The Art of War
Public-domain ebook
The Art of War
by Jomini, Antoine Henri, baron de
Language: en3,526 downloads on Project Gutenberg
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Public-domain ebook sourced from Project Gutenberg #13549.
About this book
The work is a systematic treatise on the principles of warfare written by the French military analyst Antoine Henri Jomini and rendered into English by 19th‑century translators who stress fidelity to the original. It opens with a discussion of the dangers of translating too literally or too freely, then moves to a preface that frames the book as a practical guide for both seasoned officers and the broader American public. The authors outline the six branches of the art, statesmanship, strategy, grand tactics, logistics, engineering, and minor tactics, while emphasizing the need for maps and familiarity with Napoleonic campaigns. The introductory sections list a detailed contents plan, beginning with definitions of diplomacy’s role in war, followed by chapters on military policy, strategy, and the various operational arts.
The prose reflects the didactic style of mid‑century military manuals, combining formal definitions with extensive enumeration of “arts” and “articles.” Jomini’s voice is analytical rather than narrative, presenting doctrine in a logical, almost legalistic order. Readers who appreciate disciplined, clause‑by‑clause exposition, such as history students, military scholars, or anyone interested in the theoretical foundations of 19th‑century warfare, will find this work engaging. Those seeking a narrative account of battles will likely prefer a different genre.
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Originally published in 1862
PREFACE.
In the execution of any undertaking there are extremes on either hand which are alike to be avoided. The rule holds in a special manner in making a translation. There is, on the one side, the extreme of too rigid adherence, word for word and line for line, to the original, and on the other is the danger of using too free a pen. In either case the sense of the author may not be truly given. It is not always easy to preserve a proper mean between these extremes. The translators of Jomini's Summary of the Principles of the Art of War have endeavored to render their author into plain English, without mutilating or adding to his ideas, attempting no display and making no criticisms.
To persons accustomed to read for instruction in military matters, it is not necessary to say a word with reference to the merits of Jomini. To those not thus accustomed heretofore, but who are becoming more interested in such subjects, (and this class must include the great mass of the American public,) it is sufficient to say, and it may be said with entire truth, that General Jomini is admitted by all competent judges to be one of the ablest military critics and historians of this or any other day.
The translation now presented to the people has been made with the earnest hope and the sincere expectation of its proving useful. As the existence of a large, well-instructed standing army is deemed incompatible with our institutions, it becomes the more important that military information be as extensively diffused as possible among the people. If by the present work the translators shall find they have contributed, even in an inconsiderable degree, to this important object, they will be amply repaid for the care and labor expended upon it.
To those persons to whom the study of the art of war is a new one, it is recommended to begin at the article "Strategy," Chapter III., from that point to read to the end of the Second Appendix, and then to return to Chapters I. and II. It should be borne in mind that this subject, to be appreciated, must be studied, map in hand: this remark is especially true of strategy. An acquaintance with the campaigns of Napoleon I. is quite important, as they are constantly referred to by Jomini and by all other recent writers on the military art.
U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y. January, 1862.
CONTENTS.
TRANSLATORS' PREFACE.
DEFINITIONS OF THE BRANCHES OF THE ART OF WAR.
CHAPTER I. THE RELATION OF DIPLOMACY TO WAR.
ART. I.--Offensive Wars to Recover Rights.
ART. II.--Wars which are Politically Defensive, and Offensive in a Military View.
ART. III.--Wars of Expediency.
ART. IV.--Wars with or without Allies.
ART. V.--Wars of Intervention.
ART. VI.--Wars of Invasion, through a Desire of Conquest or for other Causes.
ART. VII.--Wars of Opinion.
ART. VIII.--National Wars.
ART. IX.--Civil and Religious Wars.
ART. X.--Double Wars, and the Danger of Undertaking Two at the Same Time.
CHAPTER II. MILITARY POLICY.
ART. XI.--Military Statistics and Geography.
ART. XII.--Different Causes which have an Influence over the Success of a War.
ART. XIII.--The Military Institutions of States.
ART. XIV.--The Command of Armies and the Supreme Control of Operations.
ART. XV.--The Military Spirit of Nations and the Morale of Armies.
CHAPTER III. STRATEGY. Definition of Strategy and Tactics. THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE OF WAR.
ART. XVI.--The System of Offensive or Defensive Operations.
ART. XVII.--The Theater of Operations.
ART. XVIII.--Bases of Operations.
ART. XIX.--Strategic Lines and Points, Decisive Points of the Theater of War, and Objective Points of Operation.
ART. XX.--Fronts of Operations, Strategic Fronts, Lines of Defense, and Strategic Positions.
ART. XXI.--Zones and Lines of Operations.
ART. XXII.--Strategic Lines of Maneuver.
ART. XXIII.--Means of Protecting Lines of Operations by Temporary Bases or Strategic Reserves.
ART. XXIV.--The Old and New Systems of War.
ART. XXV.--Depots of Supply, and their Relations to Operations.
ART. XXVI.--Frontiers, and their Defense by Forts and Intrenched Lines.--Wars of Sieges.
ART. XXVII.--Intrenched Camps and Têtes de Ponts in their Relation to Strategy.
ART. XXVIII.--Strategic Operations in Mountainous Countries.
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