Awards

• Winner of Joint winner of the triennial Paul Reuter Prize for international humanitarian law awarded by the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Overview

Civilization has long sought to limit the violence and ugliness of war. This book traces the recent history of these efforts and explores important contemporary issues in the area. Geoffrey Best shows how the Second World War prompted reconstruction of international law, and charts the fortunes of its relations with war since then. He critically surveys the whole range of contemporary armed conflicts - high-tech international wars, wars of national liberation, revolutionary risings and civil wars. Far more than a litany of the trouble-spots and tragedies of the second half of the twentieth century, this book offers an original and thought-provoking approach to contemporary history, law, politics and ethics, and will be essential reading for anyone concerned with war. Reviews of the hardback edition: `a magnificent exposition of the modern pursuit of legal restraint on warfare ... The lawyers of war and the international humanitarians would be well advised to ponder Bests Laws of War for its scholarly realism and its humanity.' London Review of Books `He writes with enormous authority and at times, for such a heavy subject, a delightfully light touch ... In obliging us to take the very notion of the ethical conduct of war so seriously, Geoffrey Best has performed an enormous service.' Lawrence Freedman, History Today `This is an important book, which the specialists in this subject will refer to for decades to come.' Noel Malcolm, Sunday Telegraph `To write a book of this character, which is scrupulous in never overstating success, and not lose faith in the process, you have to remain an optimist. Geoffrey Best has succeeded in doing this in his impressive study.' A.W. Brian Simpson, Times Literary Supplement `...ambitious, highly significant and courageous ... Interdisciplinary in approach, it is an important text for teachers, students and the practitioners of international relations alike ... Its conclusions, so relevant to the latter part of this century, should not be ignored.' Dermot Keogh, Irish Times `...affords new insights into war and its limits as defined by the law ... an interesting read ... Geoffrey Bests new book gives much food for thought to anyone interested in humanitarian law. It is well worth reading.' Hans-Peter Gasser, International Review of the Red Cross `Geoffrey Best does a signal service to lawyers, and to all students of the law of war, in his most recent examination of this field ... Dr Best has made an important contribution.' James J. Busuttil, International Relations `a sympathetic, intellectually tough and absolutely outstanding account of the contemporary role of the laws of war ... His writing is full of vivid imagery, enlivening what in other hands is often an arid landscape.' Adam Roberts, Survival

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9780198206996

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Reviews

a magnificent exposition of the modern pursuit of legal restraint on warfare ... The lawyers of war and the international humanitarians would be well advised to ponder Bests Laws of War for its scholarly realism and its humanity. London Review of Books He writes with enormous authority and at times, for such a heavy subject, a delightfully light touch ... In obliging us to take the very notion of the ethical conduct of war so seriously, Geoffrey Best has performed an enormous service. History Today To write a book of this character, which is scrupulous in never overstating success, and not lose faith in the process, you have to remain an optimist. Geoffrey Best has succeeded in doing this in his impressive study. Times Literary Supplement

a magnificent exposition of the modern pursuit of legal restraint on warfare ... The lawyers of war and the international humanitarians would be well advised to ponder Bests Laws of War for its scholarly realism and its humanity. London Review of Books He writes with enormous authority and at times, for such a heavy subject, a delightfully light touch ... In obliging us to take the very notion of the ethical conduct of war so seriously, Geoffrey Best has performed an enormous service. History Today To write a book of this character, which is scrupulous in never overstating success, and not lose faith in the process, you have to remain an optimist. Geoffrey Best has succeeded in doing this in his impressive study. Times Literary Supplement

`an important book that should attract the attention of policy-making and activist circles in addition to the usual scholarly ones' George Andreopoulos, Yale University, American Historical Review, June 1996 `This is a comprehensive and analytical account of the development of the laws of war ... Best's approach to the subject is both honest and endearing ... The originality of the book lies in its clear recounting of the process and developments, personalities and disputes which led to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949. His careful mapping of the history of the Geneva side of the law renders its development much more comprehensible.' Joanna Spear, University of Sheffield, European Review of History - Revue européenne d'histoire Vol.3 No. 2 `wonderful book ... Open-ended, challenging us to find adequate words for phenomena which invite unthinking cynicism, this complex assessment is characteristic. Too realistic to take comfort from the established laws of war, Geoffrey Best goads the reader to think through the ethical realities.' Barrie Paskins, King's College, London, The Historical Association 1997 `a sympathetic, intellectually tough and absolutely outstanding account of the contemporary role of the laws of war ... Best's richly detailed survey of the attempts to bring legal restraints to bear on the wars and occupations of our own times leads him to modify his earlier attitudes. This book draws not only on an exceptionally wide range of sources, but also on a rich variety of intellectual and professional approaches ... He is, throughout, spendidly caustic about political posturing and legal casuistry. His writing is full of vivid imagery, enlivening what in other hands is often an arid landscape.' Adam Roberts, Balliol College, Oxford, Survival, 37/3

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