The Art of Victory

The life and achievements of Field Marshal Suvorov, 1729-1800.

Alexander Suvorov (1729-1800), a Russian military genius who rivaled Napoleon, his contemporary, is today a lost figure in history--except in Russia. Stalin renovated Suvorov's reputation by borrowing his title, the unprecedented rank "Generalissimo of the Russian Army," and by incorporating Suvorov's image into propaganda posters depicting himself.

Longworth demonstrates that Suvorov is quite capable of standing magnificently upright in history without Stalin's aid. Coming from a rather middle-class family at a time when wealthy young aristocrats dominated the officer class, Suvorov rose slowly; he did not achieve his greatest eminence until nearly seventy. Nor did he ever really lose touch with the common footsoldier.

As a tactician, he broke every rule and abandoned classical strategy in favor of loose organization on the field that allowed for fluid adaptation to events. When slow, deliberate plodding of troops was considered absolutely necessary, he instead struck like a mongoose. He was the bane of fellow officers, and was indeed a vain, impish eccentric...

An absorbing portrait of a quixotic pragmatist who never lost a battle.