The Masters and the Apprentice, 1763–1771

Abstract This chapter is about Alexander Vasilievich Suvorov, an outstanding military theorist and practitioner who combined practical experience with enlightened intelligence, sarcastic wit, and an indomitable will. The chapter recounts how Suvorov met General Hannibal, whom two decades later Mikhail Kutuzov encountered at the JAENS. In 1748, Suvorov enlisted as a private in the Life Guard Semeyonovskii Regiment and went on to attend the Cadet Corps of Land Forces, the professional military education institution that trained a new generation of Russian officers. The chapter considers Suvorov as among the first Russian commanders to devote attention to counteracting the general lack of literacy in the army. Suvorov emphasized planning and strategy as well as speed and mobility, accuracy of gunfire, and the use of the bayonet.