Political Military Relationship, from Theory to Practice

COURSE OUTLINE
POLITICAL MILITARY RELATIONSHIP, FROM
THEORY TO PRACTICE
Teachers: Philippe Vial
Academic year 2016/2017: Paris School of International Affairs – Spring Semester
BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
Philippe VIAL passed a French competitive examination to become professeur agrégé; he is also a doctor in
history (University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne). Standing at the crossroads of history of international
relations, military history and political history, his thesis was entitled “The measure of an influence: French
military chiefs and foreign policy of France in the republican era”. Author of many articles, he has co-led
several scientific symposiums.
After working at the University of Grenoble as non-permanent lecturer, he was detached at the Ministry of
Defence as the chief historian of the Service historique de la Marine1 (1995-2005), which became the Navy
Department of the Service historique de la Défense2 (2005-2010). He currently works as chief of the
research division of the Service historique de la Défense.
He is also an associate researcher in the mixed research unit “Identity, international relations and
civilisations of Europe” (universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Paris-Sorbonne and Centre national de
la recherche scientifique3). He does regular interventions in the upper military education system (École de
guerre, Centre des hautes études militaires4). He is the academic advisor ot the Centre des hautes études
militaires. He was a non-permanent lecturer at Sciences Po Paris (1992-2007), at Saint-Cyr Military
Academy (1994-1996) and at the École navale5 (2000-2008). He is currently a non-permanent lecturer at
Sciences Po Rennes and at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne.
He is a former fellow of the Institut des hautes études de défense nationale6 (2013-2014). He is a reserve
officer in the French Navy.
1
Naval Historical Service
Defence Historical Service
3
National Centre for Scientific Research
4
Centre for Higher Military Studies
5
French Naval Academy
6
Institute for Higher National Defence Studies
2
COURSE OUTLINE
COURSE OUTLINE
Session 1: Introduction and presentation of the course; theoretical
and historical basis of political-military relations
We will try in this introduction to answer two questions:
•
Can politics really master war? We will discuss some basic issues about strategy and the different
levels of war and tactics.
•
Are political-military relations an issue for a democratic Republic? We will answer this question
through the study of the French republican period.
Required readings:
•
Carl von Clausewitz, On War, Book I (Translation by Michael Howard and Peter Paret).
•
Michael Bourlet, Civilian and Military Power, Encyclopedia of First World War,
http://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/civilian_and_military_power_france
•
H.R. McMaster, Dereliction of Duty, Harper Collins, New York, 1997, 446 p. Voir notamment chap. 9
“Planning fort failure”, pp. 179-196 et epilogue pp. 323-335.
Recommended readings:
•
Philippe Vial, « La fin d’un rôle politique », Inflexions. Civils et militaires : pouvoir dire, 20 (2012) :
« L’armée dans l’espace public », La documentation française, p. 29-41.
Session 2: The relation of the military commander and the political
leader, theory and practice
This relation is always a personal one, in which the characters interact with the culture and the objectives
which are specific to the political leader and the military commander. We will try to understand this issue from
a practical and a theoretical point of view, in France and abroad.
Required readings:
•
Samuel Huntington, The Soldier and the State, The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press,
Cambridge, 2000, 534 p. See part I, chap.4 “Power, Professionalism, and Ideology: Civil-Military
Relations in Theory”
Recommended readings:
•
Charles de Gaulle, Le fil de l’épée, Berger Levrault, Paris, 1932, « Le politique et le soldat », pp.
143-184.
•
Jonathan D. Caverley, Democratic Militarism, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2014.
Introduction and conclusion.
COURSE OUTLINE
Session 3: Political-military relations in democracy: from theory to
practice, compared approach
Political-military relations take place in a broader frame, linked to societies in the name of which weapons
are developed and used. We will try to study the particular case of democracies, where the relations
between civilians and the military contribute to making political-military decisions complex.
Required readings:
•
Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, Vol. II, Part 3, chap. 22 to 26.
•
Graham Allison, The Essence of Decision, Little, Brown & Company, Boston, 1971, introduction and
conclusion.
Recommended readings:
•
Yoram Peri, Generals in the cabinet Room, United States Institute of Peace, Washington D.C., 2006,
pp. 17-32.
Session 4: Historical Grounds: political-military relations in France
in the 19th century
The question of political-military relations is embodied in a specific way in every country. France has been a
separate case for a long time, where democratic tradition was built in ambiguous relation to weapons. Their
centrality in national destiny has in no small measure contributed to destabilise the balance of these
relations, always difficult to achieve in democracy.
Required readings:
•
Jean-Charles Jauffret, « The Army and the appel au soldat, 1874-1889 », in Robert Tombs dir.,
Nationhood and Nationalism in France from Boulangism to the Great War, 1887-1918, Routledge,
London, 1991, p. 238-247
Recommended readings:
•
Jérome Hélie, « Les armes », in Pierre Nora dir., Les lieux de mémoire, t. III, Paris, Gallimard,
coll. « Quarto », 1997, p. 1434-1478.
