Forfatteren, som er tilknyttet Columbia University, gennemgår og analyserer 7 tilfælde, case-studies, af væbnede konflikter, opstande og revolter, og irregulære krige siden 1945: 1. Revolts and Strategies of National Liberation: The nature of revolt; The British Imprial stage. 2. Revolts against the Crown: The Palestinian archetype: Irgun and the strategy of leverage; Two alternative strategies: agitation in the Gold Coat and communism in Malaya; Two flawed strategies: the Mau Mau in Kenya and the Egyptian Fedayeen in the Suez Canal Zone; Two classical confrontations: containment of EOKA in Cyprus and concession to the NLF in South Arabia. 3. On Revolt: Matrix, Models and a Template: A generation of violent dialogue: the evolving British matrix; The rebel models; An Irish template. 4. The Rebel Vocation: The lethal dialogue.