HISTORY
The Oxford University Strategic Studies Group was founded in Michaelmas 1969 under the aegis of military historian Professor Sir Michael Howard OM CH KBE MC, as a non-partisan society devoted to examination of strategic and international affairs through speaking events and field study trips. Since its founding, the group has remained continuously active, expanding its repertoire of events to include dinners, weekly seminars, and termly wargaming events.
We at the OUSSG are constantly working to uncover new information about the society’s history. If you have any information you may like to share, please feel free to contact us through our ‘contact us’ section.
“THE OXFORD UNIVERSITY STRATEGIC STUDIES GROUP, 1987-2001:
A SENIOR MEMBERS PERSPECTIVE"
-ROBERT ONEILL
“One of the attractions of moving to Oxford in 1987 for me was the OU Strategic Studies Group. I had addressed it a few times earlier in the 1980s when I was the Director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, based in London. What attracted me particularly to the Group in my new role as the Chichele Professor of the History of War were the qualities of its members: they were lively, confident, ambitious, reasonably well educated in international security matters, diverse in nationality and for the most part keen to work professionally in this field. The members were interested in policy development and policy outcomes, and so was I. It was also good to know that the Group, as a student society of the University, largely ran itself. Once the programme had been settled for the year or term ahead, the President or the Secretary would contact the desired speakers, arrange their reception in Oxford (often at the railway station), take them to dinner before the meeting, host the meeting itself and then arrange the speaker's overnight accommodation or return to London.
The role of the Senior Member (the post fell naturally to me when I arrived in Oxford in 1987 because of the nature of my Chair, together with my past experience in the field of Strategic Studies) was to make suggestions regarding the direction in which the themes of meetings might move over the year ahead, to offer connections with speakers with the right level of expertise and attractiveness to an Oxford audience, to exercise general oversight over the Group's activities so that no University regulations were infringed in any of its activities, to keep an eye on the Group's finances (I had to sign off on them each term for he University Proctors) and to be responsible to All Souls College, on whose premises most meetings were conducted, for proper supervision of meetings, preparation beforehand especially when a speaker might require special security precautions to be taken by the Police, and avoidance of any inconvenience to College members as a result of noise, intrusion into private parts of the College and prompt conclusion of proceedings at evening meetings. Alas, I did not always manage these last responsibilities to the satisfaction of every Fellow of the College, and I would hear about it next day, usually from the Porter.
Probably the most important aspect of my duties was to discuss with the President and committee members the shape of the programme each year, usually at the start of the summer vacation to allow adequate time to secure speakers for the term ahead. As the Cold War wound down through the late 1980s and the less structured new world disorder came into effect, so the nature of our programme changed from a focus on issues relating to the then super-power balance (e.g. political issues in the USA and the USSR, diplomacy and arms control, military developments in NATO and the Warsaw Pact) to consideration of security issues in the crisis-ridden regions of the world (e.g. the Middle East, North-east Asia, Africa). Once we had identified a good array of topics we had to put a speaker's name to each, and here my own network of contacts often came into play.
We would try to include in each year's programme British political speakers from both sides of the Parliament, diplomats from countries of key importance, armed service officers, journalists, research institute staff members (especially from the International Institute for Strategic Studies) and academics from Oxford and elsewhere (especially where they had a critical perspective on policies that we had considered from a governmental perspective). Sometimes we knew of an expert speaker coming to Oxford from abroad for other purposes the OUSSG's finances barely ran to train fares from London and he or she would be invited to address the Group.
The programme varied considerably from year to year. There were a few individuals who spoke several times during my fourteen yours as senior member, but not above five. The topics were chosen with regard to the issues of the day, the interests of the Group, especially the committee members, the availability of particularly attractive speakers and any strong views I had on matters that were likely to become more important in future years. The attractiveness of the programme was often confirmed by large attendances of fifty or so students. There were a few occasions where a speaker attracted an audience of over one hundred, which was really beyond the capacity of the Old Library to accommodate in any comfort. I usually held myself available as speaker of last resort in the event that a sudden change had forced the intended speaker to cancel out at the last minute, but occasionally I would also contribute a perspective based, say, on a recent journey to a country of high interest to the Group, such as China or Korea.
