Ground Truth

The Moral Component in Contemporary British Warfare

Aaron Edwards editor Helen Parr editor Frank Ledwidge editor

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Published:11th Jul '24

Should be back in stock very soon

Ground Truth cover

An analysis of the British military as an ethical and professional actor.

After twenty years of almost unbroken wars of choice, the ethical deficiencies in the operational conduct of war by Western armed forces have largely been ignored by scholarly critique. This volume addresses these deficiencies, featuring analysis by some of the UK’s leading academics and military veterans working in the fields of military ethics and contemporary conflict. Compiled in honour of Colonel David Benest OBE, a soldier-scholar who believed that ethics should be central to an effective military education, the book focuses on problems ranging from the practicalities of how to conduct a counterinsurgency campaign in one of the most challenging combat zones in the world to the failure to account properly for defeat during military conflicts. This important volume explores critical questions perennially raised about the role of the military in a democratic society and the extent to which its ideals are compromised in fighting wars of choice.

At a time when alleged moral and legal transgressions by the British Armed Forces are being highlighted in the press and public conscience, this volume explores how and why things can go wrong. It is also an excellent reminder of the many principled people who strive in the most difficult of circumstances to do the right thing. * Professor David Whetham, Director of the Centre for Military Ethics, King’s College London, UK *
I readily recommend this book of essays, in memory of David Benest and the moral principles he stood for, to the profession of arms and those who study them and their use. The essays pose many questions – questions that should be considered and answered before and during any endeavour of force of arms and frequently are not.’ * General Sir Rupert Smith KCB DSO OBE QGM *

ISBN: 9781350335516

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

224 pages