This edited work examines the nature and process of winning and losing in war, in particular between highly unequal opponents. Bringing together leading contributors, this volume shows how the meaning of victories and defeats changes over time, together with the methods and factors that produce them.

This work investigates the use and utility of military force in modern war. The volume poses as its central question: what is in fact the utility of force? It also explores whether force is useful for anything other than a complete conventional defeat of a regular opponent.