Peace: A Very Short Introduction

The ‘Introduction’ gives a brief historical sketch of the development of the notion of peace. The story of peace is as old as that of war. Historically, peace is seen as an absence of violence and a fleeting fragile state, with war seen as the natural state of humanity. This view should be challenged as much energy has been put into developing peace and order in history. Peace can be sought domestically within the state, internationally via global institutions, or transnationally covering both domestic and international arenas. Peace may be either public or private. The practice and study of peace has made many advances throughout history, leading to a substantial peace architecture today, yet the story of peace is rarely told.