Martin Van Creveld is the author of twenty-seven published books. His primary focus is military history and theory, the field of his doctoral studies. However, he has also written about a variety of other historical subjects, including the history of women, the history of Israel, the history of conscience, and the history of equality. His most important works are considered to be: Command in War (1985), Supplying War: Logistics from Wallenstein to Patton (1977, 2nd edition 2004), The Transformation of War (1991), The Sword and the Olive (1998) and The Rise and Decline of the State (1999). His books have been published in twenty languages.

Van Creveld has lectured or taught at many strategic institutes, military and civilian, around the world, including Quantico and the U.S. Naval War College.

Of particular significance is his 1991 book The Transformation of War (UK: On Future War), which has been translated into Arabic, Estonian, French, German, Greek, Japanese, Russian, Serb and Spanish. In this treatise of military theory, van Creveld develops what he calls the non-trinitarian theory of warfare