On Guerrilla Warfare was one of the books left by Chinese leader Mao-Tse Tung, but unlike his more famous Red Book, this one is dedicated entirely to military strategy. This was a difficult book to rate and review, because I liked reading the foreword by Samuel B. Griffith, who translated the book in the 40s, more than On Guerrilla Warfare itself.
After atomic weapons came along, conventional warfare became a lot costlier to nuclear nations. This made guerrilla the kind of “low key” conflict that defined the 20th century, and promises to continue to shape the 21th. What the preface shows is how guerrilla it is a lot more powerful that one may think.
“It is often said that guerrilla warfare is primitive. This generalization is dangerously misleading and true only in the technological sense. If one considers the picture as a whole, a paradox is immediately apparent, and the primitive form is understood to be in fact more sophisticated than nuclear war or atomic war or war as it was waged by conventional armies, navies, and air forces. Guerrilla war is not dependent for success on the efficient operation of complex mechanical devices, highly organized logistical systems, or the accuracy of electronic computers. It can be conducted in any terrain, in any climate, in any weather; in swamps, in mountains, in farmed fields. Its basic element is man, and man is more complex than any of his machines. He is endowed with intelligence, emotions, and will. Guerrilla warfare is therefore suffused with, and reflects, man’s admirable qualities as well as his less pleasant ones. While it is not always humane, it is human, which is more than can be said for the strategy of extinction.”
Mao pretty much updates the thoughts of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, emphasizing speed, stealth and the surprise factor. The preface also shows very well the particulars of Chinese thought in Mao’s text.
“An important postulate of the Yin-Yang theory is that concealed within strength there is weakness, and within weakness, strength. It is a weakness of guerrillas that they operate in small groups that can be wiped out in a matter of minutes. But because they do operate in small groups, they can move rapidly and secretly into the vulnerable rear of the enemy.”
“It is often a disadvantage not to have heavy infantry weapons available, but the very fact of having to transport them has until recently tied conventional columns to roads and well-used tracks. The guerrilla travels light and travels fast. He turns the hazards of terrain to his advantage and makes an ally of tropical rains, heavy snow, intense heat, and freezing cold. Long night marches are difficult and dangerous, but the darkness shields his approach to an unsuspecting enemy.”
On Guerrilla Warfare is a fascinating read in which it shows how sheer human determination can knock whole empires down. Griffith even suggests it is impossible to be beaten by a conventional army after about one forth of the population is converted to the cause. The basic element of a guerrilla is man, and man is more complex than any of his machines.
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On Guerrilla Warfare Paperback – September 21, 2000
by
Mao Tse-tung
(Author),
Samuel B Griffith
(Author)
-
Print length128 pages
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LanguageEnglish
-
PublisherUniversity of Illinois Press
-
Publication dateSeptember 21, 2000
-
Dimensions8.24 x 5.51 x 0.42 inches
-
ISBN-100252068920
-
ISBN-13978-0252068928
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Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Samuel B. Griffith IIrose to the rank of Brigadier General (U.S.M.C.), retiring in 1956 after serving on the staff of the U.S. Commander in Chief, Europe. He earned a Ph.D. in Chinese military history from Oxford in 1961. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, he served in Nicaragua, China, Cuba, and England prior to World War II. Wounded at Guadalcanal, he later returned to action and won the Navy Cross and the Army Distinguished Service Cross. His translation of Sun-Tzu's Art of War (Oxford UP) is a staple of modern military study.
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Product details
- Publisher : University of Illinois Press; 2nd Revised ed. edition (September 21, 2000)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 128 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0252068920
- ISBN-13 : 978-0252068928
- Item Weight : 5.9 ounces
- Dimensions : 8.24 x 5.51 x 0.42 inches
-
Best Sellers Rank:
#388,226 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #634 in History of Technology
- #10,722 in Military History (Books)
- #10,759 in Engineering (Books)
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Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2016
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10 people found this helpful
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5.0 out of 5 stars
a must read before attempting to sieze any sizable territory - the pocket guide to overthrowing regimes
Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2016Verified Purchase
Mao really out does himself in this bush whacking guide to insurgency and small war tactics which when waged well, provide large war strategic outcomes - spoiler alert - spoiler - win over the rural population and alienate them from the enemy and you'll be able to hide everywhere while their forces will not be able to rest anywhere. Authors reflection on the value and proper timing of liquidations of uncooperatives was insightful as well.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2014
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Mao was not a great proponent of guerrilla warfare as a mainstay, but as a building bloc.
He built from it up to mobile warfare and to conventional armies and back down to it as needed
and as supplement whenever needed or necessary.
Pay attention to the dedication, purpose, humane treatment and building for
the benefit of the people that always turned the people into his constant source
of information on enemy movements and always gave him secrecy in his own movements.
