Carl von ClausewitzThinkers

War is an act of force to compel our enemy to do our will.

War is not an exercise of the will directed at an inanimate matter.

War is the means of achieving a political object, a means which can never be considered in isolation from its purposes.

War is the domain of physical exertion and suffering.

War is not merely a political act, but also a real political instrument, a continuation of political commerce, a carrying out of the same by other means.

War is a necessarily dangerous business. The worst mistakes are those that come from kindness.

War is very simple, but in war the simplest things become very difficult.