Napoleon on the Art of War

New York: The Free Press, 1999. First edition. First printing [stated]. Hardcover. Very good in very good dust jacket. DJ has slight wear and soiling.. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. x, [2], 196 p. Includes a critical analysis of the Wars of Frederick the Great. Notes. Bibliography. Index. Unlike Sun-Tzu or Karl von Clausewitz, Napoleon never wrote a unified essay on his military philosophy. Yet as one of the world's greatest strategists and tacticians, his wisdom and genius can be found in his many and varied writings. Jay Luvaas has spent more than three decades pouring through the 32 volumes of Napoleon's correspondence, carefully translating and editing all of his writings on the art of war, and arranging them in seamless essays. The resulting book captures the brilliant commander's views on everything from the preparation of his forces to the organisation, planning and execution of his battles, all buttressing Napoleon's view that 'in war there is but one favourable moment; the great art is to seize it. ' From the specifics of Napoleon's use of cavalry and unique reliance upon artillery to an all-encompassing vision of life from a man of supreme confidence and success, NAPOLEON ON THE ART OF WAR is the only straightforward explanation of Napoleon's campaigns and philosophy by the man himself From an on-line newspaper obituary: "Jay Luvaas, 81, of Williamsburg, Va., passed away on Friday, Jan. 9, 2009. Born in Erie, he was a son of the late Morten and Agnes Luvaas. A U.S. Navy veteran, he graduated from Allegheny College and received a Ph.D. in history from Duke University. During his distinguished career, he served as director of the Flowers Collection of Southern Americana at Duke University Library, and as a long-time professor of history at Allegheny College in Meadville, where his father was a renowned choral composer. Jay was the first civilian to be appointed as visiting professor of military history at the U.S. Military Academy. He also taught at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, where he served as professor of military history from 1982 to 1995. Following his retirement, he was honored in 1997 as a Distinguished Fellow of the Army War College. He twice received the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal from the Department of the Army for his many contributions to the educational mission of the U.S. Army. Jay Luvaas was one of America s leading military historians and published many notable books during his career, including The Education of an Army, Frederick the Great on the Art of War, Dear Miss Em and Napoleon on the Art of War. He also co-edited the highly popular series of U.S. Army War College Guides to many Civil War battlefields, including Gettysburg, Antietam, Shiloh and Chancellorsville. One of the great joys of his life was tramping Civil War battlefields, whether leading staff rides for the U.S. Army or traveling annually with a special Band of Brothers known as the Army of the Cussewago, which continues the tradition to this day."