The Code of the Warrior: Exploring Warrior Values Past and Present

by Shannon E. French

Overview

Combining ethics, history, and psychology, The Code of the Warrior examines historical and contemporary warrior cultures, arguing that today's warriors need a code to navigate the moral line between soldier and killer.

Exploring the roots of military ethics, this third edition of The Code of the Warrior furthers author Shannon French's argument that modern troops need a code to shield their humanity as they endure the horrors of war. Stories of ancient Greek and Roman soldiers, Chinese warrior monks, Vikings, Celts, Japanese samurai, medieval European knights, Islamic warriors, and Zulu warriors combine with contemporary perspectives on modern day warfare's latest technologies and power structures to present a truly global and timeless case for the exercise of restraint in warfare-primarily for the benefit of those doing the fighting. This third edition includes updated first and last chapters addressing the need for warrior codes throughout history and in today's military climate. A new chapter on the famous Zulu warrior Chief Shaka makes the important distinction between a warrior and a strongman. Incorporating philosophy with history, religion, anthropology, sociology, and moral psychology, French addresses concepts like honor, courage, commitment, sacrifice, duty, and loss, which resonate within and beyond military service. She also presents thoughtful answers to complex questions such as: Why should one side of a conflict show restraint if the other side does not? How can a command climate become corrupted? What is the difference between a warrior and a murderer, or a terrorist, or a strongman? How do changes in technology affect the conduct of war? The topics explored in this volume have real-world implications and applications, and French provides analysis grounded in her own decades of work with and for members of the U.S. military, as well as her extensive, international scholarship in military ethics. It is a must-read book for anyone interested in how wars can be fought ethically and how warriors can be spared the worst moral injury that comes from betraying their own chosen core values.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538186183
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	08/21/2025
Edition description:	3rd ed.
Pages:	360
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Shannon E. French is the Inamori Professor in Ethics, director of the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence, and a professor in philosophy and law at Case Western Reserve University, USA. Prior to CWRU, she taught for eleven years at the United States Naval Academy. She founded the first MA program in Military Ethics at CWRU, works globally with the US and allied military, service academies, and chaplain corps, and held the General Hugh Shelton Distinguished Visiting Chair in Ethics for seven years. Her core fields are military ethics and ethical issues in emerging technology.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Foreword from the First Edition: Senator John McCain
Chapter 1. Why Warriors Need a Code: Shielding Humanity in the Horror of War
Chapter 2. The Homeric Hero: A Hector Who Wins?
Chapter 3. The Two Faces of Rome: Stoicism and Hedonism in Service to the State
Chapter 4. Vicious Vikings: Vengeance, Valkyries, and Valhalla
Chapter 5. Shaka Zulu: Strongmen, Instability, and the Disruption of the Status Quo
Chapter 6. Knights of the Round Table: Never To Do Outrage Nor Murder
Chapter 7. Indigenous Americans: Warrior Transitions on the Sacred Plains
Chapter 8. Chinese Warrior Monks: The Peaceful Martial Artists of Shaolin
Chapter 9. The Soul of the Samurai: Balancing Duty, Devotion, and Death
Chapter 10. Sultan Saladin and the Warriors of Islam: Revelation and the Rules of Engagement
Chapter 11. The Warrior's Code Today: Do We Need New Ethics of War?
Index
About the Author

What People are Saying About This

John McCain

In The Code of the Warrior, Shannon French captures the essence of the military's core values, history, traditions, the benchmark of its leadership, the raison d'etre of servicemembers' development of character and honor.

Karl M. Hasslinger

The horrific nature of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States stirred national feelings of anger and hate that may accompany some U.S. warriors into the battle against terrorism. Without the internalized code of conduct French so eloquently describes, the combination of emotion and vastly superior U.S. military power puts our warriors at risk of becoming arrogant, detached, and in some ways like the enemies they despise. Her work is both timely and timeless.

David Grossman

From start to finish, The Code of the Warrior has powerful and useful applications for all service members and law enforcement officers. But French’s book is more than a must-read for those who carry weapons in service to their nation—now, as we enter into a clash of cultures with a War on Terrorism, this book charts the path for honorable conduct for our entire nation. It should be read by every politician and concerned citizen.

Leon A. Edney

Waiting until the fog of war has descended is too late to determine where the thin line between warrior and murderer is drawn. In The Code of the Warrior, French enlightens our thinking on this important question, offering fascinating historical examples and the kind of penetrating analysis that can only come from a philosopher devoted to the character development of our future warriors.

Jerry Miller

Relying on her extensive knowledge of the history of warrior cultures, starting with the Greeks and Trojans, Shannon French has produced an outstanding work that will be of great value to the fledgling warrior, the current practitioner, or the veteran reflecting on his past performance. This book is an important text for anyone involved in warfare, which now includes almost everyone in a society confronting terrorism.

