War games

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This work explores the intersection of military strategy and mathematics through the evolution of war games from medieval to modern times. For centuries, both military and mathematical thinkers have employed game-like scenarios to navigate complex realities using symbolic operations. By the end of World War I, a productive convergence of mathematical and military discourse emerged in Germany, leading to the design of operational fields during World War II. The author examines the historical theory and practice of war games, tracing their development from medieval rythmomachia to the paper map exercises of the Third Reich. The narrative begins with the medieval Battle of Numbers and progresses through the baroque period, highlighting the significance of George Leopold von Reiswitz's tactical war game in nineteenth-century Prussia, including a detailed description of its game board-topped table. The work delves into Clausewitz's concept of the "fog of war" and the inherent unpredictability of conflict, while also considering the contributions of influential thinkers like Clausewitz, Leibniz, Wittgenstein, and von Neumann. Finally, it investigates the German military's war games between the World Wars, positioning them as simulations that resist being entirely absorbed into virtuality, in contrast to Baudrillard's notion of simulacra.