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"Letters of marque" might suggest privateers of the Elizabethan era or the American Revolution. But such conventions are duly covered in the US Constitution, and the private military instruments they sanction are very much at work today in the form of mercenaries and military contractors. A history of such practices up to the present day, Marque and Reprisal by Kenneth B. Moss offers unique insight into the role of private actors in military conflicts and the reason they are increasingly deployed in our day. Along with an overview of mercenaries and privateers, Marque and Reprisal provides a comprehensive history of the "marque and reprisal" clause in the US Constitution, reminding us that it is not as arcane as it seems and arguing that it is not a license for all forms of undeclared war. Within this historical context Moss explains why governments and states have sought control over warfare and actors--and why private actors have reappeared in force in recent conflicts. He also looks ahead to the likelihood that cyberwar will become an important venue for "private warfare." Moss wonders if international law will be up to the challenges of private military actors in the digital realm. Is international law, in fact, equipped to meet the challenges increasingly presented in our day by such extramilitary activity? A government makes no more serious decision than whether to resort to military force and war; and when doing so, Moss suggests, it should ensure that such actions are accountable, not on the sly, and not decided in the marketplace. Marque and Reprisal should inform future deliberations and decisions on that count."-- Provided by publisher.

"The ever-increasing use of private contractors or employees to carry out military operations raises the question of their legal status. What is the relation between these nonstate actors and the states engaged in warfare? The question is an old one. Alongside the power to declare war, Article I, Section 8 of the US Constitution grants Congress the power to "grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal," referring to the right of a state to authorize private actors to inflict injury on another party or to seize another's property to redress a wrong. Marque and Reprisal explores the history of this practice--including both mercenaries on land and privateers on water--from the medieval era to the present day in order to understand the widespread modern use of private violence in military conflict. Kenneth Moss argues that the current practice, operating as it does with the full support of state authorities, threatens the authority of the state in unprecedented ways. While the use of nonstate actors is not new, the vastly different nature of modern combat and the role such actors play in current global conflicts pose troubling legal and political problems"-- Provided by publisher.

Defining the spheres of war

Private war : who are the participants?

Private and public war in the Atlantic World and beyond

Defining the balance in a revolution and the Constitution

The return and retreat of private force for profit

The privatization of war.

Private military companies (International law) > United States.

Mercenary troops (International law) > United States.

Private military companies > United States.

Mercenary troops > Legal status, laws, etc. > United States.

Constitutional law > United States.