Making Europe Unconquerable


Making Europe Unconquerable is a book about how civilian-based defense can be incorporated into the foundations of European defense and collective security. Written by Gene Sharp, the book was originally published in the United Kingdom and United States in 1985. Its subtitle was the potential of civilian-based deterrence and defense. The book was reviewed in major newspapers, magazines, and professional journals. Although it advocated a significant departure from existing defense policies, it received a favorable review from George F. Kennan, widely perceived as one of the major architects of the US approach to the Cold War. Later in the same year, the book was republished with a foreword from Kennan. It has also been published in Dutch and Italian editions.

Topics covered

In its opening pages, Making Europe Unconquerable states that
Making Europe Unconquerable contains 7 chapters entitled
  1. Meeting Europe's defense needs
  2. Civilian-based defense for Western Europe?
  3. Transarmament
  4. Preventing attack
  5. In face of attack
  6. Defeating attack
  7. Assessing the potential
The book also contains a bibliography and an index.

Reviews and influence

Reviews have appeared in the
New York Review of Books, the New York Times, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Foreign Affairs, International Affairs, Journal of Peace Research, and elsewhere.
In the New York Review of Books, George F. Kennan, widely viewed as a major architect of the US approach to the Cold War, wrote that Sharp's "primary purpose in writing the book was... 'to make civilian-based deterrence and defense a thinkable policy which is recognized as meriting further research, policy studies, and an evaluation.' And for this, he makes a reasonably good case." Kennan stated that "the view advanced in this book deserves consideration, if only because of the bankruptcy of all the visible alternatives to it." Kennan viewed Sharp's approach as requiring
Kennan wondered "whether, if this change in political philosophy were to take place, it might not have wider effects than just those that relate to the concepts of national security—whether many other things might not also change, and, in the main, usefully so," and advised that Sharp
In the New York Times, Karl E. Meyer described the book as "reflective," and stated that "there is considerable merit to contention that 'all peoples can with effort make themselves politically indigestable to would-be tyrants.'" Meyer also argued that Sharp's approach "has its flaws... If the stakes are deemed sufficiently vital, civilian resistance seems unlikely to dissuade a determined aggressor."
In Foreign Affairs, Andrew Pierre wrote that
He added that "The author's proposals go against the grain of mainstream thinking, and to this reviewer leave many questions unanswered, but they are carefully put forward in a nonpolemical manner and clearly merit sustained attention and thought".
Ted Taylor, himself a former designer of nuclear weapons, reviewed the book in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. He quoted Einstein:
He added that "The side effects of pursuing a civilian-based defense strategy are especially interesting, since they tend to be beneficial in peacetime. This is a book that should be read attentively by anyone seriously searching for new ways of thinking about how we can stop our "drift toward unparalleled catastrophe.".

Editions

English language editions:
Foreign language editions:
  • Dutch: Gene Sharp. Naar een onveroverbaar Europa: de kracht van civiele afschrikking en sociale verdediging. Antwerpen, Netherlands: Internationale Vredesinformatiedienst, 1988.
  • Italian: Gene Sharp. Verso un'Europa inconquistabile. Bergamo, Italy: Gruppo Abele, 1989. Edizione italiana a cura di Fulvio Cesare Manara.