Discover the Best Books Written by Carl von Clausewitz
Carl von Clausewitz (1780 - 1831) was a Prussian professional soldier, who achieved fame as a military theorist. His classic work, 'On War,' has become one of the most influential books on the philosophy of warfare.
Carl von Clausewitz was born on 1st June 1780 in Burg bei Magdeburg, Prussia, the fourth and youngest son of a lower-middle-class family. His grandfather, the son of a Lutheran pastor, had been a professor of theology. Clausewitz’s father was once a lieutenant in the Prussian army and held a minor post in the Prussian internal revenue service.
Clausewitz entered the Prussian military service at the age of twelve as a Lance-Corporal, eventually attaining the rank of Major-General. Clausewitz served in the Rhine Campaigns (1793–1794) when the Prussian army invaded France during the French Revolution, and later served in the Napoleonic Wars from 1806 to 1815.