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The New Makers of Modern Strategy
This chapter is in the book The New Makers of Modern Strategy
145CHAPTER 6Jomini, Modern War, and StrategyTHE TR IUMPH OF THE ESSENTI A LAntulio J. Echevarria IIIn the 1986 edition of Makers of Modern Strategy, historian John Shy argued that the Swiss military writer, Antoine-Henri Jomini, rather than the Prussian military theorist, Carl von Clausewitz, deserved the “dubious title of founder of modern strategy.”1 Shy’s claim has since disappointed many students of Clausewitz; they see him as the rightful founder of modern strategy. Clause-witz’s masterwork, Vom Kriege (On War), though unfinished and frequently misinterpreted, is uncontestably superior in its treatment of armed conflict to Jomini’s two major treatises— Tra i t édes grandes operations militaires (Tre a-tise on Grand Military Operations) and Precis de l’art de la guerre (Summary of the Art of War).2 In fact, critics have gone so far as to liken Jomini’s works, pejoratively, to “how-to” manuals. But Shy’s essay also expresses a sense of disappointment with his own conclusions. He, too, seems to have preferred that the historical evidence had pointed to Clausewitz rather than Jomini.1. John Shy, “Jomini,” in Makers of Modern Strategy from Machiavelli to the Nuclear Age, Peter Paret, ed. (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1986), 143–85.2. Carl v. Clausewitz, Hinterlasseneswerk Vom Kriege (Berlin: Ferdinand Dümmler, 1832–34); Antoine- Henri Jomini, Tra i tédes grandes operations militaires, contenant l’histoire critique des cam-pagnes de Frederic II, compares a celles de l’Empereur Napoleon, avec un recueil des principes generaux de l’art de la guerre (Paris: Giguet et Michaud, Magimel, 1805–9); and Jomini, Precis de l’art de la guerre, ou nouveau tableau analytique des principales combinaisons de la strategie, de la grande tactique et de la politique militaire, 2 Volumes (Paris: Anselin, G. Laguionie, 1838–39). Precis de l’art de la guerre, de la grande tactique et de la politique militaire (Paris: Anselin, G. Laguionie, 1838–39).
© 2023 Princeton University Press, Princeton

145CHAPTER 6Jomini, Modern War, and StrategyTHE TR IUMPH OF THE ESSENTI A LAntulio J. Echevarria IIIn the 1986 edition of Makers of Modern Strategy, historian John Shy argued that the Swiss military writer, Antoine-Henri Jomini, rather than the Prussian military theorist, Carl von Clausewitz, deserved the “dubious title of founder of modern strategy.”1 Shy’s claim has since disappointed many students of Clausewitz; they see him as the rightful founder of modern strategy. Clause-witz’s masterwork, Vom Kriege (On War), though unfinished and frequently misinterpreted, is uncontestably superior in its treatment of armed conflict to Jomini’s two major treatises— Tra i t édes grandes operations militaires (Tre a-tise on Grand Military Operations) and Precis de l’art de la guerre (Summary of the Art of War).2 In fact, critics have gone so far as to liken Jomini’s works, pejoratively, to “how-to” manuals. But Shy’s essay also expresses a sense of disappointment with his own conclusions. He, too, seems to have preferred that the historical evidence had pointed to Clausewitz rather than Jomini.1. John Shy, “Jomini,” in Makers of Modern Strategy from Machiavelli to the Nuclear Age, Peter Paret, ed. (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1986), 143–85.2. Carl v. Clausewitz, Hinterlasseneswerk Vom Kriege (Berlin: Ferdinand Dümmler, 1832–34); Antoine- Henri Jomini, Tra i tédes grandes operations militaires, contenant l’histoire critique des cam-pagnes de Frederic II, compares a celles de l’Empereur Napoleon, avec un recueil des principes generaux de l’art de la guerre (Paris: Giguet et Michaud, Magimel, 1805–9); and Jomini, Precis de l’art de la guerre, ou nouveau tableau analytique des principales combinaisons de la strategie, de la grande tactique et de la politique militaire, 2 Volumes (Paris: Anselin, G. Laguionie, 1838–39). Precis de l’art de la guerre, de la grande tactique et de la politique militaire (Paris: Anselin, G. Laguionie, 1838–39).
