Civil War Research Articles

Brushes with History

Against a backdrop of other murals marking national territories and Manifest Destiny—notably, William Leutze’s stereochrome Westward the Course of Empire Takes Its Way completed for the U.S. Capitol during the Civil War, with its iconic depiction of a mostly monochrome van of westward migrants on their way over mountains to California’s Golden Gate—this article focuses on the way artists Judy Baca and Ana Teresa Fernández have both deconstructed physical and symbolic walls to open up a view of migrations across the U.S.–Mexico border as natural. The essay examines how each artist’s work gets to the same end vision but through different starting points in relation to history. Baca—in her ongoing History of California (a.k.a., the Great Wall of Los Angeles), and in her mural La Memoria de Nuestra Tierra, California—has brought repressed or erased history and people to light, and she explicitly envisions the border wall as unnatural. By contrast, Fernández optically erases the border wall at Tijuana / San Ysidro / the Pacific and other places along la frontera, employing Martha Stewart paint to create chinks and gashes in the wall’s ideological veneer, brushing blue onto corroding iron to, she says, pull “down the sky to kiss the ground again.” Baca represents what has been erased while Fernández erases what has been represented, but both do so to reconnect a California landscape that has been bifurcated by the border wall. Considered in relation to the history and historiography of the U.S.–Mexico borderlands—and in particular to work on the physical manifestation of the border through markers, monuments, fences and walls designed to split lands and peoples—this article considers these artists’ work as powerful demurrals, defiant visual protests and imaginaries that affirm inclusion, empathy, and human and ecological connections across the border between Alta and Baja California.

Anatomy of a Duel: Secession, Civil War, and the Evolution of Kentucky Violence by Stuart W. Sanders (review)

Anatomy of a Duel: Secession, Civil War, and the Evolution of Kentucky Violence by Stuart W. Sanders (review)

The Abolitionist Civil War: Immediatists and the Struggle to Transform the Union by Frank J. Cirillo (review)

The Abolitionist Civil War: Immediatists and the Struggle to Transform the Union by Frank J. Cirillo (review)

War on Record: The Archive and the Afterlife of the Civil War by Yael A. Sternhell (review)

War on Record: The Archive and the Afterlife of the Civil War by Yael A. Sternhell (review)

The Political Transformation of David Tod: Governing Ohio during the Height of the Civil War by Joseph Lambert Jr. (review)

The Political Transformation of David Tod: Governing Ohio during the Height of the Civil War by Joseph Lambert Jr. (review)

Working with Absent Presences: Disappearances and Materiality in Post-War Sri Lanka

This paper is about affective potencies of materiality that aid grieving war-related disappearances in post-war Sri Lanka. Based on ethnographic narratives of those who have lost someone to disappearance during the 1983-2009 civil war, the paper questions the nonrepresentationality of traumatic grief and problems with established processes and practices of grieving in cases of disappearances. It also elucidates how survivor’s affective experiences of grief are ever-evolving, both subjective and objective, personal and political. The paper explores the polymorphous and potentiating nature of materiality as a means to address otherwise non-representational and ever-evolving grief, highlighting how materiality assists grieving the disappeared specifically by bringing the missing to the forefront.

The Left-Armed Corps: Writings by Amputee Civil War Veterans ed. by Allison M. Johnson (review)

The Left-Armed Corps: Writings by Amputee Civil War Veterans ed. by Allison M. Johnson (review)

Forced displacement and the healthcare workforce crisis: Venezuelan healthcare workers in Peru

Abstract Background The migration of healthcare workforces tends to be economically based benefiting high income countries, while draining lower-income countries of workers and skills. However, national instability or civil conflict may also have the effect of forcing out health workers. Few articles focus on the experiences of these types of migrants. This study aims to close a gap in the migration debate by exploring the capacity of integrating displaced healthcare workers in middle-to-low resourced health systems, using Peru as a case study. Methods The study draws on a policy analysis, statistical data and expert information from Peru. Results Peru has become the second largest Latin American destination for Venezuelan forced displaced migrants, a number of which are healthcare workers. While the exact numbers of these workers is unknown, it is estimated that 4,000 and 3,000 physicians and about 2,500 nurses and health technicians from Venezuela reside in Peru. These workers find entry into the heath system difficult due to bureaucratic and costly registration and qualification validation procedures. However, during Covid-19 the conditions were relaxed, and a large number of these workers entered the healthcare workforce. They were primarily physicians and worked in urban medical facilities, though there was some distribution across the country’s departments. This avenue to the healthcare workforce allowed the mobilisation of dormant health skills and assisted to lift density numbers. Conclusions Peru’s experiences bring into focus the potential benefits of mobilising new resources through integrating displaced healthcare worker migrants. It is too early to assess the sustainability of these policies on the country’s healthcare workforce and its Universal Health Coverage goals, yet there seem to be some positive experiences. Speakers/Panelists Tomas Zapata WHO/Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark

The Capital Region in the Unfinished Taiping War

Abstract In 1853, a Taiping army infiltrated North China, threatening Beijing and the Qing dynasty itself. Though this army never reached Beijing, its northern siege had acute and lasting impacts on communities in the capital region (jifu 畿輔). Attention to the capital region invites reflection on the temporality and strategic nature of commemoration. Focusing on Cangzhou 滄州, I examine how capital region communities memorialized the northern chapter of the Taiping Civil War, even as for the rest of the empire, the war remained unfinished until 1864. In gazetteers, private histories, and commemorative records, local authors reframed ambiguous realities to write their localities into a story of northern victory, regardless of the fate of the south. The timeline for commemoration in Cangzhou was interrupted, not seamless, and took place over decades. Initially addressed to Beijing and elites along the Grand Canal, Cangzhou's commemorative project was later brought into the orbit of ascendant Tianjin.