Editorial Reviews

With amazingly smooth writing, this absorbing and valuable book studies the ethics governing warriors throughout history. Written with impressive erudition, balance, and wit, it will be agreeable reading for warriors, warriors in training, or anyone interested in their welfare. (from previous edition)” —Publishers Weekly

“This excellent work is worthwhile reading for military personnel and individuals interested in ethics. Highly recommended. (from previous edition)” —Library Journal

“Waiting until the fog of war has descended is too late to determine where the thin line between warrior and murderer is drawn. In The Code of the Warrior, French enlightens our thinking on this important question, offering fascinating historical examples and the kind of penetrating analysis that can only come from a philosopher devoted to the character development of our future warriors.” —Admiral Leon A. Edney, U.S.N. (Retired); former commander-in-chief, U.S. Atlantic Command

“Without the internalized code of conduct French so eloquently describes, the combination of emotion and vastly superior U.S. military power puts our warriors at risk of becoming arrogant, detached, and in some ways like the enemies they despise. Her work is both timely and timeless.” —Captain Karl M. Hasslinger, U.S.N. (Retired)

“Relying on her extensive knowledge of the history of warrior cultures, starting with the Greeks and Trojans, Shannon French has produced an outstanding work that will be of great value to the fledgling warrior, the current practitioner, or the veteran reflecting on his past performance. This book is an important text for anyone involved in warfare, which now includes almost everyone in a society confronting terrorism.” —Vice Admiral Jerry Miller, U.S.N. (Retired)

“From start to finish, The Code of the Warrior has powerful and useful applications for all service members and law enforcement officers. But French's book is more than a must-read for those who carry weapons in service to their nation-now, as we enter into a clash of cultures with a War on Terrorism, this book charts the path for honorable conduct for our entire nation. It should be read by every politician and concerned citizen.” —Lt. Col. David Grossman, author of On Killing

From the Publisher

From start to finish, The Code of the Warrior has powerful and useful applications for all service members and law enforcement officers. But French’s book is more than a must-read for those who carry weapons in service to their nation—now, as we enter into a clash of cultures with a War on Terrorism, this book charts the path for honorable conduct for our entire nation. It should be read by every politician and concerned citizen.

Lt. Col. David Grossman

Thought-provoking opening and closing chapters.

Special Warfare

An interesting panorama of warrior codes and a glance at how American warriors see martial values today.

The Washington Times - Alan Gropman

The horrific nature of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States stirred national feelings of anger and hate that may accompany some U.S. warriors into the battle against terrorism. Without the internalized code of conduct French so eloquently describes, the combination of emotion and vastly superior U.S. military power puts our warriors at risk of becoming arrogant, detached, and in some ways like the enemies they despise. Her work is both timely and timeless.

Captain Karl M. Hasslinger

This is a rich survey of military values in diverse cultures, from ancient Greek and Roman to medieval Scandinavian, from Native American to Chinese and Japanese. The book also has the virtue of treating each of its disparate traditions in depth and with care. The Code of the Warrior is an impressively researched and eloquent work, well worth careful study by military professionals and others interested in martial values. It permits us to achieve insights regarding the similarities and differences between our contemporary American military code and those of more distant times and places, thus imparting authentic humanistic wisdom.

Parameters

Relying on her extensive knowledge of the history of warrior cultures, starting with the Greeks and Trojans, Shannon French has produced an outstanding work that will be of great value to the fledgling warrior, the current practitioner, or the veteran reflecting on his past performance. This book is an important text for anyone involved in warfare, which now includes almost everyone in a society confronting terrorism.

Jerry Miller

A successful effort to explore the moral limits that soldiers place on their own conduct in battle.

The Weekly Standard

In The Code of the Warrior, Shannon French captures the essence of the military's core values, history, traditions, the benchmark of its leadership, the raison d'etre of servicemembers' development of character and honor.

Senator John McCain

Waiting until the fog of war has descended is too late to determine where the thin line between warrior and murderer is drawn. In The Code of the Warrior, French enlightens our thinking on this important question, offering fascinating historical examples and the kind of penetrating analysis that can only come from a philosopher devoted to the character development of our future warriors.

Admiral Leon A. Edney

Relying on her extensive knowledge of the history of warrior cultures, starting with the Greeks and Trojans, Shannon French has produced an outstanding work that will be of great value to the fledgling warrior, the current practitioner, or the veteran reflecting on his past performance. This book is an important text for anyone involved in warfare, which now includes almost everyone in a society confronting terrorism.

Vice Admiral Jerry Miller

An interesting panorama of warrior codes and a glance at how American warriors see martial values today.
— Alan Gropman

The Washington Times

An interesting panorama of warrior codes and a glance at how American warriors see martial values today.
— Alan Gropman

Washington Times