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| − | {{Articles FAIR copyright}} {{Articles Header 1}} {{Articles Header 2}} {{Articles Header 3}} {{Articles Header 4}} {{Articles Header 5}} {{Articles Header 6}} {{Articles Header 7}} {{Articles Header 8}} {{Articles Header 9}} {{Articles Header 10}} | + | {{Main Page}} |
| − | {{Resource Title|Warfare in the Book of Mormon}} | + | {{Navigation:Book of Mormon}} |
| − | {{CriticalSources}}
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| − | ==Armor==
| + | <onlyinclude> |
| − | | + | {{H2 |
| − | Book of Mormon armor does not match the type of armor that Joseph Smith would have been familiar with, nor does it reflect European styles of armor:
| + | |L=Warfare in the Book of Mormon |
| − | | + | |H=Warfare in the Book of Mormon |
| − | <blockquote>19 And when the armies of the Lamanites saw that the people of Nephi, or that Moroni, had prepared his people with [[#Breastplates | breastplates]] and with [[#Arm_shields|arm–shields]], yea, and also shields to defend their heads, and also they were dressed with [[#Quilted_armor|thick clothing]]—[http://scriptures.lds.org/alma/43/19#19 Alma 43:19]</blockquote> | + | |S= |
| − | | + | |L1=Warfare in the Book of Mormon: Defense |
| − | ===Arm shields===
| + | |L2=Warfare in the Book of Mormon: Oaths taken by warriors |
| − | [[Image:Arm_shield_WiBoM01.jpg|thumb|none|"Mayan “arm shield”, from Stela 17, Dos Pilas, Tetexbatun, Guatemala, Around A.D. 733"; from William J. Hamblin, “Armor in the Book of Mormon", p. 415; in ''Warfare in the Book of Mormon'', edited by Stephen D. Ricks & William J. Hamblin, (Provo, Utah: Deseret Book Co. and FARMS, 1990). ''Note that this image post-dates the Nephite period.'']]
| + | |L3=Warfare in the Book of Mormon: Seasonality of Warfare |
| − | | + | |L4=Warfare in the Book of Mormon: Tactics |
| − | ===Breastplates===
| + | |L5=Warfare in the Book of Mormon: Secret combinations |
| − | [[Image:Pectoral_WiBoM01.jpg|thumb|none|"Mayan headdress and “pectoral” [chest or breastplate] hung or attached around the neck. Stela 16, Dos Pilas, Tetexbatun, Guatemala, Around A.D. 733. William J. Hamblin, “Armor in the Book of Mormon", p. 414; in ''Warfare in the Book of Mormon'', edited by Stephen D. Ricks & William J. Hamblin, (Provo, Utah: Deseret Book Co. and FARMS, 1990).''Note that this image post-dates the Nephite period.'']]
| + | |L6=Warfare in the Book of Mormon: Weapons |
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| − | ===Quilted armor===
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| − | This description matches Mesoamerican quilted armor:
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| − | {| valign="top" border="0" style="width:50%"
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| − | [[Image:Quilted_armor_Metropolitan.jpg|thumb|none|"The garment worn by this figure is believed to represent the quilted armor worn by warriors, but the elaboration of the costume and its accoutrements suggest a figure of high rank and noble status." Costumed Figure, 7th–8th century -- Mexico; Maya Ceramic, pigment; H. 11 17/32 in. (29.3 cm) (1979.206.953) – [http://www.metmuseum.org Metropolitan Museum of Art] Note the pectoral ("breast plate"). ''Note that this figure post-dates the Nephite period.'']]
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| − | [[Image:Quilted_armor_WiBoM01.jpg|thumb|none|From William J. Hamblin, “Armor in the Book of Mormon", p. 413; in ''Warfare in the Book of Mormon'', edited by Stephen D. Ricks & William J. Hamblin, (Provo, Utah: Deseret Book Co. and FARMS, 1990). Note the arm shields and pectoral. ''Note that this figure post-dates the Nephite period.'']]
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| − | ==Fortifications== | |
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| − | :4 But behold, how great was their disappointment; for behold, the Nephites had dug up a ridge of earth round about them, which was so high that the Lamanites could not cast their stones and their arrows at them that they might take effect, neither could they come upon them save it was by their place of entrance. ([http://scriptures.lds.org/alma/49/4#4 Alma 49:4]).<BR><BR>
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| − | :3 And it came to pass that after the Lamanites had finished burying their dead and also the dead of the Nephites, they were marched back into the land Bountiful; and Teancum, by the orders of Moroni, caused that they should commence laboring in digging a ditch round about the land, or the city, Bountiful. 4 And he caused that they should build a breastwork of timbers upon the inner bank of the ditch; and they cast up dirt out of the ditch against the breastwork of timbers; and thus they did cause the Lamanites to labor until they had encircled the city of Bountiful round about with a strong wall of timbers and earth, to an exceeding height. 5 And this city became an exceeding stronghold ever after; and in this city they did guard the prisoners of the Lamanites; yea, even within a wall which they had caused them to build with their own hands. Now Moroni was compelled to cause the Lamanites to labor, because it was easy to guard them while at their labor; and he desired all his forces when he should make an attack upon the Lamanites.([http://scriptures.lds.org/alma/53/3#5 Alma 53:3-5]).<BR><BR>
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| − | The Book of Mormon's description of fortifications matches those in use in Mesoamerica. Multiple sites have been found; the city of Becan is well-known:
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| − | {| valign="top" border="0" style="width:100%"
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| − | [[Image:Becan_1.jpg|thumb|200px|none|The moat at Bécan in the Yucatan is 16 meters wide, and covers a distance of 2 kilometers. The enclosed city covers 25 hectares (almost 62 acres). Reconstruction, on-line at http://mayaruins.com/becan.html]]
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| − | [[Image:Becan_2.jpg|thumb|200px|none|Artist’s rendering of Bécan fortifications [AD 100-250]; From John L. Sorenson, ''Images of Ancient America: Visualizing Book of Mormon Life'' (Provo, Utah: Research Press, 1998), 133 (Andrea Darais, artist).]]
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| − | [[Image:Becan_3.jpg|thumb|200px|none|“Bécan” earthworks, fortifications from Early Classic period (250-400 AD)
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| − | David L. Webster, ''Defensive Earthworks at Bécan, Campeche, Mexico: Implications for Mayan Warfare'' (New Orleans: Middle American Research Institute, Tulane University, Publication 41, 1976), 3.]]
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| − | [[Image:Becan_4.jpg|thumb|200px|none|Note the modern '''highway''' in the upper left corner! [Gives a sense of the scale.]
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| − | David L. Webster, ''Defensive Earthworks at Bécan, Campeche, Mexico: Implications for Mayan Warfare'' (New Orleans: Middle American Research Institute, Tulane University, Publication 41, 1976), 3.
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| − | ]]
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| − | |}
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| − | It should be noted too that the rise of Mesoamerican fortification in the archaeological record matches the introduction of this form of warfare among the Nephites by Captain Moroni in about 72 B.C. (See [http://scriptures.lds.org/alma/49/8#8 Alma 49:8]).The first number indicates "''Definitive''" sites; the second is "''Possible''" sites:
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| − | [[Image:Fort_Sites_Mesoamerica.jpg|thumb|200px|none|John L. Sorenson, "Fortifications in the Book of Mormon Account Compared with Mesoamerican Fortifications" (Table 2, p. 429) in Stephen D. Ricks & William J. Hamblin, (eds), ''Warfare in the Book of Mormon'' (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1990), 425-444. The first number indicates "Definitive" sites; the second is "possible" sites.]]
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| − | ==Ritual warfare==
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| − | ===Apostate cities===
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| − | *{{reexploring|start=176|end=178|article=The Destruction of Ammonihah and the Law of Apostate Cities|author=John W. Welch}}
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| − | *{{warfarebom|author=John W. Welch|article=Law and War in the Book of Mormon|start=62|end=86}}
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| − | ===Oaths taken by warriors===
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| − | *{{warfarebom|author=Terrence L. Szink|article=An Oath of Allegiance in the Book of Mormon|start=35|end=45}}
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| − | *{{JBMS-2-1-9}} <!--Morrise-->
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| − | *{{reexploring|start=189|end=192|article=Exemption from Military Duty|author=John W. Welch}}
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| − | *{{reexploring|start=202|end=204|article='Holy War' in the Book of Mormon and the Ancient Near East|author=Stephen D. Ricks}}
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| − | *{{warfarebom|author=Stephen D. Ricks|article='Holy War': The Sacral Ideology of War in the Book of Mormon and in the Ancient Near East|start=103|end=117}}
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| − | *{{reexploring|start=206|end=208|article=Symbolic Action as Prophetic Curse|author=Donald W. Parry}}
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| − | ==Seasonality of Warfare==
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| − | A fascinating issue on climate is the seasons of war described in the Book of Mormon, mostly between [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/9 Alma 9] and [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/47 Alma 47]. Several examples provide specific months and days of the battle (e.g., [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/16/1#1 Alma 16:1]). Many others indicate the general time of year (e.g., [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/44/22-24#22 Alma 44:22–24]). In over 30 places, war action is described as taking place near the end or beginning of the year. Sorenson has compiled information from the text about the month of the year various military skirmishes are mentioned. Almost all occur between the 11th and 3rd months, with a small number reported in the 4th, 5th, and 10th months, and none mentioned in the 6th through 9th months.{{ref|sor1}} Why this pattern?
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| − | Interestingly, the text also makes reference to cultivation of food a number of times in the 4th through 9th months. The problem of getting food to the troops is mentioned as a concern mainly in the twelfth through second months. Thus it seems that the harvest may have been in months 10 through 12. The Nephite "agricultural year" seems, then, to proceed like this:
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| − | * Cultivation of fields: months 4-9
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| − | * Main harvest: months 10-12
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| − | * Time of warfare: mainly months 11-3).
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| − | ===Warfare Insights from the Text===
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| − | This leads to several insights:
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| − | * since the armies were largely made of ordinary citizens (like reservists) who were largely farmers, they were not available for warfare except after the harvest (see [http://scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/53/7#7 Alma 53:7]);
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| − | * since an army moves on its stomach, fighting is most easily carried out when food supplies are most available, which would be after the harvest;
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| − | * the Book of Mormon shows remarkable accuracy (and internal consistency) in dealing with the ancient relationship between agriculture and warfare.
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| − | But how do Nephite months correspond to ours? In Mesoamerica, May though September is the best time for growing crops (heat and moisture are most available). October through April is fairly dry. We also know that before Columbus, military campaigns in Central America occurred mainly between late October and February (again, farmers were then free of agricultural duties and food could be gathered—or seized as plunder). Likewise, soggy land from heavy rains would be drier and more passable (and made living in tents easier). These considerations lead Sorenson and others to conclude that the Nephite year may have begun in late December, perhaps with the winter solstice (Dec. 21/22), as did many other ancient peoples.{{ref|sor2}}
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| − | ===Different from Joseph Smith's World===
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| − | The Book of Mormon's consistent representation of the seasonality of Mesoamerican warfare bodes poorly for the theory that Joseph Smith wrote the Book of Mormon. A significant battle scene (one in which the long-term survival of the Nephite nation might have been at stake) is described in {{s||Alma|51||}} at the end of the year—around December. After heavy fighting and major marches, both sides were very tired because of their "labors and heat of the day." This takes place on the east coast, "in the borders on the beach by the seashore" ({{s||Alma|51|32}}).
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| − | In Mesoamerica, at this season, the rain-swollen rivers have subsided, but the east region (which would correspond to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec area under the [[Book_of_Mormon_geography:New_World#Limited_geography_theory|limited geography model]]) is still rather wet, low, and hot. The hottest weather was still months away, but down on the coast it was hot and muggy enough to contribute to the fatigue of the rapidly traveling troops.
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| − | {{s||Alma|51||}} shows that the land of the Book of Mormon peoples was not a cold, snow-covered place in winter, as upstate New York was for young Joseph Smith. If Joseph created the book based on what he knew, he would have had fighting occur in the summer, not during winter. The internal consistency of many passages dealing with war during the proper season of war for Mesoamerica is also remarkable—and has not been noted or recognized until the late twentieth century. Though it is a minor point in the text, the geographical and climatic information provided fits and makes sense. It must be considered as one of the many "mundane" but powerful evidences for authenticity.
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| − | ==Secret Combinations==
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| − | {{nw}}
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| − | ==Tactics==
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| − | {{Main|/Tactics|l1=Tactics in Book of Mormon warfare}}
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| − | ==Strategy==
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| − | {{Main|/Strategy|l1=Strategy in Book of Mormon warfare}}
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| − | ==Weapons==
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| − | {{nw}}
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| − | ===Swords===
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| − | {{Main|Book of Mormon and warfare/Swords}}
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| − | {{MaxwellInstituteBar
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| − | |link=http://publications.maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/fullscreen/?pub=1108&index=15
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| − | |title=Swords in the Book of Mormon | |
| − | |author=William J. Hamblin, A. Brent Merrill
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| − | |publication=Warfare in the Book of Mormon
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| − | |date=1990
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| − | |summary=The Book of Mormon mentions the sword 156 times, more than any other weapon. For the sake of discussion, we have divided its usage into two categories: literary or metaphorical and military-technical. We have classified seventy-eight instances as metaphorical and seventy-eight as technical (though many occurrences are ambiguous and could fall in either category). There are four major types of sword metaphors used in the Book of Mormon: fighting or warfare in general, violent death, military vigilance, and divine power. The book metaphorically describes fighting in battle with eighteen different sword phrases, violent death with seven major metaphors, military preparedness with two phrases, and divine power with five metaphors.
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| − | ===Cimeters / Scimiters ===
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| − | {{MaxwellInstituteBar
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| − | |link=http://publications.maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/fullscreen/?pub=1396&index=7 | |
| − | |title=Swords and "Cimeters" in the Book of Mormon
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| − | |author=Matthew Roper
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| − | |publication=Journal of Book of Mormon Studies
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| − | |vol=8
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| − | |num=1
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| − | |date=1999
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| − | |summary=Most readers of the Book of Mormon have some idea of what a sword may have looked like, but what were "cimeters"? Even a dictionary will not help with this term. Yet, as we shall see, even our preconceptions about "swords" need clarifying. The English expression sword in the King James Version of the Bible ought to be enough to caution us about easy assumptions, since it is used to translate Hebrew terms as varied as baraq, "lightning" (a metaphor); šelah, "javelin" or "dart"; petihah, "dagger"; resah, "murder" (metaphoric); and hereb, "short sword" or "knife."
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| − | }}
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| − | {{MaxwellInstituteBar
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| − | |link=http://publications.maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/fullscreen/?pub=1108&index=16
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| − | |title=Scimitars, Cimeters! We Have Scimitars! Do We Need Another Cimeter?
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| − | |author=Paul Y. Hoskisson
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| − | |publication=Warfare in the Book of Mormon
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| − | |date=1990
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| − | |summary=Some critics have termed the presence of scimitars in the text of the Book of Mormon anachronistic. They base their claim on the mistaken assumption that scimitars did not exist in the pre-Islamic Old World and therefore could not have appeared among Book of Mormon peoples who claim an Old World nexus with Iron Age II Palestine.3 This assumption is based no doubt on one or more of the following considerations: (1) the scimitar is not mentioned earlier than the sixteenth century in English texts;4 (2) the Persian word samsir probably provided the etymon for the English word;5 and (3) the mistaken assumption that the period from A.D. 1000 to 1200 saw the "perfection of the Moslem scimitar."6 None of these observations asserts the presence or absence of scimitars in pre-Islamic times. Any arguments to the contrary based on these observations are simply arguments from silence and in this case would result in false conclusions.
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| | + | </onlyinclude> |
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| − | {{MaxwellInstituteBar | + | {{:Book of Mormon/Warfare/Defense}} |
| − | |link=http://publications.maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/fullscreen/?pub=1108&index=17
| + | {{:Book of Mormon/Warfare/Oaths taken by warriors}} |
| − | |title=Notes on the Cimeter (Scimitar) in the Book of Mormon
| + | {{:Book of Mormon/Warfare/Seasonality}} |
| − | |author=William J. Hamblin, A. Brent Merrill
| + | {{:Book of Mormon/Warfare/Tactics}} |
| − | |publication=Warfare in the Book of Mormon
| + | {{:Book of Mormon/Warfare/Secret combinations}} |
| − | |date=1990
| + | {{:Book of Mormon/Warfare/Weapons}} |
| − | |summary=One of the earliest Mesoamerican candidates for the Book of Mormon scimitar is found in a Late Pre-Classic sculpture that shows a warrior holding in one hand a macuahuitl2 and in the other a strange curved weapon (see fig. 3, p. 339 in chapter 15). It is impossible to say for certain what this item is supposed to represent. However, a similar weapon is known in India — the haladi.3 Note that this warrior holds both a macuahuitl sword and a curved weapon just as Zerahemnah is described in the Book of Mormon as being armed with.
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| − | ===Bows and Arrows===
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| − | {{MaxwellInstituteBar | |
| − | |link=http://publications.maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/fullscreen/?pub=1108&index=18
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| − | |title=The Bow and Arrow in the Book of Mormon
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| − | |author=William J. Hamblin
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| − | |publication=Warfare in the Book of Mormon
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| − | |date=1990
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| − | |summary=After the sword, the bow is the second most frequently mentioned weapon in the Book of Mormon. Bows are mentioned twenty-two times, arrows twenty-six. In fourteen cases the bow and arrow are mentioned together; in eight cases, the bow is mentioned alone; in twelve, the arrow alone. In most cases, the bow is simply mentioned as a weapon with no additional details. However, several significant incidents give some indication of the nature and use of the Book of Mormon bow.
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| − | =={{Endnotes label}}==
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| − | #{{note|sor1}} {{Rediscovering|author=John Sorenson|article=Seasons of War, Seasons of Peace in the Book of Mormon|start=249 | end=256}}
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| − | #{{note|sor2}} {{Rediscovering|author=John Sorenson|article=Seasons of War, Seasons of Peace in the Book of Mormon|start=249 | end=256}}
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| − | {{FurtherReading}} | |
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| − | {{Articles Footer 1}} {{Articles Footer 2}} {{Articles Footer 3}} {{Articles Footer 4}} {{Articles Footer 5}} {{Articles Footer 6}} {{Articles Footer 7}} {{Articles Footer 8}} {{Articles Footer 9}} {{Articles Footer 10}} | + | {{Critical sources box:Book of Mormon/Warfare/CriticalSources}} |
| | + | {{endnotes sources}} |
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| − | [[fr:Book of Mormon/Warfare]] | + | <!-- PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE ANYTHING BELOW THIS LINE --> |
| | + | [[de:Das Buch Mormon/Krieg]] |
| | + | [[es:El Libro de Mormón/Arte de guerra]] |
| | + | [[pt:O Livro de Mórmon/Guerra]] |
