Causes, Practices, and effects of
War
What is War?
• “ War therefore is an act of violence intended to
compel our opponents to fulfill our will.”
• On War - Carl Von Clausewitz – 1780 to 1831
•
“Warfare is the greatest affair of state, the
basis of life and death, the way (Tao) to survival
or extinction. It must be thoroughly pondered
and analyzed.”
• -The Art of War Sun-Tzu – 5th century b.c.
Why do we fight?
• The political objective
– “War is a mere continuation of policy by other
means.” -– Von Clausewitz
• Economic motive – We want what our neighbors
have –
– Class warfare - Marxist point of view
– Includes wars of liberation
• Honor, fear and interest – Thucydides
– Kagan explains
• Human nature - Aristotle
Why should we study war
• Prevention – idealistic- human nature can
be changed
• So we can win – realistic- we will always
fight so lets make sure we come out on top
• We can minimize the inevitable by reducing
the likelihood of war and its impact
neo-realist or soft realist.
Types of War
• I.
Total War
– Examples
• World War I 1914 to 1918
• World War II 1939 to 1945
– Characteristics
• Entire population mobilized for war effort
• Complete defeat of enemy- unconditional surrender
• Civil War
– Characteristics
• 1.
Fought between forces of one nation
• 2. Two sides vying for power
• 3.
Sometimes involves separatists- independence
movement
• 4.
Foreign support for one side or both is
common
– Examples
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.
Spanish Civil War 1935 – 1938
Chinese Civil War 1946 – 1949
Mexican Revolution 1911-1920
• Limited War
– Characteristics
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.
Post WWII – Nuclear threat
Limited objectives – avoid escalation
Use of Proxy forces – no national mobilization
– Examples
Korean War 1950 to 1953
Vietnam War 1964 to 1973
• I.
• A.
Guerrilla War
Characteristics
– 1. Strong vs. Weak/Oppressor vs. Oppressed/Regular vs.
irregular
– 2. Associated with independence movements and civil
wars
– 3. Can be used in all sorts other wars.
– 4. Depends on indigenous population for concealment
• B.
– 1.
– 2.
– 3.
Examples
Vietnam war 1960 to 1968
Cuban Revolution 1956 to 1959
Partisans in Europe during WWII
•
Terrain
• Open Plains – Favors Mechanized Infantry,
Armor, Airpower - Hard to defend, poor for
guerilla Warfare
• Desert – Same as open Plains but logistics critical
• Mountain – Favors Infantry, Airpower, - Easy to
defend – poor for Mechanized, and Armor
• Forest/Jungle – Favors Infantry, Guerilla tactics –Poor for Mechanization and Armor
• Urban – Favors Infantry , guerrilla tactics–– Poor
for Armor
Key Technological innovations during
War in the 20th century.
• Tank – British – WWI – ended Trench Warfare
• Airplane – WWI - Many different reasons Added
3rd dimension
• Jet Engine – Germans - WWII – Changed
Airpower
• Radar – British- WWII - Early detection, helped
win Battle of Britain
• Aircraft Carrier – US/Japan - WWII –
Changed Naval Combat
• Ballistic Missile – Germans - WWII –
Unstoppable and long range
• Nuclear Bomb – US –WWII - Most Bang
for the Buck
• Helicopter – US –Korean War - Resurrected
Cavalry, Saved a lot of lives.
Military Terms
• Military organization
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Army Corp Division Brigade Battalion Company Platoon Squad -
depends on need
many divisions
2 to 3 Brig./Batts.
2 batts. + 1 comp.4 to 5 companies3 platoons 3 squads 10 men –
led by
Gen.
Gen.
Gen.
Col
Maj.
Capt
Lt.
Sgt(NCO)
Military Ranks
• Army
•
Officers
–
–
–
–
–
•
General
Colonel
Major
Captain
Lieutenant
Enlisted
– Sergent (NCO)
– Corporal
– Private
Navy
Officers
Admiral
Captain
Commodore
Commander
Lieutenant
Ensign
Enlisted
Petty Officer(NCO)
Seaman/sailor
• Strategy
– The big picture…. overall plan for a war or
battle
• Tactics
– The methods used to implement the strategy
– Smaller scale
• Flanking – attacking from the side or rear
• Logistics – getting people and supplies to
the battle or war.
• Reconnaissance – scouting and spying,
finding out where the enemy is
• Infantry – foot soldiers
• Armor – Tanks, Armored Personal
Carriers(APC)
• Artillery – big cannons or rockets, shot
from a long distance usually
• Ballistic Missile – guided and self powered
projectile – usually rocket powered
• Capitol ships – biggest vessels in navy used
to project power