•
Olivier Forcade, « L’armée », in Vincent Duclert et Christophe Prochasson dir., Dictionnaire critique
de la République, Paris, Flammarion, 2002, p. 647-653.
•
Philippe Vial, « Une lente maturation : la dimension politico-militaire de la tradition républicaine », Le
Casoar, 213 (avril 2014) : « Le politique et le militaire », p. 13-16.
•
Jean Boulègue, « De l’ordre militaire aux forces républicaines : deux siècles d’intégration de l’Armée
dans la société française », in André Thiéblemont dir., Cultures et logiques militaires, P.U.F., coll.
« Sociologie d’aujourd'hui », 1999, p. 261-288.
COURSE OUTLINE
•
Olivier Forcade, Éric Duhamel et Philippe Vial dir., Militaires en République, 1870-1962. Les
officiers, le pouvoir et la vie publique en France, Publications de la Sorbonne, 1999, coll. « Histoire
de la France XIXe-XXe siècles », 1999, 734 p.
Session 5: The legal framework of political control in France since
1870
Traditionally not much considered by constitutionalists, the issue of political-military relations is nevertheless
a central stake in the building of the “republican model” on a legal plan. Difficult to access and neglected, the
regulatory domain is the ultimate field where the instruments of political control define themselves.
Required readings:
•
Robert Dallek, JFK vs. the Military, http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/08/jfk-vs-themilitary/309496/
Recommended readings:
•
Jean Massot, Le chef de l’État, chef des armées, Paris, LGDJ, coll. « Systèmes Droit », 2011, 204 p.
•
Eric Desmons, « La république belliqueuse. La guerre et la constitution politique de la IIIe
République, Revue française des histoires des idées politiques, n°15, p. 113-133.
•
Patrick Papazian, « Duguit et l’armée : de la difficulté pour la toge de saisir l’armée », Les Champs
de Mars, 2e sem. 2001, p. 85-101.
•
Eric Desmons, « Le sceptre et le sabre : Joseph-Barthélemy et la séparation du pouvoir civil et
militaire en temps de guerre », Revue Mil neuf cent, 23 (2005), p. 75-91.
Session 6: The institutional basis, the decision making process and
the role of the Chief of Defence
We will look into the issue of contemporary political-military relations in France today. We will study the role
of the main actors (the President of the Republic, the Minister, the Chief of Defence) in the context of the
evolution of the strategic context and modern operations.
Required readings:
•
Emmanuel Lefebvre, “Achieving results is a team effort: a comparative study of decision making
processes in France and Germany regarding security crisis management”, European Issues, N°233,
19 mars 2012, 9 p
Recommended readings:
•
Sten Rynning, Presidents and Military Power in Fifth Republic France, 1958-2000, Praeger
Publisher, Westport, 2002, 223 p.
•
Claude Carré, Histoire du ministère de la défense, Lavauzelle, Paris, 2001, 582 p.
•
Décret N° 82-138 fixant les attributions des chefs d'état-major
COURSE OUTLINE
•
Décret n° 2005-506 du 19 mai 2005 fixant les attributions du ministre de la Défense
•
Décret n° 2005-520 du 21 mai 2005 fixant les attributions des chefs d'état-major
•
Décret n° 2009-869 du 15 juillet 2009 relatif aux attributions du ministre de la défense, du chef d'étatmajor des armées et des chefs d'état-major de l'armée de terre, de la marine et de l'armée de l'air
•
Décret n° 2013-816 du 12 septembre 2013 relatif aux attributions du ministre de la défense et du
chef d'état-major des armées
Session 7: Practice: The development of political-military relations
and leading of operations yesterday: Suez, 1956
The decision of a military expedition against Nasser’s Egypt, in summer 1956, revealed the structural
insufficiency of the French political-military system at that time, especially regarding what existed then in the
United Kingdom. This neglected fact is key to understand the French failure in this circumstance, but also to
highlight the progress accomplished since this moment in crisis management.
Required readings:
•
Eric J. Grove, Sally Rohan, “The Limits of Opposition: Admiral Earl Mountbatten of Burma, First Sea
Lord and Chief of Naval Staff”, Contemporary British History, vol. 13, n° 2, Summer 1999, p. 98-116.
Recommended readings:
•
Anthony Gorst, “A modern Major General”: General Sir Gerald Templer, Chief of the Imperial
•
Philippe Vial, « Marianne et la “gouvernante anglaise” : les systèmes politico-militaires français et
General Staff', Contemporary British History, vol. 13, n° 2, summer 1999, p. 29-45.
britanniques à l’épreuve de la crise de Suez », in Jean-Michel Guieu et Claire Sanderson dir.
