On guerrilla warfare by chairman mao zedong chapter 0. It gives the reader a chance to learn about this type of warfare from one who lived and fought as a guerrilla for most of his adult life. How did mao zedong implement the guerrilla warfare tactic. In 217 bc, roman dictator quintus fabius maximus, often called the father of guerrilla warfare, used his fabian strategy to defeat the mighty invading army of carthaginian general hannibal barca. If there also exists even the nucleus of a revolutionary party able to supply doctrine and organization, only one ingredient is needed. An insurgency, or what mao zedong referred to as a war of revolutionary nature, guerrilla warfare can be conceived of as part of a continuum. The history of guerrilla warfare stretches back to ancient history. Mao wrote the book in 1937 to convince chinese political and military leaders that. Jan, 20 on guerrilla warfare is maos case for the extensive use of an irregular form of warfare in which small groups of combatants use mobile military tactics in the forms of ambushes and raids to combat a larger and less mobile formal army. A book written by someone who actually engaged in guerrilla warfare was a big draw for me. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Guerrilla warfare project gutenberg selfpublishing. A guerrilla unit should regularly spy out the enemys traces, and prepare an ambush so as to attack him when he is in the midst of his march. Mao wrote this small book in 1937 while leading the chinese red army.
Its difficult to make sense of the tactical decisions made by ho chi minh and general vo nguyen giap during the indochina wars without understanding. Mao wrote the book in 1937 to convince chinese political and military leaders that guerilla styletactics. In 1937, mao set his ideas out in a small book entitled on guerrilla warfare. Mao zedongs on guerrilla warfare and joseph kabilas lost. On guerrilla warfare is maos case for the extensive use of an irregular form of warfare in which small groups of combatants use mobile military tactics in the forms of ambushes and raids to combat a larger and less mobile formal army. This book was written by mao zedong 18931976 in 1937, as he was waging a guerrilla war against the occupying army of imperial japan. Fmfrp 1218 mao tsetung on guerrilla warfare marines. The use of guerrilla warfare was first suggested in the 6th century bc by chinese general and strategist sun tzu, in his classic book, the art of war. The strategy and tactics of guerrilla warfare tend to focus around the use of a small, mobile force competing against a larger, more unwieldy one. Unorganized guerrilla warfare cannot contribute to victory and those who attack the movement as a combination of banditry and anarchism do not understand the nature of guerrilla action. The strategy and tactics of guerrilla warfare tend to involve the use of a small, mobile force against a large, unwieldy one. From on guerrilla warfare, by mao tsetung, translated by samuel b. The book profiles each leader and analyzes their military strategy for readers interested in biographies, military history or the history of the countries included in the book.
Put simply, guevara believed guerrilla forces could kickstart the revolution themselves, creating the necessary conditions as they fought. Samuel b griffith the first documented, systematic study of guerrilla warfare, mao tsetungs 1937 text remains the definitive guide to orchestrating revolution in developing countries. Collected writings of chairman mao politics and tactics. Kings of revolution is a compendium of prominent guerilla leaders worldwide including george washington, simon bolivar, mao zedong and king ibn saud. Origins of modern guerrilla warfare of protracted revolutionary war, maos on guerrilla warfare 1937, which was later called the most radical, violent and extensive theory of war ever put into effect. The time gained is necessary either to develop sufficient military strength to defeat the enemy forces in orthodox battle as did mao in china or to subject. List of books and articles about guerrilla warfare. Mao stresses the importance of guerrilla warfare tactics in a revolutionary war. Mao tsetung on guerrilla warfare great majority of its citizens. Mao zedong, the father of modern guerrilla warfare theory one of the most original military thinkers of the twentieth century was mao zedong 1893 1976, the communist revolutionary who became the founding father of the peoples republic of china. Mao tsetung on guerrilla warfare think like a horse. On guerrilla warfare is mao zedongs case for the extensive use of an irregular form of warfare in which small groups of combatants use mobile military tactics in the forms of ambushes and raids to combat a larger and less mobile formal army. Strategy and tactics of guerrilla warfare military wiki. The three stages of maos revolutionary warfare parallel.
