author
Friedrich von Bernhardi
1849–1930
A Prussian general and military writer, he became widely known before World War I for forceful books that argued war was central to national power. His work made him one of the era’s most controversial voices on strategy and empire.
3 Audiobooks
Germany and the Next War
by Friedrich von Bernhardi
Cavalry in Future Wars
by Friedrich von Bernhardi
Cavalry A Popular Edition of "Cavalry in War and Peace"
by Friedrich von Bernhardi
About the author
Born in Saint Petersburg in 1849, Friedrich von Bernhardi came from a Baltic German background and built his career in the Prussian army. He served in the Franco-Prussian War and later rose to high command, eventually becoming a general of cavalry.
Alongside his military career, he wrote extensively on war and strategy. He is best remembered for Germany and the Next War (1911), a book that attracted international attention for its hard-line militarism and its argument that conflict could be a necessary tool of national growth.
Bernhardi retired from active service before the First World War but continued to shape debate through his writing. He died in 1930, and he remains a striking example of how military authors could influence public opinion as well as battlefield thinking.