The New Makers of Modern Strategy: A scene-setter

Abstract

There are reasons to celebrate the recent publication of The New Makers of Modern Strategy: From the Ancient World to the Digital Age. This is the third edition of a venerable series, which began with the Makers of Modern Strategy first published in 1943 at the height of World War II, followed in 1986 by a second edition during the Cold War. Taken together, these books are a touchstone of strategic studies, the applied multidisciplinary field that encompasses the full range of military and non-military themes concerned with global and national security, defense, and war. The New Makers reflects the evolution of strategy during the past 80 years, and its greatly expanded scope incorporates a number of firsts. Reaching backward to the classics, Sun Zi and Thucydides now join Carl Von Clausewitz at the top of the strategic pantheon, while the range of contributors, geography, and themes reflects the maturing of the field well beyond the Western world. As the two previous editions did for their own eras, The New Makers is a call to action and will be our current generation’s guide to the multiple strategic challenges that are transforming our 21st century world.