War in Theory I: Clausewitz

Hoggie Lee, I 34009

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♣ War in Theory I : Clausewitz, ‘On War’* Clausewitz’s View on the Nature of War and Strategy

* Purpose and Character of Force: Political Ends and Mili-tary Means

◈ Question*The most frequently cited dictum of Clausewitz is his

assertion that war is an extension of politics by other means. What exactly did Clausewitz mean by this? Why is this dictum so important to the decisions concerning war and peace?

♣ References

Bassford, Christopher. "Tip-Toe through the Trinity, the Strange Persistence of Trinitar-ian Warfare - Politik, Politics, and Policy." http://www.clausewitz.com/readings/Bass-ford/Trinity/Trinity8.htm (accessed September 8, 2014).

Clausewitz, Carl von. "The summary of Clausewitzian theory of war, 'On War' Book 1, Chapter 1-2." http://www.clausewitz.com/readings/OnWar1873/BK1ch01.html (ac-cessed September 5, 2014).

Fleming, Bruce. "Can Reading Clausewitz Save Us from Future Mistakes?" Parameters Vol. 34, No. 1, (2004): pp. 62-76.

The White House Archives (President Bush's Radio Address). President Discusses Be-ginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom. http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2003/03/20030322.html (accessed September 10, 2014).

Clausewitz and his book ‘On War’

Carl von Clausewitz made several important and well-known remarks about the nature of war in his book called ‘On War.’

In the first chapter of the book, he outlined several important aspects and nature of war to explain the definition of war and more about the ob-jectives, means and the danger of war.

However, the contents of his book are quite abstruse and abstract. It is not easy to read and understand.

Clausewitz: Definition of War The definition of war is nothing but a duel on an extensive scale.

The countless number of duels make up a war and there are two wrestlers in that fight. Each side strives to compel the other to submit to one’s will by using physical force.

The objective here is to overthrow one’s adversary and make the other side incapable of further resistance. Therefore, Clausewitz says in his book war is an act of violence to compel our opponent to fulfill our will. The aim of the action in war must always be to disarm and overthrow the enemy.

Political Object of War Clausewitz stressed in his book that the question of political object of the

war should be taken into major consideration even more than the talk of disarming and overthrowing the adversary in warfare.

“The smaller the sacrifice we demand our enemy, the smaller will there be the means of resistance which the opponent will employ. In addition, the smaller our political object, the less value will we set upon it and the more easily shall we be induced to give it up all together.”

The political objective must be considered as the original and fundamen-tal motive and reason for war. This should be the standard for determin-ing the aim of the military force and also the amount of efforts to be made in the war.

Political Object of War Clausewitz reiterated that the political object will be the standard for de-

termining both the aim of the military and also the amount of efforts to be made in the war.

The importance of political object in warfare lies in the fact that one and the same political object may produce totally different effects on differ-ent people or even on the same people at different times.

The result of fights and warfare can be different according to the political object, because these objects can generate a spirit which will infuse vigor into the action of military and people.

“War is an extension of politics by other means”

According to Clausewitz, war is not a political act, but it is also a real po-litical instrument. In that regard, war is an extension of politics by other means. War is the means used to achieve political objectives.

He emphasized with this dictum that war was not waged for its own sake, but was waged to attain a particular objective, such as political ob-jective or policy goals.

What Clausewitz meant by that dictum is that policymakers must set the main policy goals and objectives in the war in order to win the war politi-cally. The prescription of political objective of war may involve efforts to choose the means of war, use the right strategies of war and also take other details of the warfare into consideration, in order to make all these elements remain in accordance with the main objective of war.

“War is an extension of politics by other means”

Clausewitz tried to say through this particular dictum that war is just one of the instruments that are needed to and used to achieve the political or policy. Political or policy objectives should be first set up and clearly prescribed.

Then, other lower levels of military strategies and tactics and other de-tails of the battle and overall warfare can be made and carried out by the military on the ground in accordance with the political goals of war.

The importance of this dictum lies in the fact that the execution of mili-tary strategies and other military actions in the battlefield must be con-trolled and directed by the political objectives set by politicians.

What he was trying to say was the war must not be waged separately from the politics and the process of policy implementation.

“War is an extension of politics by other means”

As long as the basic and important principles are provided for the mili-tary while policy goals are clearly set, the military’s action and strategies can be narrowed down to the most important objective and be focused more on achieving the ultimate political goals as well. In that way, sense-less actions that could be committed by the military can be prevented and the indiscriminate violence and other physical and property dam-ages can also be minimized.

Clausewitz emphasized that the war was not waged for the military objectives, but rather that it was waged to achieve a political objective.

“War is not an act of senseless passion, but is controlled by political objective.”

The political objective must determine the sacrifices to be made in the warfare, especially in terms of the magnitude and duration of the military action.

Example: Iraq War (2003)

the Bush Administration explained to the American public, “our mission is clear, to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, to end Saddam Hussein's support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people.”

Some people may see this war as a victory from the military’s point of view.

But in fact, it was not a success from the political perspectives.

On May 1st, 2003, then-President George W. Bush stated in front of a banner ‘MISSION ACCOMPLISHED’ that this was the end to major combat operations in Iraq.

Example: Iraq War (2003)

One of the main reasons for calling that war a failure is that there were a lack of vision for America’s top decision-makers and their decision to go to war and also a lack of policy goals set by leaders for such an invasion.

The reasons, objectives and rationale for the prolonged war continued to change. These changes and inconsistency without clear policy goals and political objectives must have had a psychological impact on the Ameri-can soldiers and the military as a whole.

Conclusion: “War is an extension of politics by other means”

Significance ① Clausewitz’s assertion that the war is an extension of politics by other means is so important to decisions made con-cerning war and peace, because it puts an emphasis on the role of political objectives that prescribe precisely what must be accom-plished by waging war.

The main point of Clausewitz’s dictum is that the war must not be waged apart from the politics and the process of policy implemen-tation. Only when the war plays an instrumental role in contribut-ing to achieving political objectives and ultimately enhancing na-tional interests, war can be perceived and recognized by people within the military, the government and the entire nation as a proper means of achieving the political objectives.

Conclusion: “War is an extension of politics by other means”

Significance ② The political objectives of the Bush administration regarding waging war in Iraq should have been altered and more clearly set in order to achieve the ultimate political goals. Deci-sion-makers also should have found a better and a more appropri-ate means of achieving their goals.

War is not an act of senseless passion, but is controlled by political objective. The political object must determine the sacrifices to be made in the warfare, especially in terms of the magnitude and du-ration of military action.

Once political objectives are clearly set, the military’s action and strategies can be narrowed down to the most important objective and be led to achieving the ultimate political goals with a focus. Other lower levels of military strategies and tactics used in the warfare can be carried out in accordance with the political goals of war, thereby contributing to achieving the ultimate goals of war.

Q & A

War in Theory: Clausewitz

“War is an extension of politics by other means.”