Routledge Handbook of the Global History of Warfare

Introduction: The Evolution of Warfare: Global Perspectives

Kaushik Roy and Michael W. Charney         

Part I: Origins of Warfare  

1. The Evolution of Bronze Age Warfare, and its Historical Significance in Western Eurasia and the Near East

Robert Drews                                                                            

2. War, Captive-Taking, and Warriors in Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica

Andrew K. Scherer                                                                 

3. Indigenous Warfare in Australia and New Zealand

John Connor, Michael W. Charney, and Kaushik Roy      

Part II: Polities and Armed Forces in the Pre-modern Era                                            

4. Assyrian Warfare, 1550-609 BCE

Sarah C. Melville                            

5. The Polis and the Emergence of Hoplite Warfare

Matthew Trundle          

6. Transition from Roman to Merovingian Warfare: The Long Fifth Century 

Bernard S. Bachrach                                                                       

7. New Approaches to Late Imperial Chinese Warfare

Kenneth M. Swope     

8. Warfare in Precolonial Africa

O.R. Coates                                                        

Part III: Steppe Nomads of Eurasia                                                                      

9. The European Huns

Cameron Barnes    

10. Arab-Byzantine Warfare: 660 CE-1040 CE

John Haldon                       

11. Crusading Armies and the Turks in the Middle East

John D. Hosler       

12. The Limits of Mongol Military Power

Timothy May                                      

13. The Cycle of Empire in Central Asia: The Frontier and Beyond

Andrew de la Garza                                                         

Part IV: Naval Warfare and Piracy in the Pre-Industrial World                       

14. The Egyptian Origins of Amphibious Warfare: Out of Africa

Mark Charles Fissel                                                              

15. China’s Pirate Wars, 1522-1810

Robert J. Antony                                          

16. Rise of British Naval Power in the Indian Ocean

Amarendra Kumar                                                                 

Part V: The Impact of Gunpowder                                                                                                

17. Economy and Gunpowder Weapons in Western and Central Europe

Philip T. Hoffman                                                    

18. Gunpowder and the Rise of Muscovy: Circa 1200--circa 1800

Kaushik Roy     

19. Smallpox and War in America

Erica Charters                                                

20. Gunpowder and the North American Indian Way of War

Kaushik Roy   

21. Firearms and Maritime Gunpowder States of Asia

Michael W. Charney                                                              

Part VI: Transition from Industrial to Total War                                                                                   

22. Napoleon and Mass Warfare

Andrew Bamford                                                

23. The American Civil War and the Beginning of Total War?

A. James Fuller

24. The British Army, 1870-1918: From Small War to Trench War

Ian F. W. Beckett                                                                      

25. Theory and Practice of Armoured War during the Two World Wars

Michael W. Charney                                                                

26. Race and Conflict in the Asia-Pacific Region: 1941-1945

Mark Johnston

27. Modern Naval Warfare: 1815-2000

Andrew Lambert                         

28. Strategic Air Power in the Two World Wars

Kathryn Barbier                                                                       

Part VII: Wars of Decolonisation and Cold War                                                                         

29. Warfare in the Middle East since 1945

Rob Geist Pinfold                                   

30. Wars of Decolonisation in South Asia: The Indian Army, 1945-47

Alan Jeffreys

31. The Falklands Conflict: The Last British Imperial War?

Rob McLaughlin                                                                    

Part VIII: Postmodern/New Wars                                                                                                 

32. The Global War on Terror: The American Operations in Afghanistan and Iraq 

Robert Johnson                                                                                

33. Private Military Contractors and Conflicts in the New Millennium

Christopher Kinsey                                                                   

34. The Arms Race in Contemporary East Asia

Andrew T.H. Tan                             

35. Employment of Air Power in Fourth Generation Warfare: An Indian Perspective

Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam

Biography

Kaushik Roy is Guru Nanak Chair Professor in the Department of History, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India. He specialises in warfare in Eurasia and is currently associated with the ‘Warring with Machines’ Project of the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), Norway.

Michael W. Charney is Professor of Asian and Military History at SOAS, University of London, where he teaches the history of violence, cities and the emergence of the contemporary world. His work mainly focuses on Southeast Asia and Africa.

‘This is a superlative collection, bringing together some of the finest minds in the field. The essays offer both range and depth, and anyone interested in the history of war from a global perspective will want to have this volume on their bookshelves.’

Richard Reid, Professor of African History, University of Oxford 

‘A collection of great importance not only to military historians but also to those interested in global history. Conceptually alert, this volume deserves much attention.’
Jeremy Black, Emeritus Professor, Exeter University

‘In 35 chapters written by distinguished and established historians the Handbook explores warfare from the agrarian Bronze Age through to the challenges of contemporary, ‘postmodern’ conflict. The perspective is uncompromisingly global, and offers remarkable scope for comparative analysis and understanding. The volume is an invaluable and indispensable work for all military historians.’

David Parrott, Professor of Early Modern History, University of Oxford 

‘This timely compendium, drawing on an impressive mix of established and emerging scholars, provides insights into the conduct and character of wars on a global scale, stretching from the earliest recorded conflicts to the postcolonial and postindustrial conflicts of today. It will quickly become a valuable platform for further scholarship.’

Douglas M. Peers, Professor of History, University of Waterloo