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The Culture of War
A respected scholar of military history and an expert on strategy, Martin van Creveld recently explored the modern world’s shifting method of combat in The Changing Face of War. Now, in The Culture of War, he argues that there is much more to war than just soldiers killing one another for whatever reason.
War has always been a topic of deep intrigue. Fighting itself can be a source of great, perhaps even the greatest, joy; out of this joy and fascination an entire culture has grown–from the war paint of tribal warriors to today’s “tiger suits,” from Julius Caesar’s red cloak to Douglas McArthur’s pipe, from the decorative shields of ancient Greece to today’s nose art, and from the invention of chess around 600 A.D. to the most modern combat simulators. The culture of war has its own traditions, laws and customs, rituals, ceremonies, music, art, literature, and monuments since the beginning of civilization.
Throughout the ages, the culture of war has usually been highly esteemed. Not so in today’s advanced countries, which tend either to mock it (“military intelligence is to intelligence what military music is to music”) or to denounce it as “militaristic.” This provocative book, the first of its kind, sets out to show how wrongheaded, and even dangerous, such attitudes are. The Culture of War argues that men and women, contrary to the hopes of some, are just as fascinated by war today as they have been in the past. A military that
has lost touch with the culture of war is doomed not merely to defeat but to disintegration.
Innovative, authoritative, and riveting, this is a major work by one of the world’s greatest and most insightful military historians.
War has always been a topic of deep intrigue. Fighting itself can be a source of great, perhaps even the greatest, joy; out of this joy and fascination an entire culture has grown–from the war paint of tribal warriors to today’s “tiger suits,” from Julius Caesar’s red cloak to Douglas McArthur’s pipe, from the decorative shields of ancient Greece to today’s nose art, and from the invention of chess around 600 A.D. to the most modern combat simulators. The culture of war has its own traditions, laws and customs, rituals, ceremonies, music, art, literature, and monuments since the beginning of civilization.
Throughout the ages, the culture of war has usually been highly esteemed. Not so in today’s advanced countries, which tend either to mock it (“military intelligence is to intelligence what military music is to music”) or to denounce it as “militaristic.” This provocative book, the first of its kind, sets out to show how wrongheaded, and even dangerous, such attitudes are. The Culture of War argues that men and women, contrary to the hopes of some, are just as fascinated by war today as they have been in the past. A military that
has lost touch with the culture of war is doomed not merely to defeat but to disintegration.
Innovative, authoritative, and riveting, this is a major work by one of the world’s greatest and most insightful military historians.
512 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2008
9 people are currently reading
325 people want to read
About the author
Martin van Creveld
65 books128 followersMartin Levi van Creveld is an Israeli military historian and theorist.
Van Creveld was born in the Netherlands in the city of Rotterdam, and has lived in Israel since shortly after his birth. He holds degrees from the London School of Economics and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he has been on the faculty since 1971. He is the author of seventeen books on military history and strategy, of which Command in War (1985), Supplying War: Logistics from Wallenstein to Patton (1977, 2nd edition 2004), The Transformation of War (1991), The Sword and the Olive (1998) and The Rise and Decline of the State (1999) are among the best known. Van Creveld has lectured or taught at many strategic institutes in the Western world, including the U.S. Naval War College.
- wikipedia.org
Van Creveld was born in the Netherlands in the city of Rotterdam, and has lived in Israel since shortly after his birth. He holds degrees from the London School of Economics and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he has been on the faculty since 1971. He is the author of seventeen books on military history and strategy, of which Command in War (1985), Supplying War: Logistics from Wallenstein to Patton (1977, 2nd edition 2004), The Transformation of War (1991), The Sword and the Olive (1998) and The Rise and Decline of the State (1999) are among the best known. Van Creveld has lectured or taught at many strategic institutes in the Western world, including the U.S. Naval War College.
- wikipedia.org
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
March 30, 2010
Encyclopedic in narrative detail, but sometimes skimpy and arbitrary in analysis. Professor Van Creveld is one of the world's leading authorities on military affairs, but this is not one of his better books - he has a point in his message that political correctness is often unrealistic and can be very bad when trying to win a war, but it's also possible to go too far in the direction of being contrary for the sake of being contrary, and he does.
