Int Rel Theo War

Table 4.8Causes of War by Polarity Models, 1816–2016Type of Polarity

Number of Wars

Frequency of Wars

Average Length of Wars

Severity of the Wars

The three Polarity Models, 1816–2016

Central Wars

Major Wars

Minor Wars

Length of the System in Years

War Years

1

% of Years in which a War Was Fought

Average Length in Days

2

Total Killed in Combat Only

Multipolarity, 1849–1870, 1910–1945

2

7

9

58

26.1

45%

9,542/18=530

27,178,565

Bipolarity,

1816–1848,

1871–1909, 1946–1991

0

5

118

12.8

10.8%

4,642/5=928

2,105,418

Unipolarity, 1992–2016

(^32)

24

3.1

13%

1,125/2=562.5

39,092

1 The total number of years in which there was a war in any of the three polarity models was calculated by dividing the total number of days of war

in them by 365 (the length of one year). Multipolar systems: 1854–1870 and 1909–1945: a total of 9,522 days of war, or 26.1 years of war; bipolar systems: 1816–1853, 1871–1909, and 1946–1991: a total of 4,922 days of war, or 12.8 years of war; unipolar systems: 1992–2016: a total of 1,125 days of war, or 3.1 years of war. 2 The average length of the wars in days was calculated by dividing the total number of days of war by the number of wars fought in each of the three

polarity models. Multipolar systems: 1854–1870 and 1909–1945: a total of 18 wars lasting 9,522 days of fighting—average length of 529 days per war; bipolar systems: 1816–1853, 1871–1909, and 1946–1991: a total of six wars lasting 4,655 days of fighting—average length of 931 days per war; unipolar systems: 1992–2016: a total of two wars lasting 1,125 days of fighting—average length of 562.5 days per war. 3 In unipolar systems, every war involving the polar power, or the sole hyperpower constituting the system, may be included in the three categories

of war: central war, major war, or minor war. Therefore, the three cells relating to the two wars in which the sole hyperpower, the United States, in the unipolar system of 1992–2016, were merged.