“peace is maintained by the equilibrium of forces, and will continue just as long as this equilibrium exists, and no longer.” — Carl von Clausewitz Equilibrium Copy Share Image
“...an intellectual instinct which extracts the essence from the phenomena of life, as a bee sucks honey from a flower. In addition… — Carl von Clausewitz Essence Copy Share Image
War is only caused through the political intercourse of governments and nations - war is nothing but a continuation of political intercourse… — Carl von Clausewitz Copy Share Image
War is an act of force, and to the application of that force there is no limit. Each of the adversaries forces… — Carl von Clausewitz Action Copy Share Image
War is the province of chance. in no other sphere of human activity must such a margin be left for this intruder.… — Carl von Clausewitz Chance Copy Share Image
Of all the passions that inspire a man in a battle, none, we have to admit, is so powerful and so constant… — Carl von Clausewitz Battle Copy Share Image
Boldness will be at a disadvantage only in an encounter with deliberate caution, which may be considered bold in its own right,… — Carl von Clausewitz Boldness Copy Share Image
War is not merely a political act but a real political instrument, a continuation of political intercourse, a carrying out of the… — Carl von Clausewitz Copy Share Image
Lastly, the great uncertainty of all data in War is a peculiar difficulty, because all action must, to a certain extent, be… — Carl von Clausewitz Action Copy Share Image
The deduction of effect from cause is often blocked by some insuperable extrinsic obstacle: the true causes may be quite unknown. Nowhere… — Carl von Clausewitz Copy Share Image
If we do not learn to regard a war, and the separate campaigns of which it is composed, as a chain of… — Carl von Clausewitz Campaigns Copy Share Image
Whenever armed forces . . . are used, the idea of combat must be present. . . . The end for which… — Carl von Clausewitz Armed forces Copy Share Image
“If, adhering closely to the absolute, we try to avoid all difficulties by a stroke of the pen, and insist with logical… — Carl von Clausewitz Real world Copy Share Image
The invention of gunpowder and the constant improvement of firearms are enough in themselves to show that the advance of civilization has… — Carl von Clausewitz Civilization Copy Share Image
In 1793 such a force as no one had any conception of made its appearance. War had again suddenly become an affair… — Carl von Clausewitz Affair Copy Share Image
Our knowledge of circumstances has increased, but our uncertainty, instead of having diminished, has only increased. The reason of this is, that… — Carl von Clausewitz Copy Share Image
Great things alone can make a great mind, and petty things will make a petty mind unless a man rejects them as… — Carl von Clausewitz Aliens Copy Share Image
“(1) War becomes a completely isolated act, which arises suddenly, and is in no way connected with the previous history of the… — Carl von Clausewitz History Copy Share Image
“Von der Goltz in excuse for the action of the late President Kruger in 1899: "The Statesman who, knowing his instrument to… — Carl von Clausewitz War Copy Share Image
Action in war is like movement in a resistant element. Just as the simplest and most natural of movements, walking, cannot easily… — Carl von Clausewitz Copy Share Image
“steam boiler, delivering so and so many pounds of steam to its engines as long as the envelope can contain the pressure;… — Carl von Clausewitz Copy Share Image
