Territory and war

Abstract

In the past four decades scholars have produced a large literature on the relationship between territory and war. What is clear is that territory has been and will continue to be a core issue in explaining the escalation and onset of war and that territory has peculiar features that impact whether and how a conflict evolves and ends, and the nature of the peace that follows. These dynamics have received significant consideration theoretically and empirically. Although research initially centered on interstate wars, focus broadened to include intrastate or civil wars. On the methodological side, scholarship has taken a quantitative shift. The article concludes that both theorizing and empirical testing have become increasingly sophisticated.