© 2023 Princeton University Press, Princeton

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. Contents vii
  3. Acknowledgments xiii
  4. Contributors xv
  5. Introduction: The Indispensable Art: Three Generations of Makers of Modern Strategy 1
  6. Part One Foundations and Founders
  7. 1 Strategy: The History of an Idea 17
  8. 2 Thucydides, Polybius, and the Legacies of the Ancient World 41
  9. 3 Sun Zi and the Search for a Timeless Logic of Strategy 67
  10. 4 Machiavelli and the Naissance of Modern Strategy 91
  11. 5 The Elusive Meaning and Enduring Relevance of Clausewitz 116
  12. 6 Jomini, Modern War, and Strategy: The Triumph of the Essential 145
  13. 7 Alfred Thayer Mahan and the Strategy of Sea Power 169
  14. 8 Kant, Paine, and Strategies of Liberal Transformation 193
  15. 9 Alexander Hamilton and the Financial Sinews of Strategy 218
  16. 10 Economic Foundations of Strategy: Beyond Smith, Hamilton, and List 241
  17. Part Two Strategy in an Age of Great-Power Rivalry
  18. 11 Sully, Richelieu, and Mazarin: French Strategies of Equilibrium in the Seventeenth Century 269
  19. 12 Generational Competition in a Multipolar World: William III and André-Hercule de Fleury 295
  20. 13 Napoleon and the Strategy of the Single Point 319
  21. 14 John Quincy Adams and the Challenges of a Democratic Strategy 344
  22. 15 Strategic Excellence: Tecumseh and the Shawnee Confederacy 369
  23. 16 Francis Lieber, the Laws of War, and the Origins of the Liberal International Order 391
  24. 17 Japan Caught between Maritime and Continental Imperialism 415
  25. 18 Strategies of Anti-Imperial Resistance: Gandhi, Bhagat Singh, and Fanon 440
  26. Part Three Strategy in an Age of Global War
  27. 19 Strategy, War Plans, and the First World War 471
  28. 20 The Strategy of Decisive War versus the Strategy of Attrition 495
  29. 21 Strategy and Total War 522
  30. 22 Woodrow Wilson and the Rise of Modern American Grand Strategy 545
  31. 23 Democratic Leaders and Strategies of Coalition Warfare: Churchill and Roosevelt in World War II 569
  32. 24 The Hidden Hand of History: Toynbee and the Search for World Order 593
  33. 25 Strategies of Geopolitical Revolution: Hitler and Stalin 616
  34. 26 Mao Zedong and Strategies of Nested War 638
  35. Part Four Strategy in a Bipolar Era
  36. 27 Nuclear Strategy in Theory and Practice: The Great Divergence 665
  37. 28 The Elusive Nature of Nuclear Strategy 692
  38. 29 Limited War in the Nuclear Age: American Strategy in Korea 717
  39. 30 Ben-Gurion, Nasser, and Strategy in the Arab-Israeli Conflict 741
  40. 31 Nehru and the Strategy of Non-Alignment 765
  41. 32 Lyndon Johnson and Robert McNamara: Theory Over History and Expertise 789
  42. 33 Strategies of Détente and Competition: Brezhnev and Moscow’s Cold War 817
  43. 34 Arms Competition, Arms Control, and Strategies of Peacetime Competition from Fisher to Reagan 841
  44. Part Five Strategy in the Post-Cold War World
  45. 35 Dilemmas of Dominance: American Strategy from George H.W. Bush to Barack Obama 869
  46. 36 The Two Marshals: Nikolai Ogarkov, Andrew Marshall, and the Revolution in Military Affairs 895
  47. 37 Strategies of Counterinsurgency and Counter-Terrorism after 9/11 918
  48. 38 Strategies of Jihad: From the Prophet Muhammad to Contemporary Times 946
  49. 39 Xi Jinping and the Strategy of China’s Restoration 972
  50. 40 Soleimani, Gerasimov, and Strategies of Irregular Warfare 996
  51. 41 The Strength of Weakness: The Kim Dynasty and North Korea’s Strategy for Survival 1022
  52. 42 Strategies of Persistent Conflict: Kabila and the Congo Wars 1046
  53. 43 Strategy and Grand Strategy in New Domains 1067
  54. 44 A Revolution in Intelligence 1092
  55. 45 Grammar, Logic, and Grand Strategy 1119
  56. Index 1141
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https://doi.org/10.1515/9780691226729-009

