Small Wars Manual

Before there was such a term as “low-intensity conflict,” the U.S. Marine Corps were already past masters of the art. This manual encapsulates all their learnings and experiences of what we now know as military peacekeeping and counter-insurgency operations. It covers every aspect of the problem, from the legality and responsibility of the first formal order, through staff organization, logistics, training, patrolling, convoys, native organizations, overseeing democratic elections, and finally planning and executing an orderly withdrawal. The equipment and attitudes may have changed since its first publication in 1940, but the fundamentals of human psychology and military science remain the same: the manual was recommended reading for Marine Corps personnel when they returned to Iraq as an occupation force.