A grand epic of 5,000 years of human civilization, compiled from a new, human-centered perspective.

There is a French word called 'Belle Époque'.
It refers to the 'good times (pacific era)' from the late 19th century to the 15 years before the outbreak of World War I.
Will Durant, an American philosopher and historian, analyzed in his book, “The Lessons of History,” that out of the 3,421 years recorded in history, there were only 268 years without war, or 7.8% of the total.
It would be no exaggeration to say that the history of mankind is the history of war.

『A History of War』 is a compilation of the history of war and military affairs in the East and the West from the 30th century BC to the 21st century AD.
This book, under the perspective that “war is a universal activity resulting from the interaction of human communities,” describes various historical elements, including humans and society experiencing war, war and culture, and the impact of war on society.
In this respect, it contrasts with war history books that simply describe war in terms of armies and military strategies and tactics.

Many wars have evolved based on military innovations, such as the use of gunpowder and the development of new weapons. However, as seen in the wars in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip, simply increasing military efficiency is not enough to solve the constantly changing problems of war.
This is because war, which occurs in a space where the wills of living humans confront each other, is constantly changing, and predicting such changes is virtually impossible.
"A History of War" examines the changing nature of warfare over time, making it an engaging read for any reader interested in history, and through this, provides an understanding of the flow of warfare that permeates the ages.

The war had a tremendous impact on social change, and conversely, the changed social landscape also changed the paradigm of war.
Throughout antiquity, warfare gradually evolved from a ritualistic act in which a small group of warriors (a privileged class) determined victory or defeat, to a practical armed action centered on a large number of citizen soldiers.
As wars became more frequent and larger in scale, the cooperation of the common people became more urgent, and it became increasingly difficult to encourage their participation in the war simply for the sake of community safety.
Therefore, it was only natural that citizens, who had fulfilled their responsibilities through participation in the war and increased taxation due to their income levels, would demand that the privileged class share political power.
--- p.32 From “Chapter 1_War in the Ancient Western World”

The Hundred Years' War sowed the seeds of a permanent state of war in Europe.
In the long run, it can be said that in Europe, international wars involving alliances and alliances between various countries continued for approximately 600 years from 1337 to 1945.
Even if we consider the revolutionary era of the 19th century and the two world wars of the 20th century separately, this concentration and accumulation of violence, and the chain reaction of war begetting war, continued at least until the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815.
In this situation, European countries developed into war-oriented states, and taxes were levied to prepare for constant war.
A representative system was generally established to discuss the validity of the purpose of this taxation, but in France, which found this cumbersome and developed a bureaucracy, an absolute monarchy was also established.

--- p.116 From “Chapter 2_War in the Western Medieval World”

The defeat of the Hungarian allies sent fear through Europe.
There was now no army in Europe that could stop the Mongols.
However, the Mongol army did not continue to advance, but suddenly retreated to Karakorum, the capital of the Mongol Empire.
At that time, the Mongol emperor Ogedei had died, and Batu and Subutai, who were leading the expeditionary force, had to attend the kurultai to elect the khan of the empire.
This marked the end of the Mongol expedition to Europe.
Europe barely survived.
The Mongols waged wars of conquest across Eurasia, building an empire of unprecedented scale.
Its territory extended from the East Sea to the Mediterranean Sea and the Carpathian Mountains, and at its peak it had an army of over a million men.
The Mongol army was able to win successive wars because it practically adapted the tactics of the steppe to new tactics, weapons, and new forms of warfare.

--- p.169 From “Chapter 3_War in the Ancient and Medieval East”

In this way, the fighting power of infantry, which combined 'spears and rifles', began to replace the cavalry's military exploits that had characterized the Hundred Years' War in the Middle Ages.
The musketeers launched a preemptive attack on the enemy cavalry, while the pikemen, armed with pikes 3 to 7.5 meters long, protected the musketeers from the cavalry's charge and rushed into the enemy lines to engage in close combat.
When Charles VIII of France invaded Italy in 1498, half of his army was cavalry.
But when Francis I invaded Italy in 1524, only 20% of his soldiers were on horseback.
By 1700, most European armies were composed of about 75% infantry and 25% cavalry.

