In 1770 he published his "Essai général de tactique" in London, and this celebrated work appeared in numerous subsequent editions and in English, German and even Persian translations (extracts also in Liskenne and Sauvan, "Bibl. historique et militaire", Paris, 1845). Of this work (for a detailed critique of which see Max Jahns, "Gesch. d. Kriegswissenschaften", vol. iii. pp. 2058–2070 and references therein) it may be said that it was the best essay on war produced by a soldier during a period in which tactics were discussed even in the salon and military literature was more abundant than at any time up to 1871.