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. Contents vii
  3. Acknowledgments xiii
  4. Contributors xv
  5. Introduction: The Indispensable Art: Three Generations of Makers of Modern Strategy 1
  6. Part One Foundations and Founders
  7. 1 Strategy: The History of an Idea 17
  8. 2 Thucydides, Polybius, and the Legacies of the Ancient World 41
  9. 3 Sun Zi and the Search for a Timeless Logic of Strategy 67
  10. 4 Machiavelli and the Naissance of Modern Strategy 91
  11. 5 The Elusive Meaning and Enduring Relevance of Clausewitz 116
  12. 6 Jomini, Modern War, and Strategy: The Triumph of the Essential 145
  13. 7 Alfred Thayer Mahan and the Strategy of Sea Power 169
  14. 8 Kant, Paine, and Strategies of Liberal Transformation 193
  15. 9 Alexander Hamilton and the Financial Sinews of Strategy 218
  16. 10 Economic Foundations of Strategy: Beyond Smith, Hamilton, and List 241
  17. Part Two Strategy in an Age of Great-Power Rivalry
  18. 11 Sully, Richelieu, and Mazarin: French Strategies of Equilibrium in the Seventeenth Century 269
  19. 12 Generational Competition in a Multipolar World: William III and André-Hercule de Fleury 295
  20. 13 Napoleon and the Strategy of the Single Point 319
  21. 14 John Quincy Adams and the Challenges of a Democratic Strategy 344
  22. 15 Strategic Excellence: Tecumseh and the Shawnee Confederacy 369
  23. 16 Francis Lieber, the Laws of War, and the Origins of the Liberal International Order 391
  24. 17 Japan Caught between Maritime and Continental Imperialism 415
  25. 18 Strategies of Anti-Imperial Resistance: Gandhi, Bhagat Singh, and Fanon 440
  26. Part Three Strategy in an Age of Global War
  27. 19 Strategy, War Plans, and the First World War 471
  28. 20 The Strategy of Decisive War versus the Strategy of Attrition 495
  29. 21 Strategy and Total War 522
  30. 22 Woodrow Wilson and the Rise of Modern American Grand Strategy 545
  31. 23 Democratic Leaders and Strategies of Coalition Warfare: Churchill and Roosevelt in World War II 569
  32. 24 The Hidden Hand of History: Toynbee and the Search for World Order 593
  33. 25 Strategies of Geopolitical Revolution: Hitler and Stalin 616
  34. 26 Mao Zedong and Strategies of Nested War 638
  35. Part Four Strategy in a Bipolar Era
  36. 27 Nuclear Strategy in Theory and Practice: The Great Divergence 665
  37. 28 The Elusive Nature of Nuclear Strategy 692
  38. 29 Limited War in the Nuclear Age: American Strategy in Korea 717
  39. 30 Ben-Gurion, Nasser, and Strategy in the Arab-Israeli Conflict 741
  40. 31 Nehru and the Strategy of Non-Alignment 765
  41. 32 Lyndon Johnson and Robert McNamara: Theory Over History and Expertise 789
  42. 33 Strategies of Détente and Competition: Brezhnev and Moscow’s Cold War 817
  43. 34 Arms Competition, Arms Control, and Strategies of Peacetime Competition from Fisher to Reagan 841
  44. Part Five Strategy in the Post-Cold War World
  45. 35 Dilemmas of Dominance: American Strategy from George H.W. Bush to Barack Obama 869
  46. 36 The Two Marshals: Nikolai Ogarkov, Andrew Marshall, and the Revolution in Military Affairs 895
  47. 37 Strategies of Counterinsurgency and Counter-Terrorism after 9/11 918
  48. 38 Strategies of Jihad: From the Prophet Muhammad to Contemporary Times 946
  49. 39 Xi Jinping and the Strategy of China’s Restoration 972
  50. 40 Soleimani, Gerasimov, and Strategies of Irregular Warfare 996
  51. 41 The Strength of Weakness: The Kim Dynasty and North Korea’s Strategy for Survival 1022
  52. 42 Strategies of Persistent Conflict: Kabila and the Congo Wars 1046
  53. 43 Strategy and Grand Strategy in New Domains 1067
  54. 44 A Revolution in Intelligence 1092
  55. 45 Grammar, Logic, and Grand Strategy 1119
  56. Index 1141
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