War
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* Antestilian ("before pike") ~ -8 000 000 to -1 000 000: This period lasts from the divergence of the human and chimpanzee evolutionary lineages<ref>The earliest found fossil since the divergence was the bipedaloid ''Sahelanthropus tchadensis'', which lived around -7 000 000 to -6 000 000. The eight million years here could be far too early.</ref> to the invention of the first pike<ref>http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/08/0823_050823_spears_war.html Although it uses the word "spear", it is more likely to mean "pike", i.e. long pointed wooden rod, as spears, i.e. having stone heads, were invented c. -40 000. This can be inferred in turn by a combination of two sources. Roger Bridgman, in conjunction with the Smithsonian, placed the invention of the atlatl (spear thrower) around -35,000 in his book, "1000 Inventions and Discoveries". http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1080078/index.htm states spears were invented 40 to 20 thousand years ago. The only way these two make sense is if spears were invented forty thousand years ago.</ref>, around one million years ago. Behavior amongst tribes would have probably resembled those of modern chimpanzees, which often faced much internal conflict. Territory ownership was mainly a matter of numbers, as weaponry was pretty much the same throughout tribes. | * Antestilian ("before pike") ~ -8 000 000 to -1 000 000: This period lasts from the divergence of the human and chimpanzee evolutionary lineages<ref>The earliest found fossil since the divergence was the bipedaloid ''Sahelanthropus tchadensis'', which lived around -7 000 000 to -6 000 000. The eight million years here could be far too early.</ref> to the invention of the first pike<ref>http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/08/0823_050823_spears_war.html Although it uses the word "spear", it is more likely to mean "pike", i.e. long pointed wooden rod, as spears, i.e. having stone heads, were invented c. -40 000. This can be inferred in turn by a combination of two sources. Roger Bridgman, in conjunction with the Smithsonian, placed the invention of the atlatl (spear thrower) around -35,000 in his book, "1000 Inventions and Discoveries". http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1080078/index.htm states spears were invented 40 to 20 thousand years ago. The only way these two make sense is if spears were invented forty thousand years ago.</ref>, around one million years ago. Behavior amongst tribes would have probably resembled those of modern chimpanzees, which often faced much internal conflict. Territory ownership was mainly a matter of numbers, as weaponry was pretty much the same throughout tribes. | ||
* Interim ~ -1 000 000 to -10 000: The Interim is a period of relative peace within and between tribes. No longer would the usage of more men mean victory, as a few pikemen could still inflict severe injury on men with just clubs and hand axes. The era of peace may have led to the three voyages out of Africa: the first by ''H. erectus'', the second by ''H. heidelbergensis'', and the last by ''H. sapiens''. War was more costly now, so peaceful alternatives needed to be sought out. | * Interim ~ -1 000 000 to -10 000: The Interim is a period of relative peace within and between tribes. No longer would the usage of more men mean victory, as a few pikemen could still inflict severe injury on men with just clubs and hand axes. The era of peace may have led to the three voyages out of Africa: the first by ''H. erectus'', the second by ''H. heidelbergensis'', and the last by ''H. sapiens''. War was more costly now, so peaceful alternatives needed to be sought out. | ||
| − | : | + | :Neanderthal/Cro-Magnon war: 40 000 to -30 000?: Jared Diamond in ''The Third Chimpanzee'', argues that a massive war was the reason for the extinction of the [[Neanderthal]]s some 35 000 years ago, as [[Cro-Magnon|humans]] expanded into Europe from western Asia. This is still during the "peaceful" interim, but the Cro-Magnons had some new weapons: stone-headed spears, atlatls, bows and arrows, et cetera. After the Neanderthals were all dead, the Interim continued on. After the Neanderthal/Cro-Magnon, there was much less fighting until the advent of agriculture, as described below. |
* Postbellum ("after war") ~ -10 000 to +2 012: War in the modern sense arises in Sudan sometime from 12,000 to 14,000 years ago (we use 12,000 here because it results in -10 000, a nice round number). Before this, conflict more resembled hit-and-run raids or ambushes. This was also characteristic of post-agricultural societies, though new emphasis was put on capturing land as well and warfare became more organized. This coincided with the invention of agriculture, which had its first faint glimmers 12 000 years ago with the Natufians of the Fertile Crescent and the Levant and truly sprouted eleven thousand years ago. It also coincided with the beginnings of [[organized religion]], as the first temple was constructed 11 000 years ago in modern-day [[Turkey]]. Go figure. Of course, war didn't magically appear in all places. The peaceful Interim lingered in some areas until around -2 000. | * Postbellum ("after war") ~ -10 000 to +2 012: War in the modern sense arises in Sudan sometime from 12,000 to 14,000 years ago (we use 12,000 here because it results in -10 000, a nice round number). Before this, conflict more resembled hit-and-run raids or ambushes. This was also characteristic of post-agricultural societies, though new emphasis was put on capturing land as well and warfare became more organized. This coincided with the invention of agriculture, which had its first faint glimmers 12 000 years ago with the Natufians of the Fertile Crescent and the Levant and truly sprouted eleven thousand years ago. It also coincided with the beginnings of [[organized religion]], as the first temple was constructed 11 000 years ago in modern-day [[Turkey]]. Go figure. Of course, war didn't magically appear in all places. The peaceful Interim lingered in some areas until around -2 000. | ||
Revision as of 15:34, 4 February 2012
| What is it good for? Absolutely nothing!
