strategy

Argues that the true origins of modern war can be found in the Franco-Austrian War of 1809.

Argues that the Union victory at Vicksburg in 1863 was the turning point of the Civil War, and contends that the decisive actions of General Ulysses S. Grant in that theater are worthy of comparison to those of Napoleon.

Traces the evolution in American strategic thought from the Revolutionary War through the Vietnam War.

Herman Kahn revisits his thoughts about nuclear war expressed in the 1962 "Thinking About the Unthinkable," discussing the political, technical, and moral developments that have taken place in the twenty years since the book's publication, and discussing the need for the U.S. to remain militarily strong while at the same time striving to enhance deterrence.