Clausewitzs On War, Hew Strachan
Clausewitzs On War, Hew Strachan
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Clausewitz's On War
A Biography

Author: Hew Strachan

Narrator: Simon Vance

Unabridged: 5 hr 29 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 08/07/2007

Synopsis

Perhaps the most important book on military strategy ever written, Carl von Clausewitz's On War has influenced generations of generals and politicians, has been blamed for the unprecedented death tolls in the First and Second World Wars, and is required reading at military academies to this day. But On War, which was never finished and was published posthumously, is obscure and fundamentally contradictory. What Clausewitz declares in book one, he discounts in book eight. The language is confusing and the relevance not always clear. For a book that has truly changed the world, On War is extremely difficult for the general reader to approach, to reconcile with itself, and to place in context.

Hew Strachan, one of the world's foremost military historians, answers these problems in this fascinating book. He explains how and why On War was written, elucidates what Clausewitz meant, and offers insight into the impact it made on conflict and its continued significance in our world today.

About Hew Strachan

Hew Strachan is the Chichele Professor of the History of War at All Souls College in Oxford. Prior to that he was a professor of modern history and director of the Scottish Centre for War Studies at the University of Glasgow. A fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Royal Historical Society, he was appointed deputy lieutenant of Tweeddale in 2006. He is the author or
editor of many books, including The Oxford Illustrated History of the First World War and The First World War, Volume I: To Arms.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Christopher on March 21, 2013

This is, to put it quite simply, the best book-length analysis of Clausewitz that I've ever read (and I've read nearly all of them). Strachan's approach is thorough and even-handed: he recounts the major analytical themes of Clausewitz's earlier interpreters (writing in English, German, and French) a......more

Goodreads review by A1Cvenom on February 17, 2024

This is a great relatively short read that mainly covers the experiences in Clausewitz life and why he developed his evolving options recorded in On War. I find it very unique toe see the point of view from a losing party in the napoleonic wars, it’s a rare insight on how things were outside of the......more

Goodreads review by Jeff on May 15, 2018

Professor Sir Hew Strachen is an acquaintance of mine and served as my thesis advisor. I have the utmost respect for him as a scholar and a writer. This book is brilliant at one level, but-that level is a rather advanced one. This is not an introductory work. It is not for the casual reader. It is a......more

Goodreads review by Jonathan on September 24, 2022

Hew Strachan probeert één van de meest invloedrijke boeken in de geschiedenis, dat tegelijk verre van onbekritiseerd is, te analyseren met aandacht voor context, impact en de veranderende fases in het leven van de beroemde Pruisische generaal zelf. Hoewel bij momenten onvermijdelijk technisch van aa......more

Goodreads review by Russ on April 08, 2018

Great balance of coverage on the background of the man and his writings.......more

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