{"id":140,"date":"2012-12-22T18:25:25","date_gmt":"2012-12-22T23:25:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/?page_id=140"},"modified":"2013-01-25T16:48:48","modified_gmt":"2013-01-25T21:48:48","slug":"addendum-the-art-of-war","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/miscellanea\/addendum-the-art-of-war\/","title":{"rendered":"Machiavelli’s The Art of War"},"content":{"rendered":"

Machiavelli wrote these maxims of military strategy<\/strong> in Book VII of his work, The Art of War<\/em>. Many of these are relevant to the lessons he gave in The Prince.<\/em> For Machiavelli, the strategies of war were an inextricably integral part of politics. It wasn\u2019t just about the clash of armies, but rather the clash of styles of leadership, governance, and policy. I have paired some of them with quotes from Sun Tzu\u2019s The Art of War.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2022 What benefits the enemy, harms you; and what benefits you, harms the enemy.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Whoever is more vigilant in observing the designs of the enemy in war, and endures much hardship in training his army, will incur fewer dangers, and can have greater hope for victory.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy method and discipline are to be understood the marshaling of the army in its proper subdivisions, the graduations of rank among the officers, the maintenance of roads by which supplies may reach the army, and the control of military expenditure.\u201d
\nSun Tzu, Book I, 10<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 Never lead your soldiers into an engagement unless you are assured of their courage, know they are without fear, and are organized. Never make an attempt unless you see they hope for victory.<\/p>\n

“When you engage in actual fighting, if victory is long in coming, then men\u2019s weapons will grow dull and their ardor will be damped. If you lay siege to a town, you will exhaust your strength.\u201d
\nSun Tzu: Book II, 2<\/b><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 It is better to defeat the enemy by hunger than by steel; in such victory fortune counts more than prowess.<\/p>\n

“Therefore the skillful leader subdues the enemy\u2019s troops without any fighting; he captures their cities without laying siege to them; he overthrows their kingdom without lengthy operations in the field.”
\nSun Tzu: Book III, 6<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 No proceeding is better than that which you have concealed from the enemy until the time you have executed it.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll warfare is based on deception. Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.\u201d
\nSun Tzu, Book I, 18-19<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 To know how to recognize an opportunity in war, and take it, benefits you more than anything else.<\/p>\n

“Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near. Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him.”
\nSun Tzu: Book I, 19-20<\/strong><\/p>\n

“To secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.”
\nSun Tzu: Book IV, 2<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 Nature creates few men brave, industry and training makes many.<\/p>\n

“Without constant practice, the officers will be nervous and undecided when mustering for battle; without constant practice, the general will be wavering and irresolute when the crisis is at hand.”
\nSun Tzu: Book I, Wang Tzu\u2019s commentary<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 Discipline in war counts more than fury.<\/p>\n

“The consummate leader cultivates the moral law, and strictly adheres to method and discipline; thus it is in his power to control success.”
\nSun Tzu: Book IV, 16<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 If some on the side of the enemy desert to come to your service, if they be loyal, they will always make you a great acquisition; for the forces of the adversary diminish more with the loss of those who flee, than with those who are killed, even though the name of the fugitives is suspect to the new friends, and odious to the old.<\/p>\n

\u2022 It is better in organizing an engagement to reserve great aid behind the front line, than to spread out your soldiers to make a greater front.<\/p>\n

\u2022 He who knows how to recognize his forces and those of the enemy is overcome only with difficulty.<\/p>\n

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”
\nSun Tzu: Book III, 18<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 The prowess of the soldiers is worth more than a multitude, and the site is often of more benefit than prowess.<\/p>\n

“The spot where we intend to fight must not be made known; for then the enemy will have to prepare against a possible attack at several different points; and his forces being thus distributed in many directions, the numbers we shall have to face at any given point will be proportionately few.”
\nSun Tzu: Book VI, 16<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 New and speedy things frighten armies, while the customary and slow things are esteemed little by them: you will therefore make your army experienced, and learn (the strength) of a new enemy by skirmishes, before you come to an engagement with him.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Whoever pursues a routed enemy in a disorganized manner, does nothing but become vanquished from having been a victor.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Whoever does not make provisions necessary to live and eat, is overcome without steel.<\/p>\n

“\u2026an army without its baggage-train is lost; without provisions it is lost; without bases of supply it is lost.”
\nSun Tzu: Book VII, 11<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 Whoever trusts more in cavalry than in infantry, or more in infantry than in cavalry, must settle for the location (if you limit your army to a certain type of fighting, you need to be sure you pick the appropriate battleground).<\/p>\n

\u2022 If you want to see whether any spy has come into the camp during the day, have no one go to his quarters (spies won\u2019t have a place to go to when the others are told to go back to their quarters).<\/p>\n

\u2022 Change your proceeding when you become aware that the enemy has foreseen it.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Counsel with many on the things you ought to do, and confer with few on what you do afterwards.<\/p>\n

