Home / Quotes / Quote by Carl von Clausewitz

Quote by Carl von Clausewitz

“Boldness governed by superior intellect is the mark of a hero.”

Quote by Carl von Clausewitz

Work

This seminal work delves into the principles of warfare, offering insights on the nature of conflict and the conduct of military campaigns. more

Author

Carl von Clausewitz

Carl von Clausewitz, born on July 1, 1780, and died on November 16, 1831, was a Prussian military theorist and historian. He is considered one of the founders of modern military theory. Clausewitz's most famous work, 'On War,' has had a profound impact on military strategy and warfare theory to this day. more

You May Also Like

“Modern wars are seldom fought without hatred between nations; this serves more or less as a substitute for hatred between individuals.”

War Individual Nations Modern Hatred Substitutes Modern War

Book:On War

Source: On War

“Great things alone can make a great mind, and petty things will make a petty mind unless a man rejects them as completely alien.”

Men Mind Great Things Aliens Rejects Petty Great Minds

Book:On War

Source: On War

“What do we mean by the defeat of the enemy? Simply the destruction of his forces, whether by death, injury, or any other means-either completely or enough to make him stop fighting. . . . The complete or partial destruction of the enemy must be regarded as the sole object of all engagements. . . . Direct annihilation of the enemy's forces must always be the dominant consideration.”

Mean Enough Fighting Force Enemy Objects Direct Destruction Defeat Injury Consideration Engagement Sole Dominant Annihilation

Book:On War

Source: On War

“Whenever armed forces . . . are used, the idea of combat must be present. . . . The end for which a soldier is recruited, clothed, armed, and trained, the whole object of his sleeping, eating, drinking, and marching is simply that he should fight at the right place and the right time.”

Should Ideas Ends Whole Used Fighting Force Sleep Objects Eating Drinking Soldier Combat Right Time Right Place Armed Forces

Book:On War

Source: On War

“Given the same amount of intelligence, timidity will do a thousand times more damage than audacity”

Given Military Amount Thousand Damage Timidity Audacity

Book:On War

Source: On War

“If we do not learn to regard a war, and the separate campaigns of which it is composed, as a chain of linked engagements each leading to the next, but instead succumb to the idea that the capture of certain geographical points or the seizure of undefended provinces are of value in themselves, we are liable to regard them as windfall profits.”

Ifs Ideas War Certain Values Next Regard Profit Campaigns Chains Capture Engagement Linked Provinces Liable Seizures

Book:On War

Source: On War

“No campaign plan survives first contact with the enemy”

Firsts Enemy Plans Campaigns Contact First Contact

Author:Carl von Clausewitz

“Timidity is the root of prudence in the majority of men.”

Men Roots Majority Prudence Timidity

Book:On War

Source: On War

“A conqueror is always a lover of peace.”

Lovers Conqueror

Book:The Essential Clausewitz: Selections from On War

Source: The Essential Clausewitz: Selections from On War

“I shall proceed from the simple to the complex. But in war more than in any other subject we must begin by looking at the nature of the whole; for here more than elsewhere the part and the whole must always be thought of together.”

War Whole Together Simple Subjects Complexes Elsewhere

Book:On War

Source: On War