The Three Levels of Warfare

In contemporary military science, there are three commonly recognized “levels” of warfare and troop deployment: Tactical, Operational and Strategic. Here we will attempt to briefly outline these three levels, as some of the tactics described on this site have different meanings depending on the level they are deployed at.

The tactical level is the one in which maneuvers, engagements and battles are conducted on the battlefield. Here is where individual troops and small units up through to the divisional level engage enemy forces. It is a short-term dimension of warfare ranging from several hours through several weeks.

The next level up is the operational level, which is where, as the name suggests, operations and campaigns (which consist of a series of multiple tactical engagements) are planned and organized, and where the armies engaged in such campaigns are managed.

Finally, at the top is the strategic level, which oversees the entire war that operations and campaigns are conducted in. Here is where military operations are considered in the wider context of geopolitics and long-term state policy.

Another chart outlining the three levels.

These three levels are inter-dependent. Strategic policy informs operational considerations, which in turn provide a rough outline of the tactics needed for individual engagements. Meanwhile, the reality of the battlefield as experienced through leaders on the tactical level may also inform operational & strategic considerations.

However, these levels are at the same time independent. A string of losses on that tactical level may not affect the operation, and even an operation loss may not harm the state on the strategic level. The opposite is also true: A string of glorious tactical or operational victories may not be enough to prevent a crushing long-term defeat.

To get a better idea of how these things may play out, refer to the following examples:

Pictured: A diagram outlining a 6-level model combined with a parallel “Institutional” level.

The concept of “three levels” is not a universal science, but rather a way of looking at things. The idea began development in the early 19th century with Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz, who identified only two levels - tactical and strategic. Red Army officer Alexander Svechin proposed the operational level to cover the middle ground between strategic & tactical, an idea which would be expanded upon by the Soviets and ultimately adopted by the US military in the 1980's.

There are several other models built upon the Clausewitz-Svechin model. Some propose five or six levels, further breaking things down. Others propose a parallel “institutional” level, which is where warfighting capabilities (science, technology, education, etc) are developed. See diagram for more details.

• Levels of War: Just a Set of Labels? by Martin Dunn, Chief Research Officer - Australian Directorate of Army Research and Analysis¹⁾
• The Levels of War as Levels of Analysis by Andrew S. Harvey PhD, Military Review Nov-Dec 2021, Army University Press²⁾