More on War

by Martin van Creveld

Overview

"War is the most important thing in the world," writes Martin van Creveld, military historian and author of the monumental work, The Rise and Decline of the State. The survival of every country, government, and individual is ultimately dependent on war - or the ability to wage it in self-defense. That is why, though it may come but once in a hundred years, every country must be prepared every day.

In spite of the centrality of war to human history and culture, there has long been no modern attempt to provide a replacement for the classics on war and strategy: Sun Tzu's The Art of War, dating from the 5th or 6th century BC, and Carl von Clausewitz's On War, written in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars.

What is needed is a modern, comprehensive, easy to read and understand theory of war for the 21st century that could serve as a replacement for these classic texts. The purpose of the present book is to provide such a theory.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198788171
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	04/01/2017
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Martin van Creveld was born in the Netherlands but has lived in Israel since 1950. Widely acknowledged as one of the world's best-known experts on military history and strategy, he is perhaps most well-known for his 1991 volume, The Transformation of War, which was the first to predict the demise of conventional war and the rise of terrorism. The author of some thirty other books, which between them have been published in twenty languages, he has acted as a military consultant for several countries, appeared in hundreds of TV and radio shows, and written for, or been interviewed in, hundreds of magazines and papers all over the world.

Table of Contents

Introduction. The Crisis of Military Theory1. Why War? 2. Economics and War3. The Challenge of War4. Building the Forces5. The Conduct of War6. On Strategy7. War at Sea8. Air- Space- and Cyber War9. Nuclear War10. War and Law11. Asymmetric War12. Perspectives: Change, Continuity and the FutureAcknowledgementsIndex

Editorial Reviews

2017-01-24
A definitive treatment of the theory and philosophy of war by a leading military historian.Van Creveld (Pussycats: Why the Rest Keeps Beating the West, 2016, etc.) writes that his goal was to update the theoretical works of Sun Tzu and Carl von Clausewitz. While both those writers took a broad analytical view of what war is about and how to wage it, neither lived to see the era of fully mechanized battle, with its eventual extension into the air and space, let alone nuclear weapons and cyberwarfare. Furthermore, since neither was important in the societies in which they lived, neither has much to say on asymmetrical warfare or naval war. Van Creveld does yeoman's work in addressing these omissions as well as giving a modern perspective on the more traditional modes of warfare. The author looks at numerous historical examples, from ancient times to the last couple of decades. Most of the examples are from the Western world, which is where modern warfare developed, but van Creveld is willing to look at the careers of earlier generals when they illustrate a point—e.g., the Roman general Fabius, whose delaying tactics wore out Hannibal's Carthaginians, or Alexander's being forced to retreat from his Indian campaign when his men would no longer advance. On the other hand, the author puts a thoroughly modern emphasis on the economic aspects of warfare as well as on staff work, logistics, and organization—unromantic but often decisive elements that leaders ignore at the risk of defeat. The chapter on nuclear weapons and their effect on war is particularly thought-provoking. Readers interested in detailed analyses of particular battles or campaigns are best advised to look elsewhere; there are plenty of such books, including some by van Creveld. But for those interested in the larger issues that underlie warfare in all ages and all places, this book is entirely satisfying. Should appeal beyond the usual readership of military histories.

Kirkus Reviews