Is My Copy of On War (Vom Kriege) a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first (German): Berlin, printed by Trowitzsch and son for Ferdinand Dümmler
• Vom Kriege occupies volumes 1-3 of the posthumous ten-volume Hinterlassene Werke des Generals Carl von Clausewitz über Krieg und Kriegführung, the three volumes appearing 1832-34 and the full ten-volume set running 1832-37; octavo (approx. 202 x 120 mm), the complete set containing two folding engraved maps and one folding table
• The work was published posthumously by Clausewitz's widow, Marie von Clausewitz, whose preface is a feature of the first
• Reference: PMM 297
• First English: Colonel J. J. Graham's translation, London, N. Trübner, 1873, three volumes — the first full English translation, made from the third German edition
• Documented caution on the Graham: only 254 copies were printed in 1873 and Trübner ran a further 440 copies in 1877; the consulted sources do not document how the 1877 run is distinguished from the 1873 sheets, so treat any Graham set as requiring title-page date verification

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
3. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
4. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

The Dümmler German text is the true first and the original-language edition; the 1832-34 volumes 1-3 constitute the first edition of Vom Kriege proper, with volumes 4-10 containing Clausewitz's separate campaign studies rather than On War. Both are collected: the Berlin Dümmler original, and Graham's 1873 Trübner three-volume London edition as the first appearance in English.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue applies to a work of this date. The principal trap is scope: Vom Kriege is volumes 1-3 only, and sets or single volumes from the Hinterlassene Werke are sometimes offered as 'On War, first edition' when they are in fact campaign volumes (vol. 4 Italien 1796; vols. 5-6 Italien und der Schweiz 1799; vol. 7 Rußland 1812/1813/Frankreich 1814; vol. 8 Frankreich 1815; vols. 9-10 Gustav Adolph, Turenne, Luxemburg). Conversely, the complete ten-volume set is the full first edition of the Werke. Later German editions from the third onward carry editorial alterations to the text, so the 1832-34 volumes are the only unaltered state.P-040003

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of On War (Vom Kriege) a first edition?

A first edition of On War (Vom Kriege) by Carl von Clausewitz (Ferdinand Dümmler) is identified by: True first (German): Berlin, printed by Trowitzsch and son for Ferdinand Dümmler.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The Dümmler German text is the true first and the original-language edition; the 1832-34 volumes 1-3 constitute the first edition of Vom Kriege proper, with volumes 4-10 containing Clausewitz's separate campaign studies rather than On War.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

No book-club issue applies to a work of this date. The principal trap is scope: Vom Kriege is volumes 1-3 only, and sets or single volumes from the Hinterlassene Werke are sometimes offered as 'On War, first edition' when they are in fact campaign volumes (vol. 4 Italien 1796; vols. 5-6 Italien und der Schweiz 1799; vol. 7 Rußland 1812/1813/Frankreich 1814; vol. 8 Frankreich 1815; vols. 9-10 Gustav Adolph, Turenne, Luxemburg).

I have a first edition of On War (Vom Kriege) — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.