Mao tsetung on guerrilla warfare by mao tsetung books on. This big picture approach to a revolution resonates through the book and, indeed. Twelve years later, the nationalist chinese were rousted from the mainland, and mao consolidated his control of a new nation, having put his theories of. Both mao tsetung and che guevara had outsized impacts on the social, political and cultural landscape of the 20 th century. On guerrilla warfare is mao s case for the extensive use of an irregular form of warfare in which small groups of combatants use mobile military tactics in the forms of ambushes and raids to combat a larger and less mobile formal army. Mao zedong s seminal work, on guerrilla warfare, has been widely distributed and applied most successfully in vietnam, by military leader and theorist vo nguyen giap, whose peoples war, peoples army closely follows the maoist threephase approach, but emphasizing flexibility in shifting between guerrilla warfare and a spontaneous general.
While guerrilla tactics can be viewed as a natural continuation of prehistoric warfare, the chinese general and strategist sun tzu, in his the art of war 6th century bce, was the earliest to propose the use of guerrilla warfare. The guerrilla force is largely or entirely organised in small units that are dependent on the support of the local population. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read mao tsetung on guerrilla warfare. Maos political goal was the communist takeover of china. The book draws upon guevaras personal experience as a guerrilla soldier during the cuban revolution, generalizing for readers. On guerrilla warfare was written in the 1950s and describes most of the tactics used by the viet kong to defeat the us during the vietnam conflict.
Buy the red book of guerrilla warfare by zedong, mao, conners, shawn isbn. This directly inspired the development of modern guerrilla warfare. This reference publication is mao tsetungs thoughts and philosophy of guerrilla warfare. Mao wrote the book in 1937 to convince chinese political and military leaders that guerilla style tactics were necessary for the chinese to use in the second. Published in 1961 following the cuban revolution, it became a reference for thousands of guerrilla fighters in various countries around the world. Having already had ten years guerrilla experience, mao was already an expert, and in this book he beautifully explains his basic strategy and tactics. On guerrilla warfare mao zedong, mao tsetung, samuel b. On guerrilla warfare by mao zedong 1,425 ratings, 3. Lun youji zhan is mao zedong s case for the extensive use of an irregular form of warfare in which small groups of combatants use mobile military tactics in the forms of ambushes and raids to combat a larger and less mobile formal army. Written by mao in 1937, when japanese imperialists occupied all of china, this book served as an instruction manual for guerrilla fighting, written based on more than a decade of personal experience by mao. They also made significant contributions to the field of irregular warfare.
A guerrilla unit should use every method, within its area of action, to prevent the enemys small units from entering. Mao saw the peoples war, as he called it, progressing. Clearly guerrilla operations are an important component of revolutionary war, but the underlying principle and fundamental objective is. Mao wrote the book in 1937 to convince chinese political and military leaders. Dec 15, 2017 putting asides politics, mao zedong was one of the most tactful military leaders of the 20th century. Mao zedong also known as mao tsetung is regarded as one of the most controversial figures in modern world history. Based on maos own experiences in fighting chiang kaisheks nationalists and his interpretations of the classic strategies of suntzu, on guerrilla warfare outlines the tactics that have proven effective around the world, from. Mar 24, 2019 on guerrilla warfare, by chairman mao tsetung chapter 0 prologue. Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, raids, petty warfare, hitandrun tactics, and mobility, to fight a larger and lessmobile traditional military. I had just finished the centurions by jean larteguy and was interested to know more about mao tsetung and his ideas about warfare. Mao tsetung on guerrilla warfare and millions of other books are available. This special edition contains the two most important essays by mao on guerrilla warfare tactics in a new, completely uncensored format translated by chen song. Recall that you can search for text strings in a long document like this. On guerrilla warfare quotes by mao zedong goodreads.
It is important to understand his philosophy of guerrilla warfare because it is the basis of todays guerrilla forces. On guerrilla warfare work by mao zedong britannica. In the late 1920s and 30s the chinese communists under the leadership of mao zedong, perhaps the worlds leading theorist of modern guerrilla warfare, conducted a largescale guerrilla war, along with mobile and positional warfare, against both the kuomintang and the japanese in n china. The book consists of three chapters, with several numbered subsections in each. Jan 28, 2010 buy the red book of guerrilla warfare by zedong, mao, conners, shawn isbn. On the low end are smallscale raids, ambushes and attacks. On guerrilla warfare ch 1 marxists internet archive.