War |
| Don't believe us? |
| —Carl von Clausewitz |
“”War, huh, good God, y'all, what is it good for? Absolutely nothin'!
|
| —Edwin Starr |
Throughout history, whenever a dispute could not be settled peacefully, violence broke out. When enough people were on each side of the violence, it is called a war. Many efforts have been made to either prevent all wars[2] or to mitigate the effects of war.[3] They still occur frequently, although most of the violence has nowadays shifted to the sub-state level.
Contents |
Origins
The history of humanity can be divided into three phases of violence.
- Antestilian ("before pike") ~ -8 000 000 to -1 000 000: This period lasts from the divergence of the human and chimpanzee evolutionary lineages[4] to the invention of the first pike[5], around one million years ago. Behavior amongst tribes would have probably resembled those of modern chimpanzees, which often faced much internal conflict. Territory ownership was mainly a matter of numbers, as weaponry was pretty much the same throughout tribes.
- Interim ~ -1 000 000 to -10 000: The Interim is a period of relative peace within and between tribes. No longer would the usage of more men mean victory, as a few pikemen could still inflict severe injury on men with just clubs and hand axes. The era of peace may have led to the three voyages out of Africa: the first by H. erectus, the second by H. heidelbergensis, and the last by H. sapiens. War was more costly now, so peaceful alternatives needed to be sought out.
- Neanderthal/Cro-Magnon war: 40 000 to -30 000?: Jared Diamond in The Third Chimpanzee, argues that a massive war was the reason for the extinction of the Neanderthals some 35 000 years ago, as humans expanded into Europe from western Asia. This is still during the "peaceful" interim, but the Cro-Magnons had some new weapons: stone-headed spears, atlatls, bows and arrows, et cetera. After the Neanderthals were all dead, the Interim continued on. After the Neanderthal/Cro-Magnon, there was much less fighting until the advent of agriculture, as described below.
- Postbellum ("after war") ~ -10 000 to +2 012: War in the modern sense arises in Sudan sometime from 12,000 to 14,000 years ago (we use 12,000 here because it results in -10 000, a nice round number). Before this, conflict more resembled hit-and-run raids or ambushes. This was also characteristic of post-agricultural societies, though new emphasis was put on capturing land as well and warfare became more organized. This coincided with the invention of agriculture, which had its first faint glimmers 12 000 years ago with the Natufians of the Fertile Crescent and the Levant and truly sprouted eleven thousand years ago. It also coincided with the beginnings of organized religion, as the first temple was constructed 11 000 years ago in modern-day Turkey. Go figure. Of course, war didn't magically appear in all places. The peaceful Interim lingered in some areas until around -2 000.
Definition
A war is a large-scale conflict between two groups. However, the exact scale of deaths needed to call something a war is constantly under debate. There are several broad types of wars, which can be divided and subdivided to your heart's content.
International war
Traditionally, wars are fought between the armies of two or more sovereign states. While irregulars and guerrillas may play a part in such wars, the states are the ones in control. [6] Such wars are, at least in principle, governed by international law (most notably the Geneva Conventions), and explicitly discouraged by institutions such as the united Nations. Hostilities were usually preceded by formal declarations of war, but this practice has fallen out of favor - for example, neither the Afghanistan War nor the Iraq War were ever officially declared. This might be due to PR concerns, since these wars were supposed to be directed only against small elites in charge of the states, but not against the people themselves. The latter are, of course, still the ones who end up paying most of the blood toll for military interventions.
War of Aggression
Wars of aggression are fought without the justification of self-defense. Since they are often fought over controlling land, they are also known as "wars of conquest", although they needn't be fought over certain territories. Wars of aggression are seen as of of the, if not the, largest crimes against humanity[7].
Civil war
A civil war describes a situation in which factions within one nation fight for control. This covers armed insurrections against the government, as well as organized violence between groups that the state is unable to stop. In both cases, civil wars can turn into international conflicts when outside powers are prompted to intervene. Civil wars are often extremely bloody affairs, because they blur the line between soldiers and civilians. Sometimes, one or more of the factions involved also wage all-out campaigns of genocide or ethnic cleansing, in which civiians become targets rather than "collateral damage".