Thus he always looked to work inside his own area and foray unless he had overwhelming strength.
(Thus the people were the sea his army of fish swam in. And by Truman's time whole divisions came over to him complete, intact with all their brand new American equipment.)
Large parts of this can be skipped over and it is interesting to watch his thinking sometimes degenerate
from the Marxist analysis of actually existing (material) conditions into dogmatic application of theory to conditions in the world he knows little about. A good example would be later in time he moved into North Korea because he was certain the US intended to invade China. (Also he was grateful to the many Koreans who had served in the Chines Peoples' Army.)
Finally, as always Marxist rhetoric (labeling) can be tiresome.
It is always best to look for what relationship or functioning in the real world this label was originally meant to apply to.
The farther away in time from its origin and the more bureaucratized the situation the more likely it has lost the original meaning and has become a slander to be applied to whoever is in line to be executed.
He built from it up to mobile warfare and to conventional armies and back down to it as needed
and as supplement whenever needed or necessary.
Pay attention to the dedication, purpose, humane treatment and building for
the benefit of the people that always turned the people into his constant source
of information on enemy movements and always gave him secrecy in his own movements.
Thus he always looked to work inside his own area and foray unless he had overwhelming strength.
(Thus the people were the sea his army of fish swam in. And by Truman's time whole divisions came over to him complete, intact with all their brand new American equipment.)
Large parts of this can be skipped over and it is interesting to watch his thinking sometimes degenerate
from the Marxist analysis of actually existing (material) conditions into dogmatic application of theory to conditions in the world he knows little about. A good example would be later in time he moved into North Korea because he was certain the US intended to invade China. (Also he was grateful to the many Koreans who had served in the Chines Peoples' Army.)
Finally, as always Marxist rhetoric (labeling) can be tiresome.
It is always best to look for what relationship or functioning in the real world this label was originally meant to apply to.
The farther away in time from its origin and the more bureaucratized the situation the more likely it has lost the original meaning and has become a slander to be applied to whoever is in line to be executed.
One person found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2015
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I loved this book. Finally I understood the most important principals behind asymmetrical warfare which is going to be the most common form of combat for the West in this century.
A guerrilla fighter can not hope to beat a conventional army. He doesn't even intend to. The real battle is the propaganda battle. A conventional army can not hope to win the propaganda battle. Which is why well equipped and determined conventional forces win wars over guerrilla forces only to leave running with their tails between their legs a few years later.
Propaganda war leaves the conventional forces feeling unsafe, illegitimate and not even sure who or where the real enemy is. In understanding this here lies the key to defeating guerrilla forces. With forces like Muslim Brotherhood, IRGC, Hamas, ISIS, AQ and Hezbollah on the rise the West will have to learn to fight a completely different kind of war other than it is used to.
Losing this war, is not an option. We all know the consequences
A guerrilla fighter can not hope to beat a conventional army. He doesn't even intend to. The real battle is the propaganda battle. A conventional army can not hope to win the propaganda battle. Which is why well equipped and determined conventional forces win wars over guerrilla forces only to leave running with their tails between their legs a few years later.
Propaganda war leaves the conventional forces feeling unsafe, illegitimate and not even sure who or where the real enemy is. In understanding this here lies the key to defeating guerrilla forces. With forces like Muslim Brotherhood, IRGC, Hamas, ISIS, AQ and Hezbollah on the rise the West will have to learn to fight a completely different kind of war other than it is used to.
Losing this war, is not an option. We all know the consequences
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries
Ham-Bap
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good enough, though the pages (sections/artwork) look photocopied
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 3, 2016Verified Purchase
Good enough, though the pages (sections/artwork) look photocopied. I work in a printers, rarely send a job out with low quality artwork - and when i do, its because the customer gave us that artwork to use and is happy with it as a finished product. This version/edition has been scanned and reprinted by someone as far as i can tell. It's not too bad, it just doesn't look legit, so if your picky about quality, dont buy the US Marine Core edition(red gloss laminated cover).
Chiara Ferri
4.0 out of 5 stars
but I don't like the quality of the pages so much
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 21, 2017Verified Purchase
Really quick delivery, but I don't like the quality of the pages so much.
Considering it can be found for free on the internet, I was hoping for a higher quality.
Still, great price and quick delivery!
Considering it can be found for free on the internet, I was hoping for a higher quality.
Still, great price and quick delivery!
Daniel Simpson
4.0 out of 5 stars
find a diffrent edition, but great book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 15, 2016Verified Purchase
fantastic read slightly skeptical as it's a US marine Corp edition, they can tend to be very bias on subjects and change writings to suit their agenda
One person found this helpful
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Simon
5.0 out of 5 stars
Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 29, 2017Verified Purchase
Useful
Steven Norris
3.0 out of 5 stars
Three Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 8, 2016Verified Purchase
very informative.
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