Supreme Command: Soldiers, Statesmen and Leadership in WartimeSimon and Schuster, 2012 M04 17 - 304 pages “An excellent, vividly written” (The Washington Post) account of leadership in wartime that explores how four great democratic statesmen—Abraham Lincoln, Georges Clemenceau, Winston Churchill, and David Ben-Gurion—worked with the military leaders who served them during warfare. The relationship between military leaders and political leaders has always been a complicated one, especially in times of war. When the chips are down, who should run the show—the politicians or the generals? In Supreme Command, Eliot A. Cohen expertly argues that great statesmen do not turn their wars over to their generals, and then stay out of their way. Great statesmen make better generals of their generals. They question and drive their military men, and at key times they overrule their advice. The generals may think they know how to win, but the statesmen are the ones who see the big picture. Abraham Lincoln, Georges Clemenceau, Winston Churchill, and David Ben-Gurion led four very different kinds of democracy, under the most difficult circumstances imaginable. They came from four very different backgrounds—backwoods lawyer, dueling French doctor, rogue aristocrat, and impoverished Jewish socialist. Yet they faced similar challenges. Each exhibited mastery of detail and fascination with technology. All four were great learners, who studied war as if it were their own profession, and in many ways mastered it as well as did their generals. All found themselves locked in conflict with military men. All four triumphed. The powerful lessons of this “brilliant” (National Review) book will touch and inspire anyone who faces intense adversity and is the perfect gift for history buffs of all backgrounds. |
From inside the book
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Page xii
... remarked to me, "This isn't really a course in strategy at all, it's a course on civil-military relations." He had gotten to the heart of the subject, little though it had pleased him to do so. In fact, the study of the relationship ...
... remarked to me, "This isn't really a course in strategy at all, it's a course on civil-military relations." He had gotten to the heart of the subject, little though it had pleased him to do so. In fact, the study of the relationship ...
Page 12
... " A fictional general famously remarked: ... do you recall what Clemenceau said about war? He said war was too important to be left to the generals. When he said that, fifty years ago, he might have 12 SUPREME COMMAND.
... " A fictional general famously remarked: ... do you recall what Clemenceau said about war? He said war was too important to be left to the generals. When he said that, fifty years ago, he might have 12 SUPREME COMMAND.
Page 22
... remarked on the combination of cunning and cold, remorseless intellect in Lincoln's prewar law practice: "Any man who took Lincoln for a simple-minded man would very soon wake up with his back in a ditch."16 For all the pathos and power ...
... remarked on the combination of cunning and cold, remorseless intellect in Lincoln's prewar law practice: "Any man who took Lincoln for a simple-minded man would very soon wake up with his back in a ditch."16 For all the pathos and power ...
Page 48
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Page 62
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Contents
1 | |
15 | |
CLEMENCEAU PAYS A VISIT | 52 |
CHURCHILL ASKS A QUESTION | 95 |
BENGURION HOLDS A SEMINAR | 133 |
LEADERSHIP WITHOUT GENIUS | 173 |
THE UNEQUAL DIALOGUE | 208 |
APPENDIX THE THEORY OF CIVILIAN CONTROL | 225 |
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS | 249 |
NOTES | 253 |
INDEX | 279 |
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Common terms and phrases
Allied American Arab arms army attack battle Ben-Gurion Britain British campaign Carl von Clausewitz Chiefs of Staff Churchill Churchill's Civil civil-military relations civilian control civilian leaders Clausewitz Clemenceau coalition commander in chief conduct Confederate conflict Dana David Ben-Gurion decision defense enemy example fact Ferdinand Foch fight Foch Foch's France France's French front German Grant Gulf Gulf war Haganah Halleck high command historians Huntington Ibid important Iraqi Ismay Israel Israel Defense Forces Israeli Jerusalem Jewish Jews Joint Chiefs Joseph Hooker less Lincoln matters ment mili military advisers military leaders Mordacq offensive officers operations organization Palestine Palmach Petain politicians president prime minister problem professional remarked role secretary senior served soldiers Stanton statesmen strategy subordinates tary telegraph theory of civil-military tion Union United University Press USMA victory Vietnam wartime Winston Winston Churchill World World War II Yadin Yigal Alon yishuv York Zionist