Revolutionary war
Wars of revolution are also usually confined to a single country's territory. Their purpose is to overthrow the existing government structure and replace it with something the revolutionaries think will better serve the people. There are basically two kinds - in one, usually called a war of independence, a country or territory seeks to liberate itself from a colonial or imperial power; in the other, the goal is to overthrow the country's existing independent government.Examples of the former include the American War of Independence against England, and the Algerian one against France. The latter include the French, Russian, and Cuban revolutions. As with most wars, the "legitimacy" of the revolutionaries is definitely in the eye of the beholder - one man's freedom fighter is another man's terrorist.
This is a subsection of "civil war" because there isn't really that much of a difference between a civil and revolutionary war, beyond that the people win in a revolution and the government wins in a civil war .
Religious war
Religious wars are usually civil wars, though they can also be international. A religious war is one where the primary motivation behind the war is specifically religious. The most well-known religious wars were those between the European states and the Islamic empire during the Crusades, or between the Protestant and Catholics sections of Germany during the 30 Years' War. Until the 21st century, it seemed that religious wars were on the decline, but many see current US actions against Iraq and Afghanistan in that light.
Proxy war
Proxy wars, which became more common during the Cold War, are typically local civil wars or wars between smaller nations in which major powers are backing one or more of the combative factions to further their own ends, but do not wish to dirty their hands with each others' blood directly. The Arab-Israeli conflict used to be cast in this light during the 1960s and 70s, and Soviet support for North Vietnam or American support for the Mujahideen in Afghanistan are also prominent examples. Both of the latter cases are examples where one side was fighting a proxy war, while its primary opponent was engaged directly. A proxy war carries a number of benefits:
- Someone else is providing a significant portion of the armed forces, thus lessening casualties for the external parties. In some cases interested parties may supply material support and training while refraining from providing combat personnel, such as the case of America's support for the Mujahideen in their efforts to counter the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
- An increased sphere of influence - should the war be a successful one.
- Large scale war between major powers breeds the danger of escalation, including the threat of nuclear war.
- Fighting in one's own country tends to leave things in a bit of a mess, so it's preferable to have the fighting take place elsewhere.
However, relying on proxies can also be very messy, since they're not really under your control. They often do things you'd rather they didn't (like kill innocent people, or start wars at inopportune times). It is also very easy for a conflict to start as a proxy war, only to eventually draw the patron in as well. The US involvement in Vietnam, for example, began with providing training and materiel for the South Vietnamese, but eventually escalated into a massive troop deployment and saw the US turn into the major combatant.
Modern adaptations
In today's globalized world, some wars are starting to cross-over between types, where fighters from different states come together in undeclared wars and civil wars spill out past national boundaries. This can be seen most clearly in the struggles between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan in the 1980s, and now in the fighting in Sudan/Chad/etc.
Alternate definition
War is also a card game of pure chance, typically played with one ordinary deck and two players, but extendable to more decks or players. Cards are dealt out face-down to each player, giving each player their own deck. Players cannot look at their deck or anyone else's. In a round, every player flips over the top card of their deck. Whoever has the card with the highest value [8] gets all cards played in that round, to put at the bottom of their deck. If two or more players are tied for the highest-valued card, then a "war" occurs. Each player involved in the tie puts down three cards face-down, and flips over another card, which is compared instead. If one of the cards' values is greater than the other, then that player gets all cards involved in the "war". Otherwise, the war proceeds as before until a resolution is determined. When a player runs out of cards in their deck, they are out of the game. Rounds proceed as described until everybody except for one player has been eliminated. The remaining player is the winner.
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ http://www.clausewitz.com/CWZHOME/ECHEVAR/ECHJFQ.htm
- ↑ The creation of the United Nations was supposed to effect this, and deterrence in theory also serves this goal.
- ↑ The Roman Catholic Church passed many laws in the Middle Ages to limit the scope of wars, and many treaties have been signed since to that effect.
- ↑ The earliest found fossil since the divergence was the bipedaloid Sahelanthropus tchadensis, which lived around -7 000 000 to -6 000 000. The eight million years here could be far too early.
- ↑ http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/08/0823_050823_spears_war.html Although it uses the word "spear", it is more likely to mean "pike", i.e. long pointed wooden rod, as spears, i.e. having stone heads, were invented c. -40 000. This can be inferred in turn by a combination of two sources. Roger Bridgman, in conjunction with the Smithsonian, placed the invention of the atlatl (spear thrower) around -35,000 in his book, "1000 Inventions and Discoveries". http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1080078/index.htm states spears were invented 40 to 20 thousand years ago. The only way these two make sense is if spears were invented forty thousand years ago.
- ↑ For example, in Norway and France during World War II there were strong Resistance movements, but overall the Allies and the Axis directed the wars.
- ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_aggression#Sources_and_definitions_of_the_crime
- ↑ Numbered cards = themselves, Jacks = 11, Queens = 12, Kings = 13, Aces = 1 or 14, depending on who you ask