Articles: Mercenaries

What the thesis says about governments

In the Simba Rebellion (Cold War era), American officials chose mercenaries instead of relying only on regular U.S. forces, treating them as a flexible way to influence events without full military commitment .

During the War on Terror, U.S. bureaucrats again hired non‑state actors to support the military, framing them as a cheaper and operationally convenient way to extend American power .

Official documents that he studied largely justify mercenary use in terms of efficiency and convenience, while paying less attention to the risks, abuses, and long‑term problems that come with outsourcing force .

What the thesis says about mercenaries themselves

By analyzing mercenary memoirs, he finds that financial benefits (good pay or bonuses) are a major reason people join mercenary companies in both historical periods .

A second major motive is a desire for adventure—the appeal of danger, travel, and combat experience, rather than purely ideological or patriotic reasons .

He emphasizes that memoirs can’t represent every mercenary, but they do provide a sizable sample that shows consistent patterns in why individuals choose this work .

How he positions his research

The thesis focuses on two core questions: why the U.S. government uses mercenaries, and what motivates individuals to become mercenaries in the modern era .

He concludes that his findings mainly lay groundwork for future research into the benefits, risks, and consequences of mercenary employment, rather than giving a final verdict on whether mercenaries are good or bad policy .

The work is a Master of Arts thesis in War, Diplomacy and Society at Chapman University, completed in Spring 2025 under advisors Mateo Jarquin, Jeffrey Koerber, and Kyle Longley . Continue reading →

Merchants of War: Mercenaries, Economy, and Society in the Late Sixteenth-Century Baltic By Joseph Thomas Chatto Sproule PhD Thesis Department of History University of Toronto 2019 You must be logged in to view this content. Click here to subscribe