Description: While many scholars agree that Clausewitz's On War is frequently misunderstood, almost none have explored his methodology to see whether it might enhance our understanding of his concepts. This book lays out Clausewitz's methodology in a brisk and straightforward style. It then uses that as a basis for understanding his contributions to the ever growing body of knowledge of war. The specific contributions this study addresses are Clausewitz's theories concerning the nature of war, the relationship between war and politics, and several of the major principles of strategy he examined.
Review Quotes: "[Clausewitz and Contemporary War] is a thorough analysis that may be useful not only to the military but also to historians, political scientists, and politicians."--Bruno Colson, University of Namur, War in History 18(2) (2011), p. 254.
"Echevarria argues that On War is most readily understood once its 'combat-centric' (p.6) nature is recognized... Clausewitz intended to write a book that would be useful to fighting soldiers... and Echevarria's analysis is basically a demonstration of how On War stacks up once that ambition is taken seriously."--Daniel Moran, Naval Post Graduate School, Journal of Military History 72 (2) (2008), p. 627.
"Antulio Echevarria is an example of [the tradition of military historians who were at once interested in war and strategy]; and he can tick the box of the (in this context) indispensable knowledge of German and of the historical understanding of German (especially Prussian) culture in the early nineteenth century."--Beatrice Heuser, University of Reading, RUSI 152(6) (2007), p. 99.
"[Clausewitz and Contemporary War] is a thorough analysis that may be useful not only to the military but also to historians, political scientists, and politicians."--Bruno Colson, University of Namur, War in History 18(2) (2011), p. 254.
"[Clausewitz and Contemporary War] is a thorough analysis that may be useful not only to the military but also to historians, political scientists, and politicians."--Bruno Colson, University of Namur, War in History 18(2) (2011), p. 254.
"Echevarria argues that On War is most readily understood once its 'combat-centric' (p.6) nature is recognized... Clausewitz intended to write a book that would be useful to fighting soldiers... and Echevarria's analysis is basically a demonstration of how On War stacks up once that ambition is taken seriously."--Daniel Moran, Naval Post Graduate School, Journal of Military History 72 (2) (2008), p. 627.
"Antulio Echevarria is an example of [the tradition of military historians who were at once interested in war and strategy]; and he can tick the box of the (in this context) indispensable knowledge of German and of the historical understanding of German (especially Prussian) culture in the early nineteenth century."--Beatrice Heuser, University of Reading, RUSI 152(6) (2007), p. 99.