--- p.183 From “Chapter 4_The Age of Gunpowder Wars and Changes in Europe”

The most striking thing about 18th-century infantry combat was the complete disappearance of pikemen.
This was a representative change brought about by the improvement of the personal firearm, the musket.
Until the 17th century, muskets used matchlock triggers, which were slow and cumbersome to load and fire.
However, in the 18th century, a hand-fired musket that detonated gunpowder by sparks generated by friction between flint and steel was invented, replacing the matchlock musket.
The hand-fired musket was still loaded by a muzzle-loader, but it was capable of firing a volley with a simple firing process.
Moreover, the invention of the ring bayonet, which was a method of attaching the bayonet ring to the barrel, made it possible to fire even with the bayonet attached.
The ring bayonet allowed all infantry to become spearmen, and spears completely disappeared from the battlefield.
The era of 'pikes and muskets' has disappeared into the back alleys of history, and the era of 'bayonet infantry' has arrived.
--- p.225-226 From “Chapter 5_The Age of War and Revolution”

Rail transport, in itself harmless, gradually came to have a significant impact on the conduct of war in the late 19th century.
This is because the railroad greatly changed the time element, especially among the three strategic elements of time, space, and power, by allowing for the rapid movement of large numbers of troops and military supplies to the battlefield.
Germany, which was one step ahead of this trend, continuously improved and repeatedly mastered its mobilization methods, and by the early 20th century, it had reached a level where it could conduct large-scale battles within two weeks of mobilization.
The conditions were ripe for the so-called 'railway timetable' war to break out.
Right at the center of it all was the German military's operational plan, the Schlieffen Plan.
An ominous atmosphere hung over continental Europe in the early 20th century, as if everyone was secretly hoping someone would light a powder keg.

--- p.277 From “Chapter 6_War in the Industrial Age”

After Won Gyun died, Yi Sun-sin, who was reappointed as the commander of the three provinces' naval forces, gathered the remaining 13 ships and fought the Battle of Myeongnyang against the Japanese navy on September 16th with the spirit of 'Ilbu Danggyeong Jokgu Cheonbu', meaning 'If one man guards the pass, he can make a thousand enemies fear'.
Japan faced Yi Sun-sin's fleet with more than ten times the number of ships, but was ultimately defeated, with Kurushima Michifusa and others killed.
As a result, the Japanese navy's plan to support the Japanese army advancing from the seas of Jeolla-do and Chungcheong-do to the land was frustrated, and they retreated toward Ungcheon.

--- p.323 From “Chapter 7_War in East Asia”

In June 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union.
Failing to subdue Britain and expanding its influence into North Africa, why did Germany invade the Soviet Union, breaking its non-aggression pact? Germany sought to avoid a two-front war, a traditional strategic weakness.
Therefore, the Soviet Union had to be defeated before Britain could regain its strength and the United States could enter the war in earnest.
Paradoxically, it was the stronger-than-expected British resistance and the anticipated American entry into the war that accelerated the war with the Soviet Union.
Moreover, Germany needed the resources of the areas occupied by the Soviet Union to wage a long-term total war.
As Hitler mentioned in his book Mein Kampf, Ukraine's food, the Urals' mineral resources, the Caucasus' oil fields, and Siberia's forest resources were essential for Germany's war effort.

--- p.420 From “Chapter 9_World War II”

The changes in the international situation brought about by the Korean War were dramatic.
The U.S. government significantly increased defense spending, which had plummeted since the end of World War II, strengthened NATO's military capabilities, and accelerated the reconstruction of West Germany.
In Asia, the Korean War postponed China's attack on Taiwan, but it further strengthened Mao Zedong's position in China.
Finally, this war, which fiercely fought on the Korean Peninsula for three years, has had a significant impact on the Cold War, the post-Cold War era, and even today, as we enter a new Cold War era.
The two countries, divided into South and North Korea, viewed each other with hostility throughout the Cold War, and in the post-Cold War era, they attempted to build trust through several summits, but achieved no notable results.
Furthermore, military tensions on the Korean Peninsula and in neighboring countries have been rising due to North Korea's nuclear weapons development and threats since the early 1990s.

--- p.484 From “Chapter 10_War in the Cold War”

From a long-term perspective, especially from the perspective of a unipolar world centered on the United States, the post-Cold War wars will be remembered as wars that depleted the political, economic, and military capabilities of the sole superpower, the United States.
The United States enjoyed sole superpower status in a unipolar world in 2001, but now, in 2021, it faces a formidable challenge from China and has failed to secure adequate returns for its efforts over the past two decades with its withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which began in late February 2022, further complicated the situation.
The most important political significance of the post-Cold War era was probably the fact that it brought an end to the US-centered unipolar system sooner than expected.

--- p.552 From “Chapter 11_War in the Post-Cold War Period”

Space warfare, once seen only in science fiction movies, has now become a real security threat.
Space warfare encompasses anything from wars between actors located in space to armed conflicts between space and the ground.
That is, combat between space and the Earth includes actions such as striking terrestrial targets from satellites orbiting the Earth and destroying satellites in space with terrestrial weapons.
Despite current international treaties restricting the deployment and use of weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, in space, countries are actively developing and testing weapons for space warfare, cleverly circumventing the treaties.
Additionally, major countries with advanced space science and technology, such as the United States, Russia, and India, have long established and are operating specialized organizations and units responsible for space warfare.
South Korea is also working to address future security threats by developing the capability to independently launch satellites and creating an organization within the military dedicated to space warfare.

--- p.605 From “Chapter 12_21st Century War and Future War”