This is one of the more famous quotes from mao zedongs small book on guerrilla warfare. I suppose my background in studying strategy and tactics, and my enjoyment in such a. Twelve years later, the nationalist chinese were rousted from the mainland, and mao consolidated his control of a new nation, having put his theories of revolutionary guerrilla warfare to the test. As a revolutionary leader, mao zedong laid the economic, technological and cultural foundations of modern china, transforming the country from. This would later be known as the foquismo, or foco, theory of guerrilla warfare. The first documented, systematic study of guerrilla warfare, mao tsetungs 1937 text remains the definitive guide to orchestrating revolution in developing countries. Mao tsetung wrote on guerrilla warfare in 1937 while fighting the japanese. List of books and articles about guerrilla warfare online.
Guerrilla warfare guerrilla warfare strategy and tactics. He literally wrote the book on the modern theory of insurgency. Guerrilla warfare alone, he realized, could not achieve this, but in a prolonged war it was an indispensable weapon, particularly in holding off the enemy chinese and japanese until orthodox armies could take to the field maos guerrilla campaign of over two decades stressed the flexible tactics based on surprise and deception. Mao, on the other hand, organized guerrilla warfare into three distinct phases. In ancient times these actions were often associated with smaller tribal policies fighting a larger empire, as in the struggle of rome against the spanish tribes for over a century. Document excerpts with questions longer selection follows this section from on guerrilla warfare, by mao tsetung, translated by samuel b. It has a lot of applicability in the business world and actually in any group dynamic. Counter insurgency, from what i understand works the same way as guerrilla warfare at least in a political level. As a revolutionary leader, mao zedong laid the economic, technological and cultural foundations of modern china, transforming the country from an agrarian society into a major world power.
Tactically, the guerrilla army makes small, repetitive attacks far from the opponents center of gravity with a view to keeping its own. On guerrilla warfare is mao zedong s case for the extensive use of an irregular form of warfare in which small groups of combatants use mobile military tactics in the forms of ambushes and raids to combat a larger and less mobile formal army. Based on the basic strategy and tactics of warfare as described by suntzu, mao stresses the importance of guerrilla warfare tactics in a. Mao zedong s seminal work, on guerrilla warfare,3 has been widely distributed and applied most successfully in vietnam, by military leader and theorist vo nguyen giap, whose peoples war, peoples army4 closely follows the maoist threephase approach, but emphasizing flexibility in shifting between guerrilla warfare and a spontaneous.
Selections from on guerilla warfare asia for educators columbia. Tactics, and logistics in revolutionary war 20 iv some conclusions 27. In it, he laid out a clear, succinct, and comprehensive strategy for victory in a. Nov 08, 2018 mao, on the other hand, organized guerrilla warfare into three distinct phases. On guerrilla warfare, by chairman mao tsetung chapter 0 prologue. In 1937, mao tsetung wrote this manual on revolutionary guerrilla warfare. They say, this movement is a haven for disappointed militarists, vagabonds, and bandits jen chi shan, hoping thus to bring the movement into disrepute.
Mao wrote on guerrilla warfare in 1937 while in retreat after ten years of battling the nationalist army of chiang kaishek. Pdf download on guerrilla warfare free unquote books. In his book, mao describes guerrilla warfare as one of many methods used by an oppressed people to combat aggression. Guerrilla groups are a type of violent nonstate actor. Brilliant and ruthless, his legacy includes guerrilla warfare tactics, violent cultural revolutions, and enduring.
What should be noted is that for mao zedong gueril. Like the art of war, this is a fascinating book into the mind of mao. This special edition contains the two most important essays by mao on guerrilla warfare tactics in a new, completely uncensored format. Strategy and tactics of guerrilla warfare wikipedia. Putting asides politics, mao zedong was one of the most tactful military leaders of the 20th century. The first of these is political work, the building of necessary conditions at the grassroots level what guevara. Having conquered the country, he ruled the peoples republic of china from its establishment as a communist state in 1949 until the time of his death in 1976.
Phase i is devoted to the organization of an underground resistance movement to spread propaganda and elicit support for the. The broad strategy underlying successful guerrilla warfare is that of protracted harassment accomplished by extremely subtle, flexible tactics designed to wear down the enemy. Strategy and tactics of guerrilla warfare uhuru times. Phase i is devoted to the organization of an underground resistance movement. He was the mastermind who basically predicted how the war in china will proceed against japan. Mao wrote the book in 1937 to convince chinese political and military leaders that guerilla styletactics were necessary for the chinese to use in the second.
1236 1453 411 89 1197 826 678 1214 190 1134 270 642 517 727 745 7 1544 993 1037 59 461 1616 1426 5 1046 502 194 262 227 1390 1226 267 1380 257 1109