Full Description
While many books examine specific wars, few study the history of war worldwide and from an evolutionary perspective. A Global History of War is one of the first works to focus not on the impact of war on civilizations, but rather on how civilizations impact the art and execution of war. World-renowned scholar Gerard Chaliand concentrates on the peoples and cultures who have determined how war is conducted and reveals the lasting historical consequences of combat, offering a unique picture of the major geopolitical and civilizational clashes that have rocked our common history and made us who we are today. Chaliand's questions provoke a new understanding of the development of armed conflict. How did the foremost non-European empires rise and fall? What critical role did the nomads of the Eurasian steppes and their descendants play? Chaliand illuminates the military cultures and martial traditions of the great Eurasian empires, including Turkey, China, Iran, and Mongolia. Based on fifteen years of research, this book provides a novel military and strategic perspective on the crises and conflicts that have shaped the current world order.
Contents
List of maps Foreword by R. Bin Wong Preface Introduction 1. Overview: War and History 2. The First Military Empire: The Assyrians 3. The Grand Strategy of the Byzantine Empire 4. The Arabs 5. The Nomads of the Eurasian Steppes 6. The Seljuks, Mamluks, and the Crusades 7. The Mongol Empire 8. Timur the Lame 9. The Ottomans 10. Safavid Persia 11. The Ming and Chinese Politico-Military Traditions 12. The Manchu and the End of the Nomads 13. The Mughals and Islam in India 14. Russia and the End of the Tatars 15. The Ascent of Europe 16. The Time of Revolutions 17. Guerrilla Warfare 18. From Total War to Asymmetrical Conflict 19. Conclusion Select Bibliography Index
