The Idea of War
Author | Craig Forcese |
Pages | 129-134 |
129
Chapter 16
The Idea of War
If the Wars of civilized people are less cruel and deruive than those of
savages, the difference arises from the social condition both of States in
themselves and in their relations to each other. Out of this social condition
and its relations War arises, and by it War is subjeed to conditions, is
controlled and modified.
— Carl von Clausewitz1
I sense, “war” is violence designed to compel an
outcome.2 “War,” the Oxford English Dictionary reports, means
a “hostile contention by means of armed forces.” But in its prac-
tical use, war differs from mob violence by its degree of organization,
and usually from brigandage by its political objectives. As the full
Oxford English Dictionary definition also suggests, we usually asso-
ciate war with a political state — that is, at least one party to what we
term a “war” is a government.
States and governments are creatures of law. But while in its exer-
cise, war may be an organized clash between these legal creatures — or
increasingly, between one or more of them and some other oppos-
ing party — we sometimes imagine war as the negation of law: the
famous “mere continuation of policy by other means.”3 The origin-
ator of that phrase, the Napoleonic war veteran Carl von Clausewitz,
had little time for laws in war. He dismissed them as “self-imposed
restrictions, almost imperceptible and hardly worth mentioning,
termed usages of international law” that accompany war “without
essentially impairing its power.”4
Get this document and AI-powered insights with a free trial of vLex and Vincent AI
Get Started for FreeUnlock full access with a free 7-day trial
Transform your legal research with vLex
-
Complete access to the largest collection of common law case law on one platform
-
Generate AI case summaries that instantly highlight key legal issues
-
Advanced search capabilities with precise filtering and sorting options
-
Comprehensive legal content with documents across 100+ jurisdictions
-
Trusted by 2 million professionals including top global firms
-
Access AI-Powered Research with Vincent AI: Natural language queries with verified citations

Unlock full access with a free 7-day trial
Transform your legal research with vLex
-
Complete access to the largest collection of common law case law on one platform
-
Generate AI case summaries that instantly highlight key legal issues
-
Advanced search capabilities with precise filtering and sorting options
-
Comprehensive legal content with documents across 100+ jurisdictions
-
Trusted by 2 million professionals including top global firms
-
Access AI-Powered Research with Vincent AI: Natural language queries with verified citations

Unlock full access with a free 7-day trial
Transform your legal research with vLex
-
Complete access to the largest collection of common law case law on one platform
-
Generate AI case summaries that instantly highlight key legal issues
-
Advanced search capabilities with precise filtering and sorting options
-
Comprehensive legal content with documents across 100+ jurisdictions
-
Trusted by 2 million professionals including top global firms
-
Access AI-Powered Research with Vincent AI: Natural language queries with verified citations

Unlock full access with a free 7-day trial
Transform your legal research with vLex
-
Complete access to the largest collection of common law case law on one platform
-
Generate AI case summaries that instantly highlight key legal issues
-
Advanced search capabilities with precise filtering and sorting options
-
Comprehensive legal content with documents across 100+ jurisdictions
-
Trusted by 2 million professionals including top global firms
-
Access AI-Powered Research with Vincent AI: Natural language queries with verified citations

Unlock full access with a free 7-day trial
Transform your legal research with vLex
-
Complete access to the largest collection of common law case law on one platform
-
Generate AI case summaries that instantly highlight key legal issues
-
Advanced search capabilities with precise filtering and sorting options
-
Comprehensive legal content with documents across 100+ jurisdictions
-
Trusted by 2 million professionals including top global firms
-
Access AI-Powered Research with Vincent AI: Natural language queries with verified citations
