At the end of the 19th century, in the age of industrial revolution, lived a man who rose from a poor childhood in Warsaw to become a famous figure of his day. Bloch was a Polish banker, industrialist, railroad tycoon, research scientist, pioneer of statistics, and author.
Jan Bloch first published his most important work, "The Future of War in Its Technical, Political, and Economic Aspects" in Russia in 1898. In this dense six-volume treatise he predicted and warned against a future War between the Great Powers with startling, detailed accuracy. His systematic work led to the First Hague Peace Conference, the founding of the world's first Peace Museum in Lucerne, Switzerland, and a nomination in 1901 for the First Nobel Peace Prize. He's buried alongside many of Poland's other important figures in Warsaw's Powązki Cemetery.
But amazingly, Bloch is virtually unknown both in his native country and internationally.
Peter Van Den Dungen is a professor of Peace Studies at the University of Bradford, England – and one of the world's few experts on Jan Bloch. Amy Drozdowska spoke with Professor Van Den Dungen about Bloch and his massive "The Future of War."
To read the entire English language summary edition of Jan Bloch's (Jean de Bloch's) book, go to:
The introduction and the preface, featuring an interview between Bloch and British journalist William Stead, provide a thorough overview of Bloch's groundbreaking ideas and visionary argument about future warfare.