Irregular Armed Forces and their Role in Politics and State Formation

This book examines a variety of comparative and historical experiences in which irregular armed forces (ranging from militias, paramilitaries, guerrillas, bandits, mercenaries, vigilantes, and police forces to armed veteran groups) have struggled against or on behalf of national states. The study hopes to raise questions about the new political relevance of these types of armed forces. It considers the conditions under which they are more significant than conventional military personnel in supplanting or undermining states, and their broader role in national political development.

Through examination of a variety of comparative and historical experiences in which irregular armed forces--ranging from militias, paramilitaries, guerrillas, bandits, mercenaries, vigilantes, and police forces to armed veteran groups have struggled against or on behalf of national states, this edited volume hopes to raise questions about the newness and political relevance of these forms of armed force, about the conditions under which irregular armed forces are more significant than conventional military personnel in supplanting or undermining states, and about the overall role of irregular armed force in national political development.