Carl von Clausewitz

Carl von Clausewitz was a Prussian officer and military thinker whose career spanned the wars against Revolutionary and Napoleonic France. Opposed to Prussia’s forced alliance with Napoleon, he entered Russian service in 1812 and later returned to the Prussian army. His unfinished treatise On War analysed conflict as a political act shaped by uncertainty, friction, chance and human purpose. Published after his death, it became one of the foundational works of modern strategic thought.

Clausewitz is rarely the central character of historical novels, although he may appear in fiction about the Prussian and Russian campaigns against Napoleon. War and Peace does not portray him directly, but Tolstoy’s treatment of command, chance and the limits of military theory invites comparison with his ideas. A fictional portrait must distinguish the subtle arguments of On War from the simplified slogans later attributed to him.

In C. S. Forester’s Commodore Hornblower, the mission combines diplomacy involving Crown Prince Bernadotte and Tsar Alexander I, an assassination attempt, cooperation with Carl von Clausewitz and naval support during the defence of Riga.