Peace Feels Normal. But..Historically, It Isn't.
- The Editors at Very Cool Facts
- Jan 15
- 2 min read
Depending on how war is defined, historians estimate that organized conflict has occurred somewhere on Earth for roughly 85 to 90 percent of recorded history (since 3200 BCE).
That figure reflects how conflict shifted from place to place. As one war ended, another often began elsewhere. For most of history, peace was local, temporary, and fragile.
Conflicts in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Venezuela, and elsewhere remind us that war isn’t a relic of the past. It's present tense.
Still, history suggests something quieter and more unsettling.
We tend to think of war as an interruption.
Across recorded history, it has been closer to the background condition.
Empires fought succession wars. Kingdoms skirmished over borders. Civil wars ended, then resumed.
For much of human history, conflict has been persistent, even if daily life felt peaceful where you lived.
That’s why historians are careful with the word peace. Centuries could pass without a world war, yet still be filled with smaller confrontations that rarely make it into textbooks.
So why does peace feel normal now?
Partly because we’re living inside something historically unusual, even as it comes under visible strain.
Long stretches without war between major powers were not the norm for most of human history.
That change did not happen by accident. It emerged from systems designed to slow decisions, raise the cost of escalation, and constrain power.
These systems do not prevent conflict, and they sometimes fail.
Borders, diplomacy, trade, and shared institutions are relatively recent developments.
They work only when people expect them to be upheld and are willing to insist on it, especially when pressure builds to abandon them.
If peace feels fragile, that is because it is not guaranteed. Yet the fact that it continues at all, even imperfectly, suggests those systems still matter.
Explore the ten wars with the greatest global impact here.
Much of today’s relative peace depends on nonpartisan institutions that support dialogue, civic norms, diplomacy, and the rule of law.
See how non-partisan institutions work to reduce the risk of future wars here.
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