On Strategy has a lofty position in the study of western war history and is a must-read for military theory. Because of this book, Reid Hart is regarded as the "Pope of Military Theory" by the West.

In On Strategy, Reed Hart, with his profound knowledge of military theory and war history, analyzed 30 wars and more than 280 battles in world history from Persian War to World War II, and came to the conclusion that indirect route strategy is the most effective and economical strategic form.

The seemingly farthest and most tortuous route is often the real "shortcut". In any competition, you can only win if you beat your opponent. Before overcoming the opponent's resistance, we must first weaken his resistance, and the most effective way is to lead it out of our own defense.

This is the essence of indirect route strategy. Therefore, the "indirect route" is not only the law of war, but also a philosophical truth, which is widely used in all aspects of human life such as politics and economic activities.

2. Alexander's expedition, Ariane (ancient Greece).

The Expedition of Alexandria was written by Ariane, a Greek historian in ancient Rome. The Expedition of Alexander describes the process of Alexander the Great's eastward expedition.

Its main reference materials come from the records made by the historian Aristo Bruce around Alexandria and the memoirs of Ptolemy I Soter, an important general and successor, which are considered to have high credibility. The last volume of this work is an introduction to the Indian mainland.

In the process of describing Alexander's military career, this book describes in detail his strategic thinking, command art, disposal strategy, and his spirit of taking the lead, caring for and caring for soldiers.

Arian used a lot of space to describe Alexander's judgment and decision based on objective conditions, and his flexible use of tactics in different situations to attack the enemy with his own strengths.

Change the battle formation in time, the infantry and cavalry work together, give full play to the advantages of Macedonian phalanx, change tactics in time after frustration, and win the final victory.

3, "The Battle of Gaul", (ancient Rome) Caesar.

In the Battle of Gaul (Latin: Commentarii de Bello Gallico), Caesar described the events he encountered when he was governor of Gaul 58 to 50 years ago.

Because Caesar was the first general to enter Germanic and other regions during the Roman Republic. Militarily, the Battle of Gaul is the only ancient war recorded in detail as a field commander, and his record is superior to other ancient records.

The Battle of Gaul also systematically describes the political, social and custom sects that emerged in ancient Rome from the gradual disintegration of clan society to the budding countries in Gaul and Germanic regions, which has become an important basis for future generations to study primitive society and ethnology.

Engels took this book as an important reference in his books, such as The Origin of Family, Private Ownership and State, Marx and German Ancient History.

4. History of the Peloponnesian War, Thucydides (ancient Greece).

This book is an account of the Peloponnesian War between the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta in ancient Greece and the Tyrol League led by Athens. The writer is Thucydides, an Athenian general who served in the war.

This book applies the spirit and logical method of Greek philosophers' pursuit of truth to historical research at that time, and sets a model for later historiography.

Based on the study of this concept and related history, later researchers (mainly in the West) extended it to "irreconcilable contradiction between a big country and a new big country".

This concept originated from Thucydides' famous saying that "what makes war impossible is the growth of Athenian power and the fear it caused in Sparta".

Even though the inevitable cause of the war was the growth of Athens' strength and the fear of Sparta, later generations named it "Thucydides Trap".

The concrete example is that in modern history, the United States was the representative of a big country, while Germany, the Soviet Union and Japan were the representatives of emerging powers in the 20th century, and there was a hot war (World War II) between them.

The Cold War or military occupation and economic compromise ("Plaza Agreement") is intended to prove that a newly rising great power will inevitably challenge the existing great powers, and the existing great powers will inevitably respond to this threat, so that war becomes inevitable.

5. On War, karl von Clausewitz (Prussia).

This book is karl von Clausewitz's work on military theory.

Clausewitz is one of the most effective assistants of General Gerhard von scharnhorst, the founder of the German General Staff. He took part in the anti-French alliance war. On War is a military theoretical work written by him after summing up all the major battles he experienced.

In his book, clausewitz put forward the famous view that "war is the continuation of politics" and the basic ideas of western military theory such as attack is the best defense.

Therefore, "On War" is regarded as a classic of western military theory, and clausewitz himself has become the originator of western military theory.

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