In particular, I believe, based on my experience during twenty years on active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, that he goes too far in basically dismissing women as being useless in combat. It is absolutely valid that there are physical requirements a combat soldier should be able to meet, and that a lower percentage of women than men may be able to do so; however, there are athletic women who are more than capable of keeping up with most men, and there are a lot of men who can't hack it. I knew some women Marines who I would have trusted completely to keep up on the march, shoot straight, hold their own in a fight, and stand watch while I was asleep.
I'd suggest to the author that he go do some observation of women in the armed forces of the U.S. and other countries today, and do so with his eyes and mind open.
In particular, I believe, based on my experience during twenty years on active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, that he goes too far in basically dismissing women as being useless in combat. It is absolutely valid that there are physical requirements a combat soldier should be able to meet, and that a lower percentage of women than men may be able to do so; however, there are athletic women who are more than capable of keeping up with most men, and there are a lot of men who can't hack it. I knew some women Marines who I would have trusted completely to keep up on the march, shoot straight, hold their own in a fight, and stand watch while I was asleep.
I'd suggest to the author that he go do some observation of women in the armed forces of the U.S. and other countries today, and do so with his eyes and mind open.
March 23, 2017
Van Creveld states in his introduction that the purpose of this book is to advance the serious study of warfare as an integral and universal part of the human experience, and to defend a long military tradition from the pernicious attacks of its enemies: pacifists, feminists, and pernicious neo-Clausewitzian battlespace managers. The result is sweeping, but also uneven and arbitrary.
The book starts quite well, with an examination of the importance of pomp, ritual, and ceremony in military affairs. As it moves on, it becomes clear that Van Creveld's best depth of sources are in the Classical world and the Napoleonic conflicts. World War 1 is mentioned in terms of its suprisingly militaristic poets, even Siegfried Sassoon loved the thrill of life in the trenches, and anything past 1940 seems to disappear from view. All examples of tribal warfare come from Fadiman's 1982 An Oral History of Tribal Warfare: The Meru of Mt. Kenya. The final chapters on collapses in military culture resulting from mob violence, roboticism, loss of bravery, and feminism are "old man yells at cloud" bad.
I'm someone inclined to be favorable to Van Creveld's arguments. Just look at my "war" shelf, or the airpower pictures I post weekly on Facebook. However, this book is a mess. For an good take on the topic, I strongly recommend Shannon French's The Code of the Warrior: Exploring Warrior Values Past and Present.
The book starts quite well, with an examination of the importance of pomp, ritual, and ceremony in military affairs. As it moves on, it becomes clear that Van Creveld's best depth of sources are in the Classical world and the Napoleonic conflicts. World War 1 is mentioned in terms of its suprisingly militaristic poets, even Siegfried Sassoon loved the thrill of life in the trenches, and anything past 1940 seems to disappear from view. All examples of tribal warfare come from Fadiman's 1982 An Oral History of Tribal Warfare: The Meru of Mt. Kenya. The final chapters on collapses in military culture resulting from mob violence, roboticism, loss of bravery, and feminism are "old man yells at cloud" bad.
I'm someone inclined to be favorable to Van Creveld's arguments. Just look at my "war" shelf, or the airpower pictures I post weekly on Facebook. However, this book is a mess. For an good take on the topic, I strongly recommend Shannon French's The Code of the Warrior: Exploring Warrior Values Past and Present.
June 20, 2009
How America is losing the mindset of War. We are becoming too weak to have the will to defeat our ememies. The Feminization of our schools, culture and mindset will be our undoing. Only a few warriors still man the walls, but are considered Neanderthals by the newer, kinder America.
wish-list
January 21, 2009From the blurb on the dust jacket of the copy I saw at the library, this sounds like a paean to the military ethos that will offend me to no end but it's always good to know what the "other side" thinks and it's always good to reassess one's assumptions in response to their critics.
August 30, 2017
I read The Culture of War partly for my anthropology studies, partly as research for another project, partly because conflict fascinates me like a good trainwreck. The book is insightful and presents the logic and emotion of war equally. A good read.
