Clausewitz and Strategy in the Missile Age: A Critique of Bernard Brodie's Strategic Thought
Abstract
In the normal course of things it is modern commentators that critique their predecessors. In the following pages I will turn this idea on its head by critically reviewing the strategic thought of Bernard Brodie (1910-1978) using the strategist thought of Carl von Clausewitz (1710-1831) as the basis for my critique . Specifically, I propose to compare their thought using four major criteria as a framework. These criteria include what is war; why employ military power; when, or under what conditions should military power by employed; and how should military power be used. To put this effort in proper perspective it is necessary first to say a few words about the lives and times of these two military thinkers. Clausewitz lived his life over a hundred years before the advent of nuclear weapons. he was a professional military officer for most of his life. He knew war at first hand. Brodie, by contrast, was an academic. He never wore a uniform nor did he know from direct personnel experience about the horrors of war. He was, however, associated throughout his life with military institutions. He was, in fact, a member of the faculty that opened the National War College in 1946.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 09, 1990
- Accession Number
- ADA440524
Entities
People
- William Huntington
Organizations
- National War College