Nov 10, 2024
OHIO University Undergraduate Catalog 2024-25

HIST 2200 - A Global Military History from Antiquity to the Present


This is a survey on war in world history from ancient kingdoms and empires to present-day conflicts. These themes are central: war and the state; war and society; war and culture; war and trade; and conflict resolution. In the twenty-first century, the definition of “war” has broadened from our modern understanding as an armed conflict between states. Today, war is better defined as an armed conflict between organized groups, which includes states, terrorist groups, militias and warlords, and crime syndicates. “World,” too, has taken on broader meaning: it is not simply a geographic term, but connotes connections between states and people. Studying war in history allows students to consider how societies have responded to change under duress, how technology has spread across the globe, how empires were built and how they collapsed, how ancient empires became modern states, and how modern culture emerged from the rubble of wars.

Credit Hours: 3
OHIO BRICKS: Arch: Constructed World
Thematic Arches:
  • Global Connections
  • Society & Justice

General Education Code (students who entered prior to Fall 2021-22): 2SS
Repeat/Retake Information: May be retaken two times excluding withdrawals, but only last course taken counts.
Lecture/Lab Hours: 3.0 lecture
Grades: Eligible Grades: A-F,WP,WF,WN,FN,AU,I
Course Transferability: OTM course: TMAH Arts & Humanities
College Credit Plus: Level 1
Learning Outcomes:
  • Students will be able to describe and then critique different historians’ and social scientists’ arguments about the major changes in the nature of war and the ramifications for states and societies.
  • Students will be able to interpret primary sources on the experiences of participants in wars and on the social, cultural, and political consequences in wars.
  • Students will be able to describe the relationships among war, society, politics, economy, and culture from a variety of perspectives.
  • Students will be able to describe the role of kings/queens and princes/princesses as well as subjects and citizens in the origins, conduct, and implications of wars.
  • Students will be able to assess and compare the nature of armed conflicts in ancient, premodern, and modern times.
  • Students will be able to compare and evaluate the development of empires and states over time and across continents.
  • Students will be able to develop and formulate ideas on how world history provides questions that go beyond the specific subject of war.


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