The Culture of War

Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Hebrew University's van Creveld remains unsurpassed as a scholar of war. In this provocative volume, he challenges perhaps the subject's single greatest shibboleth—at least in Western culture. Since the Enlightenment, war has been described as a means to an end, serving essentially rational interests. Nothing, van Creveld asserts, could be further from the truth: war exercises a powerful fascination in its own right. To dismiss this is to overlook that war has generated a distinctive culture, from uniforms to war games to parades, that is despised and regularly denigrated as atavistic and irrational. Van Creveld demonstrates that war is an essential element of history, rooted in psychology. In a tour de force of scholarship and insight, he takes readers through the processes of preparing for, waging and commemorating war. That culture makes men face death willingly, even enthusiastically, because it is an end in itself. [T]o be of any use, the culture of war must be useless. Its traditions and rules are not constructions, but part of the fighter's soul—and as such, for better and worse, part of the human condition. Illus. (Sept. 30)
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Review
Advance praise for The Culture of War
"This splendid volume affirms what we already know: Martin van Creveld is the most creative, most insightful, and most important military historian writing in English today."
-Andrew J. Bacevich, author of" "The New American Militarism: How Americans Are Seduced by War
"For more than thirty years Martin van Creveld has been one of the world's foremost military thinkers. In" "The Culture of War, van Creveld once more shows an exceptional mastery of his subject as he explores a vital but rarely acknowledged aspect of war, its deep-rooted culture. As he did in his provocative" "The Transformation of War, van Creveld argues against the premise that wars are fought only for political ends fails to recognize that war is also an end in itself. Van Creveld presents his case powerfully and convincingly with a rich mixture of historical and contemporary examples. Citizens and soldiers alike will find this book informative, novel, and thought-provoking."
-Lt. Gen. Paul K. Van Riper, U.S. Marine Corps (Retired)
"Martin van Creveld continues to give us insight into the many facets of war. Each time he adds another dimension, sharing his broad knowledge and brilliant analytical mind. The Culture of War brings us another step into understanding the underlying issues."