Emile Simpson: War from the Ground Up - 21st Century Combat as Politics
Emile Simpson will present his book "War from the Ground Up: Twenty-First Century Combat as Politics", in which he put forward a radical new interpretation of the phenomenon of war in the modern world. Simpson argues that, in a globalised world, it is no longer appropriate to think of war as a zero sum game between two sides trying to defeat each other militarily. Rather, in the age of global mass media, war takes place before a multiplicity of audiences, whom belligerents must win over in the same way civilian politicians win over electorates. This also requires that those doing the fighting contribute "from the ground up" to the making of state policy.
Emile Simpson read ancient and modern history at Oxford University. He also holds a graduate diploma in English law and is currently completing a doctorate in the history of international law at King's College London. The project concerns the concept of the enemy in international law, and the associated jurisdictional ideas, from the seventeenth century to the present. Emile Simpson joined the British Army from 2006–2012 as an infantry officer and completed three tours in southern Afghanistan.
Venue: Old Divinity School (Lightfoot Room), St. John's College, Cambridge CB2 1TP, UK
Time: 6pm
Entry is free
--------------------------------
Contact:
Adam Storring
Faculty of History
St. John's College
University of Cambridge