The massive state-sponsored art theft recalls the behavior of conquerors in earlier wars, including European monarchs and Napoleon.

FORBES: Connoisseur's Guide

War among the great powers was a common, if not constant, occurrence in the long periods of multipolarity from the 16th to the 18th centuries, culminating in the series of enormously destructive Europe-wide wars that followed the French Revolution and ended with Napoleon's defeat in 1815.

WSJ: Robert Kagan on Why the World Needs America