--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It takes 15,000 casualties to train a…" description: "\"It takes 15,000 casualties to train a major general.\" — Ferdinand Foch" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/517/ferdinand-foch-17344_casualties_it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-ma_1211037.jpg" --- # It takes 15,000 casualties to train a major general. ![“It takes 15,000 casualties to train a major general.” quote by Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/517/ferdinand-foch-17344_casualties_it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-ma_1211037.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/517/ferdinand-foch-17344_casualties_it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-ma_1211037.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/517/ferdinand-foch-17344_casualties_it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-ma_1211037.jpg) > “It takes 15,000 casualties to train a major general.” [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Leadership and command require hard‑earned experience, often gained through costly conflict. **In simple terms:** Command needs experience from real battles. Key Takeaway Accept that learning can be painful. Themes leadership military experience cost training Mood somber reflective Type historical military When to use this quote - military academies - policy planning - conflict resolution - leadership development Key Concepts strategic learning human cost war ethics Questions to Reflect On - Is there a way to train leaders without massive loss of life? - How do we balance experience with moral responsibility? A Different Perspective High casualties may be ethically unacceptable and not the only path to competence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Train](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/train/) ## Related quotes > [It take 15,000 casualties to train a major general.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/it-take-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-major-general/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [“Thus, the day ended in a tactical stalemate, with the Union suffering nearly 12,500 casualties (including over 2,000 dead) and the Confederates suffering over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/thus-the-day-ended-in-a-tactical-stalemate-with-the-union-suffering/) [Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/) > [Sometimes there's something that you need a few takes to get it and if it takes 15 takes, it takes 15 takes. It really depends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-jonas/sometimes-there-s-something-that-you-need-a-few-takes-to-get-it-and/) [Nick Jonas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-jonas/) > [I am the very model of a modern Major-General, I've information vegetable, animal, and mineral, I know the kings of England, and I quote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-gilbert/i-am-the-very-model-of-a-modern-major-general-i-ve-information/) [W. S. Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-gilbert/) > [A private soldier has as much right to justice as a major-general.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/a-private-soldier-has-as-much-right-to-justice-as-a-major-general/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [If silicon had been a gas I should have been a major-general.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-whistler/if-silicon-had-been-a-gas-i-should-have-been-a-major-general/) [James Whistler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-whistler/) > [I am the very model of a modern major general](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-gilbert/i-am-the-very-model-of-a-modern-major-general/) [W. S. Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-gilbert/) > [Before this war is over, I intend to be a Major General or a corpse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-r-trimble/before-this-war-is-over-i-intend-to-be-a-major-general-or-a-corpse/) Isaac R. Trimble > [We went over there and fought the war and eventually burned down every town in North Korea anyway, someway or another, and some in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/we-went-over-there-and-fought-the-war-and-eventually-burned-down/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [We read our mail and counted up our missions In bombers named for girls, we burned The cities we had learned about in school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-jarrell/we-read-our-mail-and-counted-up-our-missions-in-bombers-named-for/) [Randall Jarrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-jarrell/) > [“Meanwhile nothing happened, nothing ever happened. The English had got into the habit of saying that this wasn’t a war, it was a bloody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/meanwhile-nothing-happened-nothing-ever-happened-the-english-had-got/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Their casualties and bodies are many. Their equipment and vehicles, several were destroyed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/their-casualties-and-bodies-are-many-their-equipment-and-vehicles/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [“The first-day casualties on the Somme totaled 57,470.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/the-first-day-casualties-on-the-somme-totaled-57-470/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [The cost of an on-site inspection team would be minuscule compared to war, Saddam would have no choice except to comply, the results would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/the-cost-of-an-on-site-inspection-team-would-be-minuscule-compared-to/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [I had no illusions about love anymore. It came, it went, it left casualties or it didn't. People weren't meant to be together forever,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/i-had-no-illusions-about-love-anymore-it-came-it-went-it-left/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) ## More by Ferdinand Foch > [The laurels of victory are at the point of the enemy bayonets. They must be plucked there; they must be carried by a hand-to-hand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/the-laurels-of-victory-are-at-the-point-of-the-enemy-bayonets-they/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [A battle won is a battle which we will not acknowledge to be lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/a-battle-won-is-a-battle-which-we-will-not-acknowledge-to-be-lost/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [My center is giving way, my right is in retreat; situation excellent. I shall attack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/my-center-is-giving-way-my-right-is-in-retreat-situation-excellent-i/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [In tactics, action is the governing rule of war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/in-tactics-action-is-the-governing-rule-of-war/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [Aviation is fine as a sport. But as an instrument of war, it is worthless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/aviation-is-fine-as-a-sport-but-as-an-instrument-of-war-it-is/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [Far from being a sum of distinct and partial results, victory is the consequence of efforts, some of which are victorious while others appear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/far-from-being-a-sum-of-distinct-and-partial-results-victory-is-the/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [In war there are none but particular cases; everything has there an individual nature; nothing ever repeats itself. In the first place, the