Who uses Internet propaganda in civil wars and why?

This article explores who is likely to benefit from Internet propaganda in civil wars. It argues that the global reach of the Internet, its lack of regulation and its filtering tools are more likely to help transnational rebel groups with external support and radical aims than local groups with home-grown support and moderate aims. The paper then introduces a new dataset on rebel propaganda that includes every available piece of public, downloadable Internet communication produced by every major rebel group in the Iraqi civil war between January 2011 and December 2015. A preliminary analysis of group-level Internet communication during the war revealed a number of striking patterns. Internet propaganda was not equally used by all rebel groups in Iraq during this time period. Groups with potentially larger international backing and low levels of local support were much more likely to produce Internet propaganda than those with strong in-country support. Ideologically extreme groups were also more likely to generate a higher volume of Internet propaganda than other types of groups. Finally, rebel groups that were new to a war tended to rely more heavily on Internet propaganda than more well-established groups. The article concludes by discussing the potential implications this new media environment could have for civil wars moving forward.

Do apologies promote the reintegration of former combatants? Lessons from a video experiment in Colombia

Transitional justice practices frequently involve public apologies where former combatants confess their wrongdoings and ask for forgiveness, with the underlying assumption that such displays facilitate the reintegration of ex-combatants into society. However, little is known about the public response to ex-combatant apologies. In this article, we investigate the causal effect of an armed group apology on attitudes toward ex-combatant reintegration in Colombia. Our study builds on a novel experiment implemented in Meta, a conflict-ridden department of Colombia. The experiment entailed exposing a subset of participants to a video in which a former rebel group leader apologizes for violent acts committed by their armed group during the civil war. To examine the extent to which external actors influence the effectiveness of apologies, we incorporated third-party ‘encouragements to forgive’ (endorsements) in two additional treatment conditions. Our analysis demonstrates that, on average, participants do not exhibit higher reintegration attitudes when exposed to the apology, regardless of third-party endorsements. However, the absence of a treatment effect is not due to an indifference to the apology. In an exploratory heterogeneity analysis, we show that the apology induces negative effects on some indicators of reintegration attitudes among participants that did not support the peace agreement. This finding aligns with qualitative data gathered in a follow-up survey, which indicates that opponents of the peace agreement generally describe negative emotional responses to the FARC-EP apology. The results call for a reconsideration of unchallenged prescriptions of public apologies after conflict.

Depicting truth and transition at national memorial museums in Chile and Peru

Comparative analysis of Peru’s Place of Memory, Tolerance, and Social Inclusion and Chile’s Museum of Memory and Human Rights reveals different perspectives on how to represent past truth commissions and processes of transitioning from violence in national memorial museums. Chile’s Museum of Memory and Human Rights displays a foundational truth about state violence established through the work of the country’s truth commissions. Peru’s Place of Memory, Tolerance, and Social Inclusion was conceived as a space for presenting locally situated experiences of the country’s internal war; it is also characterized by subtle efforts to distance the museum from the narrative of the Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Owing in part to such departures, Peru’s Place of Memory, Tolerance, and Social Inclusion offers material for questioning the country’s post-transition present that has generally been absent in the human rights-focused exhibition of the Museum of Memory and Human Rights. An assessment of these contrasts, evident in the museums’ institutional histories and permanent exhibitions, potentially unsettles assumptions about the role of official memorialization in the aftermath of truth commissions.

Why Do Peasants Fight Rebels? The Cases of Civilian Defence Forces Against the FARC in Southern Tolima, Colombia

ABSTRACT Why do civilians engage in Civilian Defence Forces (CDFs) to confront insurgents if it is more dangerous than pacific resistance? This paper addresses two cases of peasant-centric CDFs in southern Tolima, Colombia. Based on secondary sources and interviews, a rich historical account of the CDFs is presented, allowing the application of process tracing for analysis. A framework to explain CDFs, recognising the interweaving of local security dilemmas and the macro-cleavage of the civil war, is proposed. Three determinants were found: previous participation of civilians in organised violence, legitimation of violent responses and the cooptation of community conflict resolution institutions.

