On war is the most significant attempt in western history to understand war, both in its internal dynamics and as an instrument of policy. Clausewitz is often quoted but more often misunderstood. Graham translation of clausewitz s vom kriege 1832 published in london in 1873. War features unpredictability, incompleteness and instability. Clausewitzs fog and friction and the military transformation. Jan 12, 2020 nevertheless, clausewitzs theory stands the test of time, in an age where a new enemy exists in addition to a complex asymmetrical warfare packed with fog and friction. As war becomes even more complex, the need to explore its fundamental nature is no less important than in the past. It is an extraordinary attempt to construct an allembracing theory of how war works. In the last analysis it is at moral, not physical strength that all military action is directed moral factors, then, are the ultimate determinants in war.
War in the real world, as we have already seen, is not an extreme thing which expends itself at one single discharge. How fog came to insinuate itself into the standard military interpretation of the text is worth some reflection. Stoker does a commendable job of interweaving and referring to the evolution of clausewitzs key ideas on war, including friction 48, 101, center of gravity 100, and defense, including the idea of political defense 97. Jan 21, 2012 clausewitz described war as two kinds 1 ideal war or total war, in its purest form it is unchecked violence and self serving, in other words war for the sake of war, 2 limited war, which is the pursuit of an objective and once accomplished the war must cease. The essential point clausewitz makes concerning interaction is not that the enemys responses are bound to disrupt our plans, but that our plans must aim to predict and incorporate his responses.
Thus in theory the friction cannot be simulated as individuals within the war contribute their own unique friction, each making constant contact with the element of chance. He was well aware of the conduct of war in his own era. On clausewitz a study of military and political ideas h. Smith is particularly good at outlining the intellectual influences on clausewitz. Duarte group for strategic studies, pepcoppeufrj, the university of brazil abstract this article assesses the existing literature on logistics in war. All that is required so that the fighting force can be taken as a given domi. Friction and future war revised edition friction is an inevitable impediment to effective action and was a significant factor in war long before clausewitz popularized the term. On the subject of friction, in on war, clausewitz notes that, those who. First, it examines how each of the command approaches defined in the typology set out in my earlier article interacts with. It is composed of a complex web of interconnected constituents in which friction poses a serious challenge. On clausewitz presents his central ideas about war and politics such as war as an instrument of policy, the concept of absolute war, friction and the fog of war in a clear and systematic fashion. For clausewitz, war is not simply a chameleon that can change its outward appearance, rather commanders must recognize that war changes its.
Gatzke stressed clausewitz s unlimited war of annihilation, his absolute. Modern observers, however, have speculated that technological advances will reduce, if not eliminate, friction. Since the works first appearance in 1832, it has been read throughout the world, and has stimulated generations of soldiers, statesmen, and intellectuals. Clausewitz theory of war, background and trinity youtube. Handel has prepared the first detailed comparative study of sun tzus the art of war and clausewitz s on war, which remain the most insightful statements on. These factors collectively have been called friction, which clausewitz described as the force that makes the apparently easy so difficult. Clausewitz and contemporary war oxford scholarship. On clausewitz is a thorough survey of all of clausewitz s most important insights, drawn not only from on war but also from his voluminous writings on military history and international politics.
The first provides students with background information concerning clausewitz s purpose and method. Clausewitzian friction and future war revised edition open pdf 1 mb since the end of the u. Consider the more modern versions and other relevant books shown below. Mar 29, 2016 it is, however, clausewitzs great intellectual triumph, on war, that permeates the book, as well it should. Based on a detailed reading of clausewitz book on war, this paper proposes that clausewitz reflections on strategy unfold along two parallel arguments. Clausewitz, jomini, and the birth of modern strategy fog. Revised edition clausewitzian friction an dfuture war. The revived popularity of his great treatise, on war, has generated healthy debates within the us military over the utility of such clausewitzian concepts as centers of gravity, culminat ing points, and fog and friction. The origins of clausewitzs concept of friction clausewitz did not make theories of war without understanding what he was studying.
He was able to explicate the nature of warfare precisely because his own experience of war was so intense but also traumatic. Where clausewitzs work becomes relevant is in its capacity to acknowledge that despite military transformations, war is and always will be the subject of uncertainty and the unexpected, namely of the fog and friction of war. Clausewitzs development of the unified concept of a general friction. Clausewitzian friction and future war revised edition. What darwin accomplished for biology generally clausewitz did for the. The relevance of clausewitzs fog and friction in a digital. Translation of vom kriege prepared under the auspices of the center of international studies, princeton university. In 1991, martin van revelds on future war aka the transformation of war was published, eliciting critical responses on a variety of levels. Thus, the allied strategy designed to induce friction into the iraqi military machine was successful. This article seeks to take two further steps towards establishing a conceptual foundation for discussion of command approaches. So is the resistance among teachers of on war to the suggestion that clausewitz wrote a chapter on friction rather than one called. Centers of gravity the idea of clausewitz clausewitz explains center of gravity as being the. Barry watts addresses three questions about friction in the. The nature of war the idea of clausewitz one of the most improtant and lasting contributions of clausewitz is his insistence that before any conflict begins, civilianand military leaders and.
Clausewitz acknowledges that friction creates enormous dif. Its coherence and ambition are unmatched by other military literature. While some of the more important theoretical concepts of on war are fairly welldeveloped friction, for example, many are embryonic and others entirely absent. War is a trial of moral and physical forces by means of the latter. Nov 28, 2002 furthermore clausewitz describes friction in war as the only concept that distinguishes war in theoretical terms from the experience of real war. It has been translated into english several times as on war. This textbased pdf or ebook was created from the html version of this book and is part of the portable library of liberty. The second lays out his theories regarding the nature of war, his ideas concerning the relationship between war and policy, and the complementary balance between friction and military genius. In clausewitz s view the idea of total war was an impossibility, although in.
The original version of this paper was instigated by andreas herbergrothe, who invited me to speak on this subject at oxford universitys conference on clausewitz in the 21st century in march 2005. The effects of climate, disease, and morale at the battle of labadieville stephen s. Where clausewitz s work becomes relevant is in its capacity to acknowledge that despite military transformations, war is and always will be the subject of uncertainty and the unexpected, namely of the fog and friction of war. The 197684 howardparet version is the standard translation today. Clausewitz in nazi germany i a study of clausewitz s influence on the thoughts and minds of those who made nazi germany is an exercise in the futility of tradi tional intellectual history, at least in so far as it applies to the events of recent times. Far from being the bloodyminded apostle of total war portrayed. But these alterations in method make no difference in the truth of the picture of war which clausewitz presents, with which. For a period of 175 years, clausewitzs theory on the fog and friction of war has been applicable. War of course involves a contest of physical force. Pdf clausewitzian friction and future war semantic scholar.
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