While a speaker's potential for filling the seats around the rectangular array of tables in the Old Library was always a relevant criterion for an invitation, reality did not always meet with expectations. I can recall a few embarrassing occasions at which there were fewer than ten audience members seated at the tables when we entered after a congenial dinner. I then incurred a debt of honour to make it up to the speaker by providing him with a larger audience on another occasion or at another venue, or inviting him to a social event in All Souls.
Most of the meetings themselves went off reasonably smoothly. The Chairperson, usually the President in his or her year of office, did the introduction of the speaker and conducted the following discussion, often doing the discussion opener from the chair. Occasionally the introductions were a little too brief or focused on less relevant parts of the speaker's expertise. I would then have to decide whether to work some additional comment into whatever I contributed to the following discussion or not. Sometimes an intervener in the discussion would press his or her point beyond the bounds of politeness and enter into the territory of confrontation, but most Presidents were capable of handling this situation with tact and firmness, and I do not think I ever had to try to assert control over a disorderly meeting.
On one occasion after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact a former senior Soviet intelligence officer had been invited to address the Group. It was an occasion when I was away and could not attend. The speaker opened by lamenting my absence because he had particularly wanted to meet me. Evidently the KGB had invested major efforts over the years in trying to subvert me, but to no effect. He really wanted me to know how hard they had tried to gain my co-operation. Sadly I was all too unaware of this sub-rosa drama running through the twenty years or so for which I knew that I was occasionally being entertained by members of the KGB or the GRU. I should have gone for the most expensive wines and dishes on the menu had I known that there was this deep plot behind what were often interesting, and to me valuable, opportunities for comparing approaches and levels of understanding of reality between East and West in strategic relations.
The financial strength of the Group was also a matter for my concern. Our expenses were not inconsiderable as we strove to provide speakers with a decent dinner before they faced the Group, and there were the occasional travel bills to be met and various other administrative expenses. With an average membership of around one hundred and a membership fee at an affordable fifteen pounds a year per member, we were usually able to make ends meet. Group committee members also pursued financial support from external bodies such as embassies in London and major corporations who might want to send the occasional member to meetings. Unsurprisingly the effectiveness of these extra-mural funding endeavours varied widely from year to year. There were the occasional years of crisis in which I had to take a more detailed oversight of the Group's incomings and outgoings.
The best part of being Senior Member was the opportunity it gave me to observe the abilities of individual Group members when they were in charge of proceedings, especially the Presidents and committee members, and to get to know them better as individuals. The record testifies amply to their skills. I can think of several presidents who have gone on to significant positions in the armed forces, diplomatic services and foreign ministries (especially the State Department) of their countries, or have become full professors at very respectable universities. And they are not bad at staying in touch. On a recent occasion in Washington DC four of my former doctoral students gave a dinner for me at which I was able to launch a discussion on the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan by calling the gathering to order as an out-of-session meeting of the OUSSG. All four were active in the group and at least two were President in their respective years.
The Group has a proud record and it is good that current members are taking an interest in its history. It is too good a set of linkages to be ignored.”
Sadly, Professor Robert O’Neill passed away in 2023. “War, Strategy, and History: The Life and Work of Professor Robert O’Neill” was a one-day conference on 10 July 2024 in honor of Professor Robert O’Neill, who passed in 2023. The event featured leading scholars from across the globe. It showed the wide influence of Oxford University on the study of war and strategy across several decades. Professors Kate O’Neill, John Nagl, Carter Malkasian, and Daniel Marston all express their thanks to OUSSG for playing a key role in facilitating the event. We all thank All Souls, Balliol, and IISS for supporting the event.
To properly remember this conference, and the legacy of Professor O’Neill, we’ve provided a few of the lectures given at the conference in question, along with an itemized agenda detailing the day’s events.
Marston: “The Teaching of History of War for Practitioners”
Malkasian: “Professor Robert O’Neill’s Lectures on Wars”
Nagl: “Living with War in Theory and Practice”