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Kabinettskriege (English: "Cabinet War") is the German expression referring to the type of wars which affected Europe during the period of absolute monarchies, from the 1648 Peace of Westphalia to the 1789 French Revolution. It is also known as "war between princes." Such wars involved small armies, nobles officers corps, limited war goals and frequently changing coalition between the belligerents.

The terms of Kabineetskriege plays on Kabinettsregierung (Cabinet government), Kabinettsjustiz (Cabinet law), etc. In contrast with precedent wars of religions, and posterior 20th century total wars or revolutionary people's war, "cabinet wars" had limited goals. Clausewitz theorized this in On War by stating that "wars was the continuation of politics by other means," thus placing the military under civilian control.

The Thirty Years' War, based on religious conflict, had been marked by wild plunders and marauding armies. Order was restablished by the 1648 Westphaly Treaty, which formulated the international relations rules for the next centuries, in particular respective to the laws of war (jus ad bello and jus in bellum). During the Age of Enlightenment and under the direction of the "enlightened despots," wars became more regulated, although the civilian population was still a current victim of mercenaries. Such scenes as the 1572 St. Bartholomew's Day massacre became exceptional. Thus, Berlin was not plundered during the Seven Years' War of 1756-1762.

Cabinet wars, which mostly took place between 1650 and 1792, included the:

• Ottoman wars
• War of the Grand Alliance (1688-1697)
• Great Northern War (1700-1721)
• War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714)
• War of the Polish Succession (1733-1735)
• War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748)
• Seven Years' War (1756-1763)

The invention of the levée en masse (mass conscription) during the French Revolution put an end to cabinet wars. Further wars were not simply due to conflict between princes, but involved nationalism and conflicts over the boundaries of nation-states. Thus, the Peninsula War was called by Spanish the "independence war," and led to the first guerrilla against the regular Napoleonic army. The Crimean War (1854-1856) could be classified, however, in the "cabinet wars," as it was led with limited goals and released moderate passions from the people of the involved belligerent states.

• Kriegspiel (contemporary wargames)
• Total war (opposite of kabinettskriege)