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Asking the question, "Is there a common African military tradition?" leads to consideration of the all too readily accepted tripartite periodization of African history as precolonial, colonial, and postcolonial. Does such a model sufficiently encompass African agency and actions? Or instead—being keyed to the colonial moment in the African past—might it privilege institutions of a decidedly European character? As an alternative, this essay suggests examining Africa's military tradition around four alternatively defined analytical touchstones, each built upon exemplars of indigenous African activity. It argues that using such a "new lens" offers an opportunity to consider if there are not a variety of African military traditions, rather than an over-generalized system of supposed military values historically common to all African soldiers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]