An annotated list of prominent military theorists.
Although weaponry has changed substantially, some of the fundamental military tactics remain the same. Essentially generals have learned to choose their own battlefield, if possible, and to disengage if they face inevitable defeat. Over history, various generals have tried to adapt these and other tactics, and theoreticians have refought battles to identify the causes of victory and defeat, as well as plan future strategies. The ancient Daoist general Sunzi wrote the oldest surviving manual on military tactics, and the books by Julius Caesar are the oldest surviving accounts of battles by a commander. The works of Caesar and later Carl von Clausewitz were heavily studied in Europe, and many of the recommendations by all three are still followed, albeit with changes to incorporate new technologies, such as cannons, guns, machine guns, tanks, and aircraft.
(Moroccan, 1880-1963):
(Portuguese, 1453-1515):
(Macedonian, 356-323
(Anglo-Saxon, 849-899):
(French, 1821-1870):
(Assyrian, c. 915-859
(Hunnic, 406?-453):
(Roman, 63
(Burmese, r. 1551-1581):
(Byzantine, c. 500-565):
(Algerian, 1917-1956):
(Colombian, 1783-1830):
(German American, 1912-1977):
(British, 1894-1952):
(British, 1884-1940):
(Cape Verdean, 1921-1973):
(Roman, 100-44
(Cuban, born 1926):
(Frankish, 742-814):
(Malayan, born 1924):
(English, 1650-1722):
(British, 1874-1965):
(German, 1780-1831):
(American, 1814-1862):
(Native American, 1842?-1877):
(English, 1599-1658):
(Persian, c. 601 to 590-530
(Persian, 550-486
(Israeli, 1915-1981):
(Italian, 1869-1930):
(English, c. 1540-1596):
(American, 1890-1969):
(Greek, c. 410-362
(French, 1663-1736):
(Roman, c. 275-203
(English, 1841-1920):
(French, 1851-1929):
(Spanish, 1892-1975):
(Prussian, 1712-1786):
(British, 1878-1966):
(né Temüjin; Mongol, between 1155 and 1162-1227):
(Native American, 1829-1909):
(American, 1882-1945):
(French, 1715-1789):
(Huigh de Groot; Dutch, 1583-1645):
(German, 1888-1954):
(Argentine/Cuban, 1928-1967):
(Swedish, 1594-1632):
(Roman, 76-138):
(Carthaginian, 247-182
(English, 1387-1422):
(Byzantine, c. 575-probably 641):
(Japanese, 1537-1598):
(German, 1889-1945):
(French, 1779-1869):
(Mexican, 1806-1872):
(K’ang-Hsi; Chinese, 1654-1722):
(Ottoman, 1483-1546):
(German, 1587-1968):
(British, 1888-1935):
(American, 1807-1870):
(German, 1870-1964):
(British, 1895-1970):
(French, 1639-1691):
(Congolese, 1925-1961):
(American, 1880-1964):
(Italian, 1469-1527):
(French, 1877-1932):
(American, 1840-1914):
(American, 1802-1871):
(Mao Tse-tung; Chinese, 1893-1976):
(Roman, 157-86
(Dutch, 1567-1625):
(British, 1840-1916):
(Ottoman, 1432-1481):
(French, 1804-1879):
(American, 1879-1936):
(Australian, 1865-1931):
(Napoleon Bonaparte; Corsican French, 1769-1821):
(Indonesian, 1918-2000):
(British, 1758-1805):
(American, 1885-1966):
(American, 1904-1967):
(Macedonian, 382-336
(Ch’i Chi-Kuang; Chinese, 1528-1587):
(Seljuk Turk, c. 1137-1193):
(Argentine, 1778-1850):
(German, 1833-1913):
(American, born 1934):
(Roman, 235-183
(American, 1786-1866):
(Roman, 578-534
(Roman, 146-211):
(Zulu, c. 1787-1828):
(American, 1820-1891):
(Shih Huang-ti; Chinese, 259-210
(British, 1761-1842):
(Albanian, 1405-1468):
(Sir William Slim; British, 1891-1970):
(Sun Tzu; Chinese, fl. c. fifth century
(British, 1898-1979):
(Greek, c. 524-c. 460
(British, 1916-1992):
(Assyrian, r. 745-727
(Josip Broz; Yugoslav, 1892-1980):
(Swedish, 1603-1651):
(British, 1873-1956):
(Russian, 1879-1940):
(Japan, 1902-1961):
(French, 1633-1707):
(Roman, fifth century
(Vietnamese, born 1911):
(Bohemian, 1583-1634):
(American, 1732-1799):
(American, 1917-2006):
(Arthur Wellesley; British, 1759-1852):
(South African, 1854-1922):
(American, 1765-1825):
(Japanese, 1884-1943):
(Korean, 1545-1598):
(Soviet, 1896-1974):
(Bohemian, c. 1360-1424):
Alexander, Bevin. How Wars Are Won: The Thirteen Rules of War from Ancient Greece to the War on Terror. New York: Crown, 2002. Haas, Jonathan, ed. The Anthropology of War. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990. Lider, Julian. Military Theory: Concept, Structure, Problems. Aldershot, Hampshire, England: Gower, 1983. Montgomery of Alamein, Viscount. A History of Warfare. London: Collins, 1968. Murray, Williamson, and Richard Hart Sinnreich, eds. The Past Is Prologue: The Importance of History to the Military Profession. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006. Tsouras, Peter G. Changing Orders: The Evolution of World Armies, 1945 to the Present. New York: Facts On File, 1994. Tsouras, Peter G., ed. The Greenhill Dictionary of Military Quotations. London: Greenhill Books, 2000.