Civilians Under Siege From Sarajevo To Troy
by John Horne /
2017 / English / PDF
5.6 MB Download
This edited volume analyses siege warfare as a discrete type of
military engagement, in the face of which civilians are
particularly vulnerable. Siege warfare is a form of combat that
has usually had devastating effects on civilian populations. From
the near-contemporary Siege of Sarajevo to the real and mythical
sieges of the ancient Mediterranean, this has been a recurring
type of military engagement which, through bombardment,
starvation, disease and massacre, places non-combatants at the
heart of battle. To date, however, there has been little
recognition of the effects of siege warfare on civilians. This
edited volume addresses this gap. Using a distinctive regressive
method, it begins with the present and works backwards, avoiding
teleological interpretations that suggest the targeting of
civilians in war is a modern phenomenon. Its contributors
interrogate civilians’ roles during sieges, both as victims and
active participants; the laws and customs of siege warfare; its
place in historical memory, and the ways civilian survivors have
dealt with trauma. Its scope and content ensure that the
collection is essential reading for all those interested in the
place of civilians in war.
This edited volume analyses siege warfare as a discrete type of
military engagement, in the face of which civilians are
particularly vulnerable. Siege warfare is a form of combat that
has usually had devastating effects on civilian populations. From
the near-contemporary Siege of Sarajevo to the real and mythical
sieges of the ancient Mediterranean, this has been a recurring
type of military engagement which, through bombardment,
starvation, disease and massacre, places non-combatants at the
heart of battle. To date, however, there has been little
recognition of the effects of siege warfare on civilians. This
edited volume addresses this gap. Using a distinctive regressive
method, it begins with the present and works backwards, avoiding
teleological interpretations that suggest the targeting of
civilians in war is a modern phenomenon. Its contributors
interrogate civilians’ roles during sieges, both as victims and
active participants; the laws and customs of siege warfare; its
place in historical memory, and the ways civilian survivors have
dealt with trauma. Its scope and content ensure that the
collection is essential reading for all those interested in the
place of civilians in war.
Chapter 2 of this book is available open access under a CC BY 4.0
license at link.springer.com
Chapter 2 of this book is available open access under a CC BY 4.0
license at link.springer.com
