Antoine Henri Jomini

Baron Antoine-Henri Jomini (French: [ʒɔmini]; 6 March 1779 – 22 March 1869) was a Swiss-French military officer who served as a general in French and later in Russian service, and one of the most celebrated writers on the Napoleonic art of war. Jomini was largely self-taught in military strategy, and his ideas are a staple at military academies, the United States Military Academy at West Point being a prominent example; his theories were thought to have affected many officers who later served in the American Civil War. He may have coined the term logistics in his Summary of the Art of War (1838).

Early life and business career

Jomini was born on 6 March 1779 in Payerne, Vaud, Switzerland, to Benjamin Jomini and Jeanne Marcuard. The Jominis were an old Swiss family, and both his father and paternal grandfather served as mayor of Payerne. In his youth, Jomini "was fascinated by soldiers and the art of war," and hoped to join the military, but his parents pushed him towards a career in business. As a result, Jomini entered a business school in Aarau at the age of 14.

In April 1795, Jomini left school and went to work at the banking house of Monsieurs Preiswerk in Basel. In 1796, he moved to Paris, where he worked first at the Mosselmann banking house and then as a stockbroker. After a short time in banking, however, "Jomini convinced himself that the tedious life of a banker was not to be compared with the life afforded in the French Army" and decided to become a military officer as soon as he found an opportunity.