Nature Of Conflict Flashcards
1
Q
Why do humans fight?
Provide a philosophical perspective
A
- Thomas Hobbes (158k - 1679) theory states that
- State of war is a normal human situation
- Human life is ‘Nasty, Brutish and short’
- The state (Leviathan) is a mechanism by which societies sacrifice freedom for security
2
Q
Why do humans fight?
Provide a philosophical perspective
A
- Jean - Jacques Rousseau (1712 - 1778) theory states
- Man’s normal state of nature is a peaceful co-existence
- Violence happens because of disputes over property, exploitation, class division and the way society is organised
3
Q
What is the archeological evidence for human warfare?
A
- Excavated skeletons from c. 10,000 BC
showing traumatic wounds - Organised warfare dates from the period of first human agricultural settlements
- Controversy in the 1960’s whether humans were uniquely violent towards each other
- Primates like chimpanzees do exhibit group violence with warlike similarities
4
Q
List the theory that described the characteristics of war
A
- Thucydides (c460-400 BC) theory states that
- Men make war because of “Fear, Honour or interest*
- The Thucydides trap: described by Graham Allison to describe the tendency towards war when a rising power threatens to displace an incumbent one
5
Q
What is war?
A
- Violence is not war unless it is carried out in the name of a political unit. Equally, violence carried out in the name of a political unit is not war unless it is directed against another political unit (Hedley Bull)
- Politics is war without bloodshed while war is politics with bloodshed’ (attr. Mao Tse-Tung)
6
Q
How are wars fought
A
- Societies make war the same way they make wealth:
- Medieval war - revolved around agriculture
- Industrialisation of societies changed warfare to a factory based activity
- Development of non animal transportation (railways, Internal Combustion engine) increased the size of armies and speed of concentration
- Modern information technologies now integrated into warfare
7
Q
What are the commonalities of war across the ages?
A
- The capacity to generate and sustain violence - principally logistics.
- Moral ability to keep fighting
- Civil support for the conflict
8
Q
Describe the wars in the medieval era
A
- Jus ad bellum’ (the right to go to war) and
- “Jus in bello’ (acceptable and proportionate conduct in warfare).
- Most wars in this period were between political entities of similar natures
- Conflicts were either about who would rule or maintaining a balance of power.
9
Q
Describe the wars in the medieval era (PART 2)
A
- Wars were limited in scope.
- Armies were relatively small due to logistic constraints
- Distances travelled by armies were generally limited
- Fighting was limited by the seasons and weather conditions
- War’s were fought between groups of aristocrats and their assembled subordinates
- Often choreographed to minimise casualties
- Civilians rarely directly targeted
10
Q
Describe wars in the early modern state
A
- Continual conflict in Europe 1559 - 1660
Revolution in military technology (gunpowder weaponry) - Ideological conflict - Protestant Reformation
- Hegemonic power struggle between Hapsburgs and their rivals
- Treaty of Westphalia 1648 established the modern secular state model in Europe
- Burden of taxation increased, centralisation of power, defined national boundaries, creation of standing armies to ensure domestic stability
11
Q
Describe the French Revolutionary war in 1789
A
- Idcological transformation in the largest European country
- Emergence of Napoleon ‘Emperor of the French Republic’
- Levee en masse - conscription of huge numbers of troops
- Continual warfare in Europe until 1815
12
Q
What is the ideology of war in the modern era?
A
- Carl von Clausewitz 1780 - 1831
- The leading philosopher of war in the modern era
- Key text ‘On War’ published posthumously by his wife
- ‘War is the continuation of policy by other means’
13
Q
What is Clausewitz key insights?
A
- Two ‘trinities’ characterise war
- Violence, chance and politics
- State, Army, People
- ‘War is thus an act of force to compel our enemy to do our will’
- War is a psychological activity
14
Q
Describe the War in 19th century Europe
A
- Emergence of nationalistic movements and nascent democracy
- Increasing technological developments:
Breech loading rifles and artillery
Railway transportation
Telegraphic communications - Non powered flight (observation balloons)
15
Q
List the features of war in the modern era
A
- Move towards ‘total war. Every facet of the state involved in the war effort
- Larger forces as transportation and logistics developed to support mass mobilisation
- Increasing use of mass communications to disseminate propaganda targeting the opponents morale: ‘information war’
- Direct targeting of civilians and critical industry / infrastructure
- Rise of ideological / proxy warfare
- Increase of asymmetric conflicts
16
Q
List the different types of wars
A
- State on state
- Revolutionary / ideological wars
- Civil wars
- Liberation wars
- Religious wars
- Hybrid wars / Dirty wars / political warfare
- ‘Quasi wars’ involving non state actors (ie Al Qaeda / ISIL)
17
Q
Describe Hybrid/dirty wars
A
- Rule breaking in conflict
- Crisis where war, politics and intelligence merge into one
- Extra-judicial detentions, torture and executions
- Political repression
- Extension of the franchise of violence
- Rule by law (not of law)
- Sometimes a precursor to civil war
18
Q
Describe technologically enabled warfare
A
- Project Lavender - human - machine teaming to enhance target acquisition in Gaza
- High risk of misattribution or collateral civilian injury
- Project Maven: US Al data fusion programme to enhance situational awareness in combat
19
Q
What is the future of warfare?
A
- When it comes to predicting the nature and location of our next military engagements, since Vietnam, our record has been perfect.
- We have never once gotten it right.
