read it and watch what eventuates in Ukraine.

Satisfied with it

Review of: "On War Paperback – January 21, 2012," by Carl von Clausewitz (Author).On War (Vom Kriege) is a book on war and military strategy by Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz (1780–1831), written mostly after the Napoleonic wars, between 1816 and 1830, and published posthumously by his wife Marie von Brühl in 1832. It has been translated into English several times as On War. On War is actually an unfinished work; Clausewitz had set about revising his accumulated manuscripts in 1827, but did not live to finish the task. His wife edited his collected works and published them between 1832 and 1835. His 10-volume collected works contain most of his larger historical and theoretical writings, though not his shorter articles and papers or his extensive correspondence with important political, military, intellectual and cultural leaders in the Prussian state. On War is formed by the first three volumes and represents his theoretical explorations. It is one of the most important treatises on political-military analysis and strategy ever written, and remains both controversial and an influence on strategic thinking. The edition currently under review, although three books, is condensed from those volumes.The book contains a wealth of historical examples used to illustrate its various concepts. Frederick II of Prussia (the Great) figures prominently for having made very efficient use of the limited forces at his disposal, though Napoleon is perhaps the central figure.According to some strategists, the "general message" of the book was that "the conduct of war could not be reduced to universal principles." Among many strands of thought, three stand out as essential to Clausewitz's concept:1. War must never be seen as having any purpose in itself, but should be seen as an instrument of Politik - a German word that conflates the meanings of the English words policy and politics: "War is not merely a political act, but also a real political instrument, a continuation of political commerce, a carrying out of the same by other means."2. The military objectives in war that support one's political objectives fall into two broad types: "war to achieve limited aims" and war to "disarm" the enemy: "to render [him] politically helpless or militarily impotent."3. All else being equal, the course of war will tend to favor the party with the stronger emotional and political motivations, but especially the defender.The text under review is 161 pages and set in size 8 or so font. This should not, however, detract from the buyer's interest. This text is packed with the essentials of von Clausewitz's works and for the price is a very good deal. Well done at five stars.

I purchased the Everyman's Library edition of Von Clausewitz's On War for my husband, who is a military officer. He was deeply dissatisfied with the Penguin edition, which is awful in every respect, and so I went in search of an unabridged publication. The Everyman's library version is affordable at around twenty dollars, and expertly translated by the Princeton scholars Howard and Paret (who have a much more expensive but otherwise identical Princeton press edition published). It includes the entire unfinished work, including the books that focus on specifics of military tactics left out of the Penguin edition.My only complaint about this excellent edition, which incidentally features a very helpful "how to read this book" section, is that it is somewhat cheaply bound and may not hold up to prolonged and intense study over the years. It would be nice to have an attractively bound copy for display in a library or office, as well. I fear we may begin to lose pages if we are not careful, but at twenty dollars, the book is replaceable. Steer clear of penguin, and go straight to Howard and Paret. You won't be sorry.

I don't know if the translation is bad or Clausewitz could not express himself clearly but the book is hard to read. What do you make of paragraphs like the following one:"But after his [Frederick the Great's] skilful application of the system of husbanding his resources had shown the powers allied against him, through a seven years' struggle, that the actual expenditure of strength far exceeded what they had at first anticipated, they made peace."Since Clausewitz is considered a classic, I am much more inclined to blame it on the translator. Everyone who studied German knows that you can't translate word for word. German grammar is different. They put verbs in weird places.I don't know if other translations are any better but this one is definitely hard to read.

Read the first book of and you may have some of the interesting ideas written down. The rest of the book is ok, but not as important to read as the 1st book. The concepts that war is tied so close to everything politcal, used as another negotiating technique opened my eyes. If you keep going and read the whole book you will also find some interesting nuggets inside. Clausewitz is a very interesting thinker and I think this Everyman's edition is well made. In fact after some looking, I am getting this book published by Everyman's because it seems so much better than other versions of On War. One thing about this book that is really amazing is that it can also show you things about your own life. I doubt Clauswitz would think of his book in such a way, but his ideas are really clear and helpful even to a non military mind.

日本を取り巻く環境が何となく厳しくなってきたので、読んでみようと思いました。ナポレオンの時代背景ですから、現代の戦争とは各論において違うと思いますが、現場と司令部の齟齬は戦争には付き物のようです。

interesting information ,some of which is very dated obviously.but some of the rules are still standard today and always will be.

On war is a superb book written on war, and changes the way you should analyze and asses battles. My only complaint is this book does not come with books 4 and 5 of on war. Might not be a big deal for most, they are more to do with March's and deployment of that time period and dont represent how things are done these days but are things I myself enjoy. One recommendation to readers is to have a minor knowledge of Fredrick the great and napoleon although not a deal breaker he does use them for examples and it just makes it easier over all.

Forward: Do Not Buy This Version Of "On War"; Get A Better Translation!!!!!In immediate respect, Clausewitz confused me. I fought to remain attentive or enthusiastic towards any sort of comprehension (even perhaps interest) for the substance of this book. I struggled, wrestled, and was at first disinterested in this title which could perhaps be attributed to the version of translation. At first, I was primarily occupied trying to grasp at why "On War" was celebrated as one of the most important military literature's of all time. Then, suddenly, all the philosophy hit me at once in culmination. I suddenly understood, which was generally relieving. The genius of this piece has risen above extraordinary, though almost entirely unpalatable at first to my observation. Therefore, while I recommend the title, I'd advocate a different publisher, book version and translation attempt.Now, having finished "On War" (after one read through), of course I realize that Clausewitz is the Plato of war. Yet in my mild and hesitant venture of absorbing this information, my end realization was very difficult to emerge with. I had to force my discovery, which I would have preferred to be voluntary. Near the end of 'On War', which was abrupt (I understand he died during the authorship) a sense of sadness may be detected, which is almost tragic and poignant. I feel as if Clausewitz, in his own genius, sacrificed his life to achieve these revelations and was overwhelmed by sorrow at the end. This is speculation, though I feel it accurate.Inside of these these pages; an offering which may not be quite surpassed ever (even by Sun Tzu, possibly) though perhaps even in today's wars, more pertinent now than historically.