September 7, 2020
A classic of military history. He goes into depths of culture and war that I didn’t even know existed! I definitely recommend this book for anyone who wants a better understanding of human nature, culture, and war.
October 18, 2009
Martin van Creveld is a notorious contrarian who will never give the reader an easy book. In "Culture of War," the author offers a serious survey of how the military is apart from society, yet a part of it.
For van Creveld, that cultural linkage between the military and society is vital for both. The military has a job to do that does not fit within the boundaries of society. Those who fight and kill as civilians must be locked up for the good of society. The military does the same, only within the boundary of rules that detail how and when it should act, and by whose orders. For it is war that can decide the fate of a society, and the military is the only tool that can fight one effectively if alternatives fail.
That link between society and warfare is played out in many venues: games, sports, war memorials, war movies and literature, art and history. Even within the military, the "culture of war" offers the structure needed to turn civilians into soldiers, to change the self-serving into those who serve. Tradition, uniformity, training, espirit de corps all have a roll to play in building armies, just as importantly as guns, bullets and tanks.
Van Creveld notes with irony that major war, as practiced by states with standing armies, is on the wane, more due to the presence of nuclear weapons. But that does not mean that war has gone away. Look to the Third World and one will find failed states, civil wars and insurrections galore, where war is commonplace. Just because a "civilized" state does not practice war as a matter of course provides no exemption from practicing for war. The enemy may no longer be next door, but he didn't go sway. Peacekeeping and terrorism, counter-insurgency and nation-building still give armies plenty of work to do.
Perhaps the worst critique is saved for the last section, entitled "Contrasts". Van Creveld looks at situations where the bond between society and military have been severed, as with wandering hordes, armies without military tradition, armies hailing from pacifist societies, or armies that must accommodate women in the ranks while trying to maintain standards. In each example, the "spark" that makes an army fight as a cohesive team is missing, resulting in ineffective force that cannot fight an armed adversary.
"Culture of War" is not a starter book for anyone setting out to read about military history. There is much in the book to disagree with. In a modern, developed society such as ours, we prefer peace as a normal state and accept women and men as equal citizens. Much of the book simply does not mesh with this measure.
But the author's constant, underlying point cannot be dismissed. We will always have war. We will always need armies to fight them. We may not seek out enemies, but they will seek us. And when that time comes, a nation has no choice but to fight. In a democracy, popular support for the military is necessary for an army to take the field. Without it, an army will not fight for long.
Such is the necessity for the "culture of war."
For van Creveld, that cultural linkage between the military and society is vital for both. The military has a job to do that does not fit within the boundaries of society. Those who fight and kill as civilians must be locked up for the good of society. The military does the same, only within the boundary of rules that detail how and when it should act, and by whose orders. For it is war that can decide the fate of a society, and the military is the only tool that can fight one effectively if alternatives fail.
That link between society and warfare is played out in many venues: games, sports, war memorials, war movies and literature, art and history. Even within the military, the "culture of war" offers the structure needed to turn civilians into soldiers, to change the self-serving into those who serve. Tradition, uniformity, training, espirit de corps all have a roll to play in building armies, just as importantly as guns, bullets and tanks.
Van Creveld notes with irony that major war, as practiced by states with standing armies, is on the wane, more due to the presence of nuclear weapons. But that does not mean that war has gone away. Look to the Third World and one will find failed states, civil wars and insurrections galore, where war is commonplace. Just because a "civilized" state does not practice war as a matter of course provides no exemption from practicing for war. The enemy may no longer be next door, but he didn't go sway. Peacekeeping and terrorism, counter-insurgency and nation-building still give armies plenty of work to do.
Perhaps the worst critique is saved for the last section, entitled "Contrasts". Van Creveld looks at situations where the bond between society and military have been severed, as with wandering hordes, armies without military tradition, armies hailing from pacifist societies, or armies that must accommodate women in the ranks while trying to maintain standards. In each example, the "spark" that makes an army fight as a cohesive team is missing, resulting in ineffective force that cannot fight an armed adversary.
"Culture of War" is not a starter book for anyone setting out to read about military history. There is much in the book to disagree with. In a modern, developed society such as ours, we prefer peace as a normal state and accept women and men as equal citizens. Much of the book simply does not mesh with this measure.
