We are pleased to announce the upcoming War in the Ancient World International Conference 2026 (WAWIC 2026), an annual event that brings together researchers from around the globe to exchange ideas and present new research on ancient warfare. We invite submissions from scholars working on all aspects of ancient warfare and military history.
Contributions from archaeological, philological, and historical perspectives are welcome. We are particularly interested in topics related to the Greco-Roman world, the ancient Near East, ancient Egypt, and neighboring cultures. The conference is open to graduate students, early-career researchers, and established scholars alike. The 2026 conference will take place in person at two locations: in Winnipeg for participants based in North America and in Madrid for those based in Europe. Selected panels will be connected via Zoom to enable transcontinental interaction and discussion.
We welcome proposals in three categories:
(a) Individual papers may address any aspect of ancient warfare and will be assigned to appropriate panels by the organizers. Presentations should not exceed 20 minutes and will be followed by a 10-minute discussion.
(b) Project presentations, aimed primarily at master’s students, doctoral candidates, and other early-career scholars, should take the form of a brief 10-minute talk. These will be followed by a 20-minute workshop-style discussion focused on open questions and constructive feedback.
(c) Thematic panels should have a clear focus on a specific topic related to ancient warfare. Panels hosted at one of the conference locations may include 4 to 8 related presentations. We especially encourage the submission of transcontinental panels, which should consist of 3 to 6 coordinated presentations.
If you would like to organize a thematic panel, please contact [email protected] with a brief outline of your proposed panel (150–300 words) before October 30, 2025. A complete list of speakers, contributors, and abstracts is only due by January 15, 2026.
If necessary, priority will be given to contributions from authors with an ongoing or well-established line of research on ancient warfare. Panel organizers are likewise encouraged to apply this criterion when selecting