Year: 2009
Type: article
Abstract: Historical accounts of private violence in international relations are often rather under-theorised and under-contextualised. Overall, private violence historically needs to be seen in the context of the relationship between state-building, political economy and violence, rather than through the narrative of states gradually monopolising violence. Pirates and privateers in late-seventeenth and early-eighteenth century Europe were embedded in a broader political economy of violence which needed and actively promoted ‘private’ violence in a broader pursuit of power. As such, the de-legitimatisation of piracy and privateering were the consequence of a number of interlinked political economic trends, such as the development of public protection of merchant shipping (through the growth of centralised navies), the move away from trade monopolies to inter-imperial trade, and the development of capitalism and industrialism. Present forms of private violence also need to be seen as part of a broader historical dynamic of war, violence and political economy.
Source: Global Change Peace & Security
Author: Bryan Mabee
Institutions: University of London, Queen Mary University of London
Language: English
Subfield: Transportation
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
Funder: Queen Mary University of London
OpenAlex ID: W2046667397