2 ms·

Being the source of mercenaries is literally the opposite of waging war as the country. That they weren’t waging war does result in excess men who someone else

by lazide 2y ago

Being the source of mercenaries is literally the opposite of waging war as the country. That they weren’t waging war does result in excess men who someone else can pay to wage war for them though.

euroderf 2y ago
Young men with nothing to do, no gainful employment, are the curse of many a nation. Civil unrest. Mercenaries outsource the problem.
aredox 2y ago
>Being the source of mercenaries is literally the opposite of waging war as the country. Patently wrong: Swiss Neutrality explicitely bans mercenary work by any Swiss citizen.
- lazide 2y ago
  Maybe in the modern era, specifically since 1848, but [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_mercenaries https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_mercenaries]. “The young men who went off to fight, and sometimes die, in foreign service had several incentives—limited economic options in the still largely rural cantons; adventure; pride in the reputation of the Swiss as soldiers; and finally what military historian Sir Charles Oman describes as a pure love of combat and warfighting in and of itself, forged by two centuries of conflict.” Either way, being a mercenary is explicitly the opposite of ‘fighting for your country’, which is the point I was making.
- Telemakhos 2y ago
  It does now, but Swiss mercenaries were a target of Thomas More’s satire in Utopia.
- amanaplanacanal 2y ago
  Doesn't the Vatican still have a Swiss guard? I wonder how that works
  - palata 2y ago
    There is an exception for them.
- palata 2y ago
  > Patently wrong No, but you just haven't understood that they were talking about the past :-).
- emmelaich 2y ago
  Interesting, considering the Vatican Swiss Guard. >The Swiss Guard is considered an elite military unit and highly selective in its recruitment: candidates must be unmarried Swiss Catholic males between 19 and 30 years of age,... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Guard https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Guard

by lazide 2y ago

Being the source of mercenaries is literally the opposite of waging war as the country. That they weren’t waging war does result in excess men who someone else can pay to wage war for them though.

euroderf 2y ago

Young men with nothing to do, no gainful employment, are the curse of many a nation. Civil unrest. Mercenaries outsource the problem.

aredox 2y ago

>Being the source of mercenaries is literally the opposite of waging war as the country. Patently wrong: Swiss Neutrality explicitely bans mercenary work by any Swiss citizen.

lazide 2y ago
Maybe in the modern era, specifically since 1848, but [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_mercenaries https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_mercenaries]. “The young men who went off to fight, and sometimes die, in foreign service had several incentives—limited economic options in the still largely rural cantons; adventure; pride in the reputation of the Swiss as soldiers; and finally what military historian Sir Charles Oman describes as a pure love of combat and warfighting in and of itself, forged by two centuries of conflict.” Either way, being a mercenary is explicitly the opposite of ‘fighting for your country’, which is the point I was making.
Telemakhos 2y ago
It does now, but Swiss mercenaries were a target of Thomas More’s satire in Utopia.
amanaplanacanal 2y ago
Doesn't the Vatican still have a Swiss guard? I wonder how that works
- palata 2y ago
  There is an exception for them.
palata 2y ago
> Patently wrong No, but you just haven't understood that they were talking about the past :-).
emmelaich 2y ago
Interesting, considering the Vatican Swiss Guard. >The Swiss Guard is considered an elite military unit and highly selective in its recruitment: candidates must be unmarried Swiss Catholic males between 19 and 30 years of age,... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Guard https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Guard