Surrender, in

military terms Military terminology refers to the terminology, terms and language of military organizations, military personnel, personnel, and military doctrine. Much like other forms of corporate jargon, military terminology is distinguishable from colloquia ...

, is the relinquishment of control over territory,

combatants Combatant is the legal status of a person entitled to directly participate in hostilities during an armed conflict, and may be intentionally targeted by an adverse party for their participation in the armed conflict. Combatants are not afforded i ...

fortifications A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

ships A ship is a large vessel that travels the world's oceans and other navigable waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished from boats, ...

armament A weapon, arm, or armament is any implement or device that is used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime (e.g., murder), law e ...

to another power. A surrender may be accomplished peacefully or it may be the result of defeat in

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

. A

sovereign state A sovereign state is a State (polity), state that has the highest authority over a territory. It is commonly understood that Sovereignty#Sovereignty and independence, a sovereign state is independent. When referring to a specific polity, the ter ...

may surrender following defeat in a

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

, usually by signing a

peace treaty A peace treaty is an treaty, agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually country, countries or governments, which formally ends a declaration of war, state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice, which is an ag ...

or capitulation agreement. A battlefield surrender, either by individuals or when ordered by

officers An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

, normally results in those surrendering becoming

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

Definition and etymology

Merriam-Webster defines "surrender" as "the action of yielding one's person or giving up the possession of something especially into the power of another", and traces the etymology to the

Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman Conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English pe ...

''surrendre'', from French ''sur-'' or ''sus-'', ''suz'' "under" + ''rendre'' "to give back"; this in turn is defined by the University of Michigan Middle English Dictionary as meaning "The giving up of an estate, a grant of land, or an interest in property to the person who holds the right to it", or, in law, "the relinquishing of letters patent to the king", or "the giving back or return of something".

Signs and gestures of surrender

white flag White flags have had different meanings throughout history and depending on the locale. Contemporary use The white flag is an internationally recognized protective sign of truce or ceasefire and for negotiation. It is also used to symboliz ...

or handkerchief is often taken or intended as a signal of a desire to surrender, but in

international law International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...

, it simply represents a desire for a

parley A parley (from – "to speak") is a discussion or conference, especially one designed to end an argument or hostilities between two groups of people. As a verb, the term can be used in both past and present tense; in present tense the term ...

that may or may not result in a formal surrender. Normally, a surrender will involve the handing over of weapons; the commanding officer of a surrendering force symbolically offers his sword to the victorious commander. Individual combatants can indicate a surrender by discarding weapons and raising their hands empty and open above their heads; a surrendering

tank commander A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; t ...

should point the tank's turret away from opposing combatants, although they may have to leave the tank in order to clearly signal surrender. Flags and ensigns are hauled down or furled, and ships' colors are struck. According to a leaflet given to British Empire troops before the Gallipoli landings, "Turkish soldiers as a rule manifest their desire to surrender by holding their rifle butt upwards and by waving clothes or rags of any colour." The leaflet also claimed that, "An actual white flag should be regarded with the utmost suspicion as a Turkish soldier is unlikely to possess anything of that colour," suggesting that a white flag would be used in an act of

perfidy In the context of war, perfidy is a form of deceptive tactic where one side pretends to act in good faith, such as signaling a truce (e.g., raising a white flag), but does so with the deliberate intention of breaking that promise. The goal is t ...

Process

When the parties agree to terms, the surrender may be conditional; that is, the surrendering party agrees to submit only after the victor makes certain promises. The leaders of the surrendering group negotiate privileges or compensation for the time, expense and loss of life saved by the victor through the stopping of resistance. Alternatively, in a

surrender at discretion An unconditional surrender is a surrender (military), surrender in which no guarantees, reassurances, or promises (i.e., conditions) are given to the surrendering party. It is often demanded with the threat of complete destruction, extermination o ...

(

unconditional surrender An unconditional surrender is a surrender in which no guarantees, reassurances, or promises (i.e., conditions) are given to the surrendering party. It is often demanded with the threat of complete destruction, extermination or annihilation. Anno ...

), the victor makes no promises of treatment, and unilaterally defines the treatment of the vanquished party. An early example of a military surrender is the defeat of Carthage by the Roman Empire at the end of the Second Punic War. Over time, generally accepted

laws and customs of war The law of war is a component of international law that regulates the conditions for initiating war (''jus ad bellum'') and the conduct of hostilities (''jus in bello''). Laws of war define sovereignty and nationhood, states and territories, ...

have been developed for such a situation, most of which are laid out in the

Hague Convention of 1907 The Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 are a series of international treaties and declarations negotiated at two international peace conferences at The Hague in the Netherlands. Along with the Geneva Conventions, the Hague Conventions were amon ...

and the

Geneva Conventions upright=1.15, The original document in single pages, 1864 The Geneva Conventions are international humanitarian laws consisting of four treaties and three additional protocols that establish international legal standards for humanitarian t ...

.The Program for Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research at Harvard University, "IHL Primer Series , Issue #1" Accessed at Normally, a

belligerent A belligerent is an individual, group, country, or other entity that acts in a hostile manner, such as engaging in combat. The term comes from the Latin ''bellum gerere'' ("to wage war"). Unlike the use of ''belligerent'' as an adjective meanin ...

will agree to surrender unconditionally only if completely incapable of continuing hostilities. Traditionally, a surrender ceremony was accompanied by the honors of war. The

Third Geneva Convention The Third Geneva Convention, relative to the treatment of prisoners of war, is one of the four treaties of the Geneva Conventions. The Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War was first adopted in 1929, but significantl ...

states that prisoners of war should not be mistreated or abused.

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

policy, for example, requires that surrendered persons should be secured and safeguarded while being evacuated from the battlefield. While not a formal military law, the

Code of the US Fighting Force The Code of the U.S. Fighting Force is a code of conduct that is an ethics guide and a United States Department of Defense directive consisting of six articles to members of the United States Armed Forces, addressing how they should act in combat ...

disallows surrender unless "all reasonable means of resistance reexhausted and ... certain death the only alternative": the Code states, "I will never surrender of my own free will. If in command, I will never surrender the members of my command while they still have the means to resist".

False surrender

False surrender is a type of

in the context of war. It is a war crime under

Protocol I Protocol I (also Additional Protocol I and AP I) is a 1977 amendment Protocol (diplomacy), protocol to the Geneva Conventions concerning the protection of civilian casualty, civilian victims of international war, including "armed conflicts in ...

of the Geneva Convention. False surrenders are usually used to draw the enemy out of cover to attack them off guard, but they may be used in larger operations such as during a siege. Accounts of false surrender can be found relatively frequently throughout history.

References

{{Reflist Law of war Military strategy

Definition and etymology

Signs and gestures of surrender

Process

False surrender

See also

References