Beauty cannot be defined by abscissas and ordinates; neither are circles and ellipses created by their geometrical formulas.

Lastly, the great uncertainty of all data in War is a peculiar difficulty, because all action must, to a certain extent, be planned in a mere twilight, which in addition not unfrequently — like the effect of a fog or moonshine — gives to things exaggerated dimensions and an unnatural appearance.

To be practical, any plan must take account of the enemy's power to frustrate it.

The bloody solution of the crisis, the effort for the destruction of the enemy's forces, is the first-born son of war.

Obstinacy is a fault of temperament. Stubbornness and intolerance of contradiction result from a special kind of egotism, which elevates above everything else the pleasure of its autonomous intellect, to which others must bow.

It is even better to act quickly and err than to hesitate until the time of action is past.

Courage, above all things, is the first quality of a warrior.