The Impact of Inflation on Commercial Banks in China

Abstract: Inflation is an important issue that affects the profitability and operational stability of commercial banks. Conducting an in-depth analysis of these influences while putting forward effective countermeasures can be beneficial to ensuring the stable operation of commercial banks. This paper focuses on the period from 1937 to 1949 where the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War, which had contributed to severe inflation and disrupted the banking sector, and the formation of the modern Chinese banking system. This study critically examines the main causes behind inflation, evaluates their implications on the functioning of commercial banks. It also assesses both the positive and negative impacts on commercial banks, pointing out the challenges commercial banks face during different periods. For example, the market turmoil and policy changes in the 1940s have made it difficult for commercial banks to retain normal operation; therefore are suffering from making profits and inflation has made the situation even worse. In addition, this paper provides short-run and long-run strategies for reducing the negative effects of inflation, with consideration of Chinas unique economic structure and historical context. By integrating insights from historical and contemporary perspectives, this analysis aims to offer valuable views on the micro and macro impacts inflation could bring.

Echoes of the Past: The Vitellian Women in Tacitus’ Histories

This article argues that Tacitus’ characterizations of female members of the Vitellii evoke literary representations of several prominent Roman women of the late Republic and Julio-Claudian era. Tacitus draws upon a range of figures for his Vitellian women, from Fulvia to Livia, Antonia the Younger to Octavia. Literary resonances contribute to Tacitus’ representation of Vitellius as a bad emperor who nevertheless cared about his family. In rejecting or reflecting literary models, Tacitus uses Vitellius’ mother Sextilia, wife Galeria, and sister-in-law Triaria to create echoes and distinctions between past and present civil conflicts.

Репрессивные практики противоборствующих сторон в Кабарде в период российской революции (1917–1920 гг.)

This article investigates the issues surrounding the application of repressive practices in Kabarda during the period of the revolution and the civil war from 1917 to 1920. It examines the factors that led to a transition toward violence among the opposing factions and the nature of its escalation. It is emphasized that the political actors who came to power primarily sought to eliminate their opponents, represented by the previous ruling elite, and subsequently targeted broad segments of the population as public protest activity and resistance to the prevailing political course increased. The article also elucidates the forms of repressive practices employed during this tumultuous period. The most severe of these was the physical elimination of political adversaries, a tactic utilized by both sides in the civil conflict within the region. Arrest and incarceration were also frequently employed. Other forms of repression, predominantly exercised by the Bolshevik regime, included the disenfranchisement of individuals, conscription for forced labor, and confiscation of property.

Денежные знаки Юга России при А.И. Деникине: историографический обзор

The aim of the study is to present a historiographical review and identify the peculiarities of the issue and circulation of Rostov paper money signs of A.I. Denikin. The article examines the issuance of various banknotes in Southern Russia during the Civil War years, predominantly focusing on the Don rubles and Denikin’s currency. It is emphasized that, in comparison with other regional currencies, these notes remained relatively stable due to both their higher quality and a stringent exchange rate tied to the German mark (up until early 1919). Furthermore, A.I. Denikin himself understood the significance of the financial issue and endeavored to address the financial difficulties through various measures. However, scientists cite a number of reasons why a full-fledged solution to this issue could not be found, and Denikin’s money quickly lost value because of the unsecured issue. Scientific novelty of the study lies in the fact that there is currently no separate article addressing Denikin’s banknotes which also includes a historiographical overview on this subject.

Road through a broken place: the BRI in post-coup Myanmar

In the wake of the 2021 coup, Myanmar experienced a renewed civil war that has fragmented the country along a myriad of old and new conflict lines. Despite the high-intensity violence across many regions of the country, China is still pursuing an ambitious connectivity project under its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI): The China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) is meant to connect Myanmar to the Chinese market and boost Myanmar’s industrial development. However, the challenging post-coup environment has required significant changes in China’s approach to local infrastructure development and empowered a new set of subnational actors on both sides of the border. This article analyzes how CMEC has fared since the coup, and how the fragmentation of Myanmar has gone hand in hand with that of Chinese agency in the country. Contrary to prevailing descriptions of the BRI as a coherent, strategic, and top-down project, we argue that the case of Myanmar exposes the degree to which it is shaped by local interests and circumstances, and the limits of centralized BRI implementation. Finally, it is likely that adjustments in Chinese policy triggered by the situation in Myanmar will have more long-term consequences for the future of the BRI, specifically a more direct involvement in local security efforts and greater engagement with local authorities beyond the central government.

Book Review: Of Age: Boy Soldiers and Military Power in the Civil War Era by Frances M. Clarke and Rebecca Jo Plant

Book Review: <i>Of Age: Boy Soldiers and Military Power in the Civil War Era</i> by Frances M. Clarke and Rebecca Jo Plant

Why Onset Matters: Warfare, Intensity, and Duration in Civil War

Are civil wars shaped by how they start? While existing literature points to the path-dependent nature of conflict, the link between the type of onset and wartime dynamics have been largely overlooked. Building on a recent typology capturing the dynamics of civil war onset (1944–2020), I analyze conflict trajectories, focusing on three macro-level wartime dynamics: warfare, intensity, and duration. This article shows that how large-scale armed conflicts begin (e.g., whether they start as peripheral conflicts or are fought centrally) helps us predict how intensely they will be fought or how long they will last. These findings show that onset matters beyond signaling the start of large-scale conflict and tells us about the dynamics that will likely follow. Altogether, this article establishes a new process-oriented macro-level research program in the field of conflict analysis.