Just Wars
From Cicero to Iraq
1. Edition September 2006
296 Pages, Softcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
In what circumstances is it legitimate to use force? How should
force be used? These are two of the most crucial questions
confronting world politics today.
The Just War tradition provides a set of criteria which
political leaders and soldiers use to defend and rationalize war.
This book explores the evolution of thinking about just wars and
examines its role in shaping contemporary judgements about the use
of force, from grand strategic issues of whether states have a
right to pre-emptive
self-defence, to the minutiae of targeting.
Bellamy maps the evolution of the Just War tradition,
demonstrating how it arose from a myriad of sub-traditions,
including scholasticism, the holy war tradition, chivalry, natural
law, positive law, Erasmus and Kant's reformism, and realism from
Machiavelli to Morgenthau. He then applies this tradition to a
range of contemporary normative dilemmas related to terrorism,
pre-emption, aerial bombardment and humanitarian intervention.
Introduction -.
PART I: MAPPING THE JUST WAR TRADITION.
Chapter 1: Antiquity -.
Chapter 2: The Middle Ages -.
Chapter 3: Renaissance and Reformation -.
Chapter 4: From Holy War to Enlightenment -.
Chapter 5: Modernity and Beyond -.
PART II: CONTEMPORARY ISSUES.
Chapter 6: The Just War Tradition Today -.
Chapter 7: Terrorism -.
Chapter 8: Pre-emption -.
Chapter 9: Aerial Bombing -.
Chapter 10: Humanitarian Intervention -.
Conclusion.
Bibliography -.
Index
cases ... Bellamy produces a very thoughtful narrative, emphasizing
the disparate elements that comprise the modern just war
tradition."
Perspectives
"A model of careful and balanced discussion ... Bellamy strikes
just the right balance between rigorous examination of general
concepts and consideration of the concrete aspects of particular
cases."
Henry Shue, Survival
"A convincing analysis of the emergence of international
law and the dominance of realism after the Second World War [and]
an excellent application of this theoretical and historical
narrative to contemporary issues."
Political Studies Review
"This is an engaging book that captures the breadth and depth of
arguments over why and how we should kill one another."
International Affairs
"A book to admire and to argue with - in other words, the
best sort of book."
Jean Bethke Elshtain, University of Chicago
