The Concept of Command Leadership in the Military Classics: Ardant du Picq and Foch.

Abstract

The purpose of this report was to analyze the leadership concepts of two noted, French military thinkers, Colonel Charles Ardant du Picq and Marshal Ferdinand Foch. Today in the study of leadership, the military seems to concentrate far more heavily on socio-psychological factors and modern managerial techniques than on the traits and skills needed to effectively lead troops in combat. In order to better understand the fundamentals of military leadership, it is helpful to review the leadership concepts of great military thinkers throughout history. Colonel Ardant du Picq and Marshal Foch were significant French military scholars whose concepts significantly influenced several generations of French military leaders in the years leading up to the First World War. While their writings contain many references to the tasks and responsibilities of the military leader, they never specifically addressed their leadership beliefs. In order to reconstruct their concepts of military leadership it is necessary to analyze their surviving works and discern their beliefs on the proper roles of the military leader and on those personality traits which can be associated with effective leadership.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 01, 1986
Accession Number
ADA168346

Entities

People

  • Stephen J. Chmiola

Organizations

  • Air Command and Staff College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Case Studies
  • Classification
  • Doctrine
  • First World War
  • Governments
  • Instructors
  • Materials
  • Military History
  • Personality
  • Personnel Management
  • Psychology
  • Public Administration
  • Schools
  • Students
  • Training
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.