As awful as it may seem, war has been the virtual handmaiden of civilization from the start, mainly because of its excess wealth which inspires so many disputes. There have certainly been conflicts through the ages, but it's only been the last 5000 years or so that they have solidified and been magnified into what we call full-scale warfare.

This lesson starts with the various levels of precivilized conflicts and traces early civilized warfare from the somewhat inept wars of the sumerians through the much more efficient war machine of the Assyrians. Largely driving these developments are breakthroughs in bronze technology, iron technology, and the domestication of the horse. The next major deevelopment in warfare, the Greek hoplite phalanx, is covered in FC.019. Along with that will come what Victor Davis Hanson calls the Western Way of War. If George W. Bush had only read Hanson's work in this area, he would have realized how ludicrous his "Mission Accomplished" sign was. Hoepfully, future leaders will be more historically literate inthese areas and avoid such blunders.

This is a self-contained PowerPoint that develops slide by slide while other notes for the students scroll down the side. It can be run as a timed presentation on its own, presented slide by slide for discussion, or integrated into your other lectures. There are also extensive pictures with captions mixed in to illustrate the lesson and capture students’ interest. This packet also contains a flowchart, but as of yet has no reading. When I get the reading finished, I'll be glad to forward a free copy to anyone who has bought this lesson.

For more information on my flowcharts and approach to teaching history, please view my profile or visit my website at www.flowofhistory.com


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