\u2022 When soldiers are confined to their quarters, they are kept there by fear or punishment; then when they are led by war, (they are led) by hope and reward.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Good captains never come to an engagement unless necessity compels them, or the opportunity calls them.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe commander stands for the virtues of wisdom, sincerity, benevolence, courage and strictness.\u201d
\nSun Tzu, Book I, 9<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 Act so your enemies do not know how you want to organize your army for battle, and in whatever way you organize them, arrange it so that the first line can be received by the second and by the third.<\/p>\n

\u2022 In a battle, never use a company for some other purpose than what you have assigned it to, unless you want to cause disorder.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Accidents are remedied with difficulty, unless you quickly take the facility of thinking (act quickly to fix mistakes otherwise they will become too big to remedy).<\/p>\n

\u2022 Men, steel, money, and bread, are the sinews of war; but of these four, the first two are more necessary; for men and steel find money and bread, but money and bread do not find men and steel.<\/p>\n

“If the campaign is protracted, the resources of the State will not be equal to the strain.”
\nSun Tzu: Book II, 3<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2022 The unarmed rich man is the prize of the poor soldier.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Accustom your soldiers to despise delicate living and luxurious clothing.
\n~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<\/strong>
\nPrevious Chapter<\/a> – Next Chapter<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Machiavelli wrote these maxims of military strategy in Book VII of his work, The Art of War. Many of these are relevant to the lessons he gave in The Prince. For Machiavelli, the strategies of war were an inextricably integral part of politics. It wasn\u2019t just about the clash of armies, but rather the clash … Continue reading “Machiavelli’s The Art of War”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":672,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-140","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":202,"url":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/chapters-22-26\/chapter-26-the-forest-and-the-trees\/","url_meta":{"origin":140,"position":0},"title":"Chapter 26: The Forest and the Trees","author":"Ian Chadwick","date":"December 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Machiavelli\u2019s last chapter in The Prince, Chapter XXVI: An Exhortation to Liberate Italy From the Barbarians, was a call to Lorenzo de Medici, Florence\u2019s contemporary, but inept, ruler, to throw the foreign invaders out of the peninsula and unite Italy. He wanted Lorenzo to establish a \u201cnew order\u201d in the\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":107,"url":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/chapters-8-14\/chapter-8-does-the-end-justify-the-means\/","url_meta":{"origin":140,"position":1},"title":"Chapter 8: Does the End Justify the Means?","author":"Ian Chadwick","date":"December 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Machiavelli knew full well that politicians could and did rise to power using dirty tricks. He considered deception a fair tool in war. He would have understood all too well today\u2019s political \u201cattack ads\u201d as weapons in the arsenal of a determined political challenger or party: \u201cOne ascends to the\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 4 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 4 comments","link":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/chapters-8-14\/chapter-8-does-the-end-justify-the-means\/#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":155,"url":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/chapters-8-14\/chapter-14-learn-the-rules-of-war\/","url_meta":{"origin":140,"position":2},"title":"Chapter 14: Learn the Rules of War","author":"Ian Chadwick","date":"December 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Carl von Clausewitz, the famous military theorist, said, \u201cWar is the continuation of politics by other means.\u201d He meant military means. Conversely, politics is the art of war cloaked in civility and procedure. Alasdair MacIntyre wrote in his book, After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory (University of Notre Dame\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":85,"url":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/addenda\/machiavellian-misquotes\/","url_meta":{"origin":140,"position":3},"title":"Machiavellian Misquotes","author":"Ian Chadwick","date":"December 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Machiavelli today is commonly known by two things. One is the statement that, \u2018the end justifies the means.\u2019 The other is by the adjective \u2018Machiavellian,\u2019 meaning something evil, underhanded, treacherous, cunning or sneaky in politics. Neither is accurate. Many people recognize that he wrote The Prince (Il Principe), but few\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 2 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 2 comments","link":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/addenda\/machiavellian-misquotes\/#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92,"url":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/addenda\/bibliography-sources\/","url_meta":{"origin":140,"position":4},"title":"Bibliography & Sources","author":"Ian Chadwick","date":"December 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Unless otherwise noted, all quotations from The Prince used in this book are from the W. K. Marriott translation, available in the public domain. Selections from The Prince are not always used verbatim. Wording and grammar from public domain quotes are often modified for clarity or modernity. In particular I\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 3 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 3 comments","link":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/addenda\/bibliography-sources\/#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":175,"url":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/addenda\/","url_meta":{"origin":140,"position":5},"title":"Addenda","author":"Ian Chadwick","date":"December 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"The addenda and appendices: Opening Quotes & Dedication Introduction A Brief Biography of Machiavelli About The Prince Machiavelli's Rules Machiavellian Misquotes Why Machiavelli Matters Today Addendum: The Art of War The Ten Faults Translating Machiavelli Bibliography and Sources The Prince by Chapter: I II III IV V VI VII VIII\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=140"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/140\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":841,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/140\/revisions\/841"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/672"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/machiavelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}