Strategy: A History

Why it’s on the list: Freedman traces the word “strategy” from the Bible and Greece through Clausewitz and nuclear deterrence into management consulting and political campaigning, and finds the same recurring problem: plans do not survive other people. The reference work on the idea itself.

Where I saw it: In the reply thread to @typesfast’s question, “What’s the best history book you’ve read?” (June 5, 2025) — a crowd-sourced list Kyle recovered by hand and saved to his Apple Note “Books To Read”; the full set of replies lives on What’s the best history book… (tweet). It was listed there as “Strategy: A History”.

Connections

• Power — strategy as the study of applying it against an opponent who adapts.
• Geopolitics — the military and diplomatic half of the history.
• Company Building — the business-strategy tradition, which Freedman treats as one branch of the same story.
• History
• What’s the best history book… (tweet) — the thread this recommendation came from.