War and Power

War and power are two of the most-widely discussed issues in all of human history, and yet they are, time and again, misunderstood — often disastrously so. Whilst we might think the outcome of war ...

War and power are two of the most-widely discussed issues in all of human history, and yet they are, time and again, misunderstood — often disastrously so. Whilst we might think the outcome of war is determined by so-called ‘Great Powers’ who dominate their opponents with their impressive size and military prowess, the reality of modern conflict, as renowned strategic historian Professor Phillips Payson O’Brien demonstrates, is very different. He urges us instead to look for ‘Full Spectrum Powers’. For if we are considering how powerful a nation is and who will win a war, we need to think