Stones and Lives: The Ethics of Protecting Heritage in War

Frowe, Helen and Matravers, Derek (2024). Stones and Lives: The Ethics of Protecting Heritage in War. Oxford University Press.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/9780191988370.001.0001

Abstract

The fate of heritage in war has attracted considerable attention in recent years, due in no small part to ISIS’s campaign of destruction across the Middle East and, in 2012, the International Criminal Court’s first prosecution of heritage destruction as a war crime. Regular armed forces have been criticised both for failing to protect and for damaging heritage sites. In response, heritage organisations urge the better implementation of existing international laws on heritage protection in war. This book argues that any such law or policy will require combatants to choose between safeguarding heritage and safeguarding other goods, including human life. It rejects the view, common among heritage professionals, that the apparent choice between protecting heritage and protecting lives presents a false dichotomy. Existing international law not only implies such choices but also, and more worryingly, gives no indication of how they should be resolved. Drawing on contemporary work on the ethics of war, this book develops an account of the permissible protection of heritage in war. It argues that heritage is not morally special; rather, heritage is one of many goods that contribute to individuals’ lives going well and that we routinely trade off against each other. By drawing on these more familiar dilemmas, we can make progress on how to balance the protection of heritage against risks to human life. Amongst other things, the book considers the ways in which heritage might contribute to individual flourishing, the role of consent in justifying the imposition of risk on combatants and civilians, the permissibility of forcefully defending heritage and what, if anything, could compensate for the loss of heritage in war.

Plain Language Summary

This book develops an account of the permissible protection of heritage in war.

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