This accessibly written textbook explains the whole subject of strategy within the contexts that give it meaning. It aims to identify and explain the rich contextuality of strategic affairs, to explain the subject as a whole.

Colin S. Gray is Professor Emeritus of Strategic Studies at the University of Reading, UK. He has published twnety-eight books and innumerable journal articles. Recent books include Strategy and Defence Planning (2014), Airpower for Strategic Effect (2012), War, Peace and International Relations, 2nd edn (2011) and The Strategy Bridge (2010).

Introduction: The Argument 1. Politics, Power, and Security 2. Peace and War: Politics at Home and Abroad 3. War and Warfare 4. Theory for Practice 5. Making Strategy 6. History and Geography 7. Culture and Circumstance 8. Civil-Military Relations 9. Politics and Defence Planning 10. Morality and its Ethics in Politics and Strategy 11. Strategic Future