Carl von Clausewitz Quotes
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...in the whole range of human activities, war most closely resembles a game of cards.
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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.
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It is even better to act quickly and err than to hesitate until the time of action is past.
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War therefore is an act of violence to compel our opponent to fulfill our will.
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Architects and painters know precisely what they are about as long as they deal with material phenomena. … But when they come to the aesthetics of their work, when they aim at a particular effect on the mind or on the senses, the rules dissolve into nothing but vague ideas.
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Principles and rules are intended to provide a thinking man with a frame of reference.
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Strength of character does not consist solely in having powerful feelings, but in maintaining one’s balance in spite of them. Even with the violence of emotion, judgment and principle must still function like a ship’s compass, which records the slightest variations however rough the sea.
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Many intelligence reports in war are contradictory; even more are false, and most are uncertain.
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War is not an independent phenomenon, but the continuation of politics by different means.
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...only the element of chance is needed to make war a gamble, and that element is never absent.
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Action in war is like movement in a resistant element. Just as the simplest and most natural of movements, walking, cannot easily be performed in water, so in war it is difficult for normal efforts to achieve even moderate results.
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Der Krieg ist eine bloße Fortsetzung der Politik mit anderen Mitteln
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The worst of all conditions in which a belligerent can find himself is to be utterly defenseless.
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Knowledge in war is very simple, being concerned with so few subjects, and only with their final results at that. But this does not make its application easy.
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Blind aggressiveness would destroy the attack itself, not the defense.
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...the role of determination is to limit the agonies of doubt and the perils of hesitation when the motives for action are inadequate.
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There are times when the utmost daring is the height of wisdom.
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A prince or general can best demonstrate his genius by managing a campaign exactly to suit his objectives and his resources, doing neither too much nor too little.
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...an intellectual instinct which extracts the essence from the phenomena of life, as a bee sucks honey from a flower. In addition to study and reflections, life itself serves as a source.
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Timidity is the root of prudence in the majority of men.
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Any complex activity, if it is to be carried on with any degree of virtuosity, calls for appropriate gifts of intellect and temperament. If they are outstanding and reveal themselves in exceptional achievements, their possessor is called a 'genius'.
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Men are always more inclined to pitch their estimate of the enemy's strength too high than too low, such is human nature.
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To introduce into the philosophy of War itself a principle of moderation would be an absurdity.
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Modern wars are seldom fought without hatred between nations; this serves more or less as a substitute for hatred between individuals.