data…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/in-war-there-are-none-but-particular-cases-everything-has-there-an/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/the-most-powerful-weapon-on-earth-is-the-human-soul-on-fire/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [One is defeated only when one accepts defeat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/one-is-defeated-only-when-one-accepts-defeat/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [I am conscious of having served England as I served my own country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/i-am-conscious-of-having-served-england-as-i-served-my-own-country/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [The unknown is the governing principle of war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/the-unknown-is-the-governing-principle-of-war/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [The power to command has never meant the power to remain mysterious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/the-power-to-command-has-never-meant-the-power-to-remain-mysterious/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [A war not only arises, but derives its nature , from the political ideas, the moral sentiments, and the international relations obtaining at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/a-war-not-only-arises-but-derives-its-nature-from-the-political-ideas/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [To be disciplined does not mean being silent, abstaining, or doing only what one thinks one may undertake without risk; it is not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/to-be-disciplined-does-not-mean-being-silent-abstaining-or-doing-only/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [School is a building that has four walls-with tomorrow inside. Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds. There are many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/school-is-a-building-that-has-four-walls-with-tomorrow-inside-our/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) [Explore all 36 Ferdinand Foch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) ## More Casualties quotes > [I had no illusions about love anymore. It came, it went, it left casualties or it didn't. People weren't meant to be together forever,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/i-had-no-illusions-about-love-anymore-it-came-it-went-it-left/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [We went over there and fought the war and eventually burned down every town in North Korea anyway, someway or another, and some in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/we-went-over-there-and-fought-the-war-and-eventually-burned-down/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [“Meanwhile nothing happened, nothing ever happened. The English had got into the habit of saying that this wasn’t a war, it was a bloody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/meanwhile-nothing-happened-nothing-ever-happened-the-english-had-got/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We read our mail and counted up our missions In bombers named for girls, we burned The cities we had learned about in school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-jarrell/we-read-our-mail-and-counted-up-our-missions-in-bombers-named-for/) [Randall Jarrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-jarrell/) > [The cost of an on-site inspection team would be minuscule compared to war, Saddam would have no choice except to comply, the results would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/the-cost-of-an-on-site-inspection-team-would-be-minuscule-compared-to/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [“The first-day casualties on the Somme totaled 57,470.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/the-first-day-casualties-on-the-somme-totaled-57-470/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [Their casualties and bodies are many. Their equipment and vehicles, several were destroyed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/their-casualties-and-bodies-are-many-their-equipment-and-vehicles/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [When war is declared, truth is the first casualty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-war-is-declared-truth-is-the-first-casualty/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is no battle space the U.S. Military cannot access. They said we couldn't do Afghanistan. We did it with ease. They said we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-p-m-barnett/there-is-no-battle-space-the-u-s-military-cannot-access-they-said-we/) [Thomas P.M. Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-p-m-barnett/) > [We're giving them a real lesson today. Heavy doesn't accurately describe the level of casualties we have inflicted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/we-re-giving-them-a-real-lesson-today-heavy-doesn-t-accurately/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [I wanted people who wouldn't become too worried about casualties. One always should be concerned about casualties, but the risk of incurring casualties can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-vokes/i-wanted-people-who-wouldn-t-become-too-worried-about-casualties-one/) [Christopher Vokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-vokes/) > [WikiLeaks exposed corruption, war crimes, torture and cover-ups. It showed that we were lied to about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jemima-khan/wikileaks-exposed-corruption-war-crimes-torture-and-cover-ups-it/) [Jemima Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jemima-khan/) > [The Civil War was fought in 10,000 places, from Valverde, New Mexico, and Tullahoma, Tennessee, to St. Albans, Vermont, and Fernandina on the Florida…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-catton/the-civil-war-was-fought-in-10-000-places-from-valverde-new-mexico/) [Bruce Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-catton/) > [By citing the UN Charter I indicate that the defensive party to the conflict should use only proportionate force, try to avoid civilian casualties,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhikkhu-bodhi/by-citing-the-un-charter-i-indicate-that-the-defensive-party-to-the/) [Bhikkhu Bodhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhikkhu-bodhi/) > [A martyr's just a casualty with really good PR.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/a-martyr-s-just-a-casualty-with-really-good-pr/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) Browse all 251 Casualties quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It takes 15,000 casualties to train a major general.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ferdinand Foch" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-major-general/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Casualties" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-major-general/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/517/ferdinand-foch-17344_casualties_it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-ma_1211037.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/517/ferdinand-foch-17344_casualties_it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-ma_1211037.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/517/ferdinand-foch-17344_casualties_it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-ma_1211037.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It takes 15,000 casualties to train a major general.” — Ferdinand Foch", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ferdinand Foch", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It takes 15,000 casualties to train...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-major-general/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/it-takes-15-000-casualties-to-train-a-major-general/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```