L’historien et les relations internationales. Autour de Robert Frank, Paris, Publications de la
Sorbonne, 2012, p. 135-143.
•
Philippe Vial, « Les chefs militaires français et la crise de Suez : le groupe et le système », in
Philippe Vial, Georges-Henri Soutou, Robert Frank et Martin Alexander dir., Les Occidentaux et la
crise de Suez : une relecture politico-militaire. À paraître en avril 2014 aux Publications de la
Sorbonne.
•
Jérôme de Lespinois « Les structures de planification et de commandement interalliées lors de
l'opération de Suez : “la mésentente cordiale” », Revue d'histoire diplomatique, n° 118, n° 4, 2004, p.
351-67.
Session 8: Practice: political-military relations in the planning and
conduct of the operations today
We will address the way our operations are planned and we will assess the role of the political and military
constraints. We will rely on a practical exercise in class.
COURSE OUTLINE
Required readings:
•
NATO Compréhensive Planning Directive available at https://info.publicintelligence.net/NATOCOPD.pdf
Recommended readings:
•
Jean-Christophe Notin, La guerre de la France au Mali, Tallandier, Paris, 2014, 641 p. Voir
notamment chap ; 4 à 8 ; pp. 81 à 190.
Session 9: From military diplomats to military diplomacy
International relations are one of the privileged fields where the political dimension of the action of the
military administrations always expresses itself. This dynamic raises the question of the courses of action
which are specific to the servicemen in this field, and of their links to the course of action of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs.
Required readings:
•
James Cable, Gunboat Diplomacy, 1919-1991: political applications of limited naval force, New York:
St. Martin’s Press, 1st ed. 1971, 3rd ed. 1998, xiv+246 p.
Recommended readings:
•
Philippe Vial, « Une place à part : les militaires et les relations extérieures de la France en temps de
paix depuis 1870 », Matériaux pour l'histoire de notre temps : « Hommage à René Girault : pour une
histoire des relations internationales », janvier-juin 2002, p. 41-47.
•
Philippe Vial, « Les militaires en politique extérieure : un révélateur des tensions de la tradition
républicaine sur le plan politico-militaire », in Christian Malis et Philippe Vial dir., Diplomatie militaire
et diplomatie de défense, à paraître.
•
Henry Zipper de Fabiani, « Diplomatie de défense et diplomatie préventive. Vers une nouvelle
symbiose entre diplomatie et défense », Annuaire français de relations internationales, vol. III,
Bruxelles, Bruylant, 2002, p. 614-629.
•
Hervé Coutau-Bégarie, « Le meilleur des ambassadeurs ». Théorie et pratique de la diplomatie
navale, Économica et Institut de Stratégie Comparée, 2008, 336 p.
Session 10: The issue of parliamentary control
The issue of parliamentary control, its organisation and its effectiveness, is an essential challenge in the
implementation of a balance between political and military relations in democracy. The first global conflict
was, especially in France, an essential moment of crystallisation. Today, it still structures the terms of
contemporary debate in all Western countries.
Required readings:
COURSE OUTLINE
•
Morris Janowitz, The Professional Soldier, Free Press, London, 1971, pp. 354-360
•
H.R. McMaster, Dereliction of Duty, Harper Collins, New York, 1997, pp. 309-322.
Recommended readings:
•
Fabienne Bock, Un parlementarisme de guerre, 1914-1919, Paris, Belin, 2002, chapitre 1 « Le débat
sur le fonctionnement du régime en temps de guerre (1889-1914) », pp. 19-47.
•
Nicolas Roussellier, « Le Parlement français et la Première Guerre mondiale », Parlement[s], Revue
d'histoire politique, 2008/2 (n° 10), p. 13-30
•
Bastien Irondelle et alii, Evolution du contrôle parlementaire des forces armées en Europe, Paris,
IRSEM, coll. « Etudes de l’IRSEM », n°22, spécialement p. 33-80
•
Abel Ferry, Carnets secrets, 1914-1918, Paris, Grasset, 2005, 394 p.
Session 11: Political-military relations and defence planning
Defence planning aims at preparing the defence of the future. This issue is at the heart of political-military
relations. We will address the main difficulties of this process and their consequences on political-military
relations. We will especially focus on the design of the French White papers.
Required readings:
•
French White paper of 2013
Recommended readings:
•
Martin van Creveld, Technology and War: From 2000 B.C. to the Present, Touchstone; Revised &
Expan edition, 1991, 352 p.
•
Livres blancs de 1972, 1994, 2008.
Session 12: Debate: Pacified political-military relations?
This session will be articulated around a debate built on a topic studied during the lesson. It will be an
opportunity to meet and talk with contemporary actors of political-military relations.