Military Strategy: A Very Short Introduction

By (author) Antulio J. Echevarria; By (author) Echevarria Antulio J.
Short description/annotation
This Very Short Introduction adapts Clausewitz''s framework to highlight the dynamic relationship between the main elements of strategy: purpose, method, and means. Drawing on historical examples, Echevarria discusses the major types of military strategy and how emerging technologies are affecting them.
Description
Since ancient times, poets, historians, and philosophers have contemplated warlords'' exploits in battle and praised their ability to lead armies toward victory as the "art of the general." Today, this quality is designated military strategy. Military strategy plays a vital role in every conflict, because, as the United States'' involvement in the Vietnam conflict showed, when the overarching strategy is weak it is possible to win every battle but still lose a war. Taking inspiration from the greatest military theoreticians of history, such as Sun Tzu, Niccolò Machiavelli, and Carl von Clausewitz, this Very Short Introduction highlights the dynamic relationship between the principal components of strategy: purpose, method, and means. Drawing on paradigmatic examples, from Hannibal''s war against Rome to Napoleon''s victory at Austerlitz, from the Allies'' campaign to overwhelm Hitler''s fortress to the terror attacks of September 11, Antulio J. Echevarria II vividly illustrates the factors contributing to the success or failure of military strategy. Echevarria describes the major types of military strategy and their advantages and disadvantages: annihilation and dislocation; attrition and exhaustion; deterrence and coercion; terror and terrorism; targeted killing; and cyber power. He also explores the emerging nano- and bio-genetic technologies and explains how they are affecting today''s military strategy. Clear and engaging, this book shows that military strategy is essential for understanding major events of the past and becomes even more critical today, in a world increasingly threatened by weapons of mass destruction, terrorist attacks, and new dimensions of conflict, such as cyberwar and space.
Table of contents
Prologue Chapter 1: What is Military Strategy? Chapter 2: Annihilation and Dislocation Chapter 3: Attrition and Exhaustion Chapter 4: Deterrence and Coercion Chapter 5: Terror and Terrorism Chapter 6: Decapitation and Targeted Killing Chapter 7: Cyber Power and Military Strategy Epilogue References Further Reading Index
Review quote
"Antulio Echevarria, drawing on his deep knowledge of the field, provides a systematic, succinct, and incisive guide to the main themes of military strategy. Invaluable for both students and practitioners." -Lawrence Freedman, author of Strategy: A History
Biographical note
Antulio J. Echevarria II is the Editor of the US Army War College Quarterly. Prior to that, he was the Director of Research at the US Army War College. He is the author of Clausewitz and Contemporary War, Imagining Future War, and After Clausewitz, and of several articles on military thinking and contemporary war.
Publisher''s notice
Antulio J. Echevarria II is the Editor of the US Army War College Quarterly. Prior to that, he was the Director of Research at the US Army War College. He is the author of Clausewitz and Contemporary War, Imagining Future War, and After Clausewitz, and of several articles on military thinking and contemporary war.
Feature
Selling point: Distills the fundamentals of military strategy, an often obscure topic, for the general reader Selling point: Explains and adapts the theoretical frameworks of Sun Tzu, Niccolò Machiavelli, and Carl von Clausewitz Selling point: Considers the impact of nano- and biogenetic technologies on today''s military strategy and explores contemporary strategies, including terrorism and cyber power
Review quote: previous edition