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How did Carl von Clausewitz describe the strategic value of partisan warfare?
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guerrilla warfare
A masked Iraqi Shiʿi militia fighter dashing across a street, carrying a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, Baghdad, August 7, 2004.
During the Napoleonic era, the Prussian military theorist Carl von Clausewitz recognized that the erosion of an enemy’s will to fight was of primary importance in warfare. He argued that partisan, or guerrilla, warfare served as a valuable strategic tool in this process, as it could effectively aid in destroying that will.1
By harassing an occupying force and engaging in irregular actions, partisan fighters could apply sustained political and military pressure, forcing the enemy to contend with the costs of the conflict until they were compelled to seek peace.1