meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
The Reith Lectures

Civilians and War

The Reith Lectures

BBC

Society & Culture, Science, Government, Technology

4.2770 Ratings

🗓️ 10 July 2018

⏱️ 58 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Historian Margaret MacMillan dissects the relationship between war and the civilian. Speaking to an audience in Beirut, she looks back at the city's violent past and discusses the impact of conflict on noncombatants throughout the centuries. She explores how civilians have been deliberately targeted, used as slaves and why women are still often singled out in mass rapes. And she addresses the proposition that human beings are becoming less, not more violent. The programme is chaired by Anita Anand.

Producer: Jim Frank Editor: Hugh Levinson

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

You're about to listen to a BBC podcast, but this is about something else you might enjoy.

0:05.4

My name's Katie Lecky and I'm an assistant commissioner for on demand music on BBC Sounds.

0:10.8

The BBC has an incredible musical heritage and culture and as a music lover, I love being part of that.

0:17.5

With music on sounds, we offer collections and mixes for everything, from workouts to

0:22.4

helping you nod off, boogie in your kitchen, or even just a moment of calm. And they're all put

0:28.3

together by people who know their stuff. So if you want some expertly curated music in your life,

0:34.9

check out BBC Sounds. Hello, I'm Margaret Macmillan, and in my

0:39.1

Rees lectures, I'm exploring the relationship between humanity and war. In the third podcast in

0:44.9

this series, I'm looking at civilians who are so often at the receiving end of violence in war,

0:51.2

but who also participate in wars in many ways.

0:59.0

Hello and welcome to the beautiful Su-Soc Museum in the heart of the ancient city of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon.

1:04.3

Now, this place was at the epicenter of 15 years of brutal civil war

1:09.7

between 1975 and 1990.

1:13.6

The fighting left around 150,000 dead.

1:17.6

Much of the city lay in ruins, a people were traumatized.

1:22.6

Now, I have never seen so much building, so much renovation taking place.

1:28.3

There are cranes everywhere scattered about, soaring like metal embodiments of optimism and renewal.

1:36.3

In recent years, this country has been a refuge to those fleeing war.

1:41.3

More than 1.5 million Syrians now live in Lebanon.

1:45.4

And before them, the Palestinians came.

1:48.6

Some of their families still live in the refugee camps

1:51.2

that first took them in 1948 and 1967.

...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in -2457 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.