But the author's constant, underlying point cannot be dismissed. We will always have war. We will always need armies to fight them. We may not seek out enemies, but they will seek us. And when that time comes, a nation has no choice but to fight. In a democracy, popular support for the military is necessary for an army to take the field. Without it, an army will not fight for long.
Such is the necessity for the "culture of war."
December 15, 2016
In “The Culture of War,” Martin van Creveld provides a comprehensive review of the multiple societal aspects, both from the military and civil perspectives, which create a culture of war. He also makes the case for the importance of a war culture, and describes conditions that can destroy a war culture. Mr. Creveld presents the full spectrum of the elements that go into a culture of war, covering everything from war paint, to how wars are declared and ended, to war museums and the collection of militaria, and much more. Mr. Creveld attests how even in the nuclear age, while for time being war on the scale of WWI or II is not likely, the culture of war is alive and well, though there are some who seek to suppress and demonize that culture. I found the very book interesting, with many very valid and important points. Mr. Creveld makes it clear that, in his opinion, a society without a healthy war culture is destine for eventual defeat. He also makes the case that a healthy war culture can make going to war and sustaining war easier, but he does not in my opinion explain well why societies even with the strongest of war cultures can and do suffer defeat. I was also put off by Mr. Creveld’s assessment of the potential of women to be effective warriors. He does make valid points about the physical and psychological differences between men and women and how societies view and value men and women differently. However, I do not think Mr. Creveld adequately factors in the evolving character of war and roles of women in society writ large. While it is true men have historically fought wars, that does not mean they always have to in order to achieve successful in war. Also, feminism is not is not a threat the culture of war as Mr. Creveld claims, nor will increased numbers of women in the armed forces necessarily create weaker militaries and he implies.
Why read this book. The culture of war in militaries throughout history and today is self-evident. However, this book helps the reader to identify and better understand how the culture of war goes well beyond armed forces, and how the elements of war culture are ingrained into overall societies and cultures. This understanding is very important when leaders and peoples are deciding to go to war and for sustaining war till the desired end states are achieved. (audiobook read)
Why read this book. The culture of war in militaries throughout history and today is self-evident. However, this book helps the reader to identify and better understand how the culture of war goes well beyond armed forces, and how the elements of war culture are ingrained into overall societies and cultures. This understanding is very important when leaders and peoples are deciding to go to war and for sustaining war till the desired end states are achieved. (audiobook read)
April 3, 2013
Professor van Creveld has written a book that shows how war has permeated culture and become a culture itself. The main theme of the book is summarized in his discussion on preparing for war: "Even the most cursory examination of such [war]games suggests that serious preparation for war and mere entertainment, training and fun, make-believe and reality, are as closely entwined today as they have always been." War has also created what one could describe as a sub-culture, that is, a group with its own symbols and expressions, styles and ways of doing things. Often using examples from literature and the movies, the interconnectedness of war and culture is set forth. While he does mention women and war, it frequently is in a chauvinistic manner and mainly in the next to the last chapter entitled "Feminism."
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May 18, 2014An important book and necessary but the reader rapidly gets the impression this book was rushed. A lot of information but a low margin of analysis. One gets the impression that the author recognised the trend towards cultural histories of war but lacked the resources to round it off. Unlike most of the author's book, this is probably the only one that fails to deliver.
November 16, 2014
This is a textbook on every aspect of war that you can identify: how it is prepared for, how it is embraced, how it is fought, how it is ended and how it remembered among other aspects. Would not recommend as light reading, but as an academic book in the context of a university-level history class, it would be very informative and helpful.
April 19, 2009
Van Creveld shows the common threads of military social and cultural forces over time. It's a very good reminder that, regardless of the technological and economic changes of the past hundred years, war is very much the same.
August 21, 2010
audiobook from Audible.com
January 9, 2016
It tends to get lost in its own argumentation
August 12, 2015
Anekdotisch, wel interessante verhandeling over oorlog en de bijbehorende cultuur. Gaat wel erg kort door de bocht betreft de rol van vrouwen.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews