Why do Troops go to war?

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This is not such a straight forward question. When you take in to account that most of the soldiers that make up a nations military do not make the final decisions as to whether they go to war or not you must start to question what motivates a soldier to put his life on the line.

Patriotism is something which applies to many nations. To fight for one’s country and fight for the freedom of others is a message all Generals will want to get across to the troops, and nations spend millions trying to persuade that dying for ones country is the most honourable thing to do for their family and their country.

Patriotism is perhaps one of the oldest reasons why troops go to war. To march under one flag for your Leader or religion is something that still goes on today. And it is a very effective method of ensuring that your troops will support you.

Belief is another reason why troops are prepared to risk their lives. Belief is a concept based on rights and wrongs, a soldier believes that this war is right and that his opponent’s beliefs are wrong. They believe that it is right to pull the trigger or drop a bomb because it is the right choice. And as conflict becomes about who has the stronger belief in what they are doing is right.  

Compatriotism is the most basic reason why troops go to war. To fight alongside your friend not only encourages a soldier to fight but also to put their lives at risk to protect their comrades. If a soldier does not go to war then he leaves behind his friends, commanders encourage soldiers to think of their unit as family and to fight as a family.

Military commanders from around the world try to use all these reasons as persuasive methods to get their troops to start a war, continue a war and to fight harder. These three reasons I have listed are by no means the only ones and I refuse to tell myself that some soldiers just go to war to kill.