Clausewitz and the Study of War

Waldman, Thomas

doi:10.1080/14702436.2012.703843

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…The previous cures are not effective and a possible vaccine will most likely only cope with the current corona virus, not the subsequent transformations that the virus will register. As in war, the manifestation of the disease is unique, similar to wars, which, as Clausewitz said, "another side of the chameleon" [1], so we must look for unique solutions to identify and neutralize that chameleon. Even if each war is unique and has its own approach, the study of previous conflicts is mandatory to generate lessons learned that become the starting point in achieving the new objectives, more or less military.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Afghan “Fog of War”

Bojor

Cîrdei

2020

International Conference KNOWLEDGE-BASED ORGANIZATION

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The terrorist attacks of 9/11 took the USA and NATO by surprise, as they are still under the euphoric effect of celebrating the fall of the Eastern European ideological walls and the collapse of the communist bloc. The immediate response of the military operations led to the neutralization of the Taliban forces or more precisely to their removed from political power and denial the influence of Al Qaeda. The purely military approach dominated the initial kinetic clashes and conquered the physical terrain but failed to dominate the society marked by perennial conflicts, widespread corruption, poverty and multiple ethnic and tribal fragmentations. The Afghan insurgency that formed seems to have managed to slow down and finally block the reconstruction and development effort made by the strong NATO-centred coalitions. The article examines the causes of the Afghan “fog of war” that led to this great failure and makes recommendations that must be taken into account in future military conflicts.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Afghan “Fog of War”

Bojor

Cîrdei

2020

International Conference KNOWLEDGE-BASED ORGANIZATION

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“…For example, MacDougall's (1858) Theory of War, while providing interesting historical insights into the operational concerns of its time, is purely an intellectual curiosity, with little or no contemporary relevance. While the continuing relevance of Clausewitz to the post-modern profession of arms is a topic of much debate (Meilinger, 2007, Gardner, 2009, Andersen, 2012, Waldman, 2012, his continuing political relevance through his influence on guerrilla, insurgency, and terrorism theory is hard to dispute.…”

Section: The Era Of Ideological Warfarementioning

confidence: 99%

“…As Rahe (2006) and Waldman (2012) Noting historian Tom Holland's (2013) view on the political and strategic lessons to be gleaned from the Game of Thrones series of books and TV dramas, a claim can be made for an ever-broadening range of 'texts' for our professional instruction. To dub these as 'new' or 'emerging' canons would put paid to the notion of canon itself; to deny them the 'accolade' would make the notion of canon as something relevant, well, irrelevant.…”

Section: A Common Canon?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Professional reading and the education of military leaders

McElhatton¹

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<p>Prominent military figures, both contemporary and historical have, through both personal example and their promotion of critical literacy initiatives, emphasised the role of professional reading in the development of the professional wisdom that underpins effective military leadership. While biographical studies hint at a connection between the extracurricular reading habits of notable military figures and the development of their professional wisdom, the majority of studies on military leadership development focus either through the context of experience or on development through the medium of formal educational programmes. Considering the time and resources invested in formal educational programmes, and the highly incremental nature of self-development that makes its utility difficult to measure, it is understandable but not acceptable that continuous, career-long self-development through professional reading receives scant attention. Using a hermeneutically derived conceptual framework as an analytical tool, this research explores the intellectual component of military leadership, as embodied in the idea of the warrior-scholar, and the role the phenomena of reading, text, and canon, play in the development of the cognitive skills – critical, creative, and strategic thinking – necessary for successful leadership in complex institutions and environments. The research seeks to contribute original insights into the role that professional reading actually plays in the intellectual development of military leaders. The research also seeks to determine the extent to which a military canon that embodies professional military wisdom exists, and the relationship that this canon might have on the development of military leaders in the contemporary environment. The research was conducted through an engagement with literatures in multiple disciplines and 18 open-ended in-depth research interviews with 24 emerging and established military leaders, and defence academics, in New Zealand, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Canada, Israel and the United States on the role reading plays in their professional development. Data have been analysed through literature mapping and the deployment of theme discovery and interpretation-centred analysis methods. In particular, this thesis has examined the artefact of the professional military reading list as used across nations and individual armed services as a component of contemporary professional military education for commissioned and non-commissioned officers at tactical, operational and strategic leadership levels. The research has confirmed the utility of the reading list approach as a means of promoting professional reading, particularly to assist officers: · prepare for a posting or campaign · prepare for formal professional military education courses · aid developmental activities towards promotion · broaden general knowledge, and · cultivate professional military knowledge in breadth and depth. The research has found that reading lists are syllabi for the informal mode of professional military education, particularly to supplement the study, in breadth and depth, of military history, strategy and doctrine, the art of war, and leadership in command. The research has also examined the construction and implementation of the reading lists and developed twenty principles for the development of reading lists for practical use by militaries globally. The research has critically engaged with canon as a concept. While it has not found that the canon concept in its ‘pure’ form as understood in literature studies can be usefully applied to military education, a set of core texts have been identified as being highly valued by militaries globally for the education of officers. Although the research did not seek to prove the link between reading and the development of military leaders, such an approach being inconsistent with the methodological lens adopted, the research does however indicate that professional reading in breadth and depth is as important a component in the development of military wisdom as is training, experience, and formal education.</p>

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Clausewitz and the Study of War

Cited by 2 publications

References 11 publications

The Afghan “Fog of War”

The Afghan “Fog of War”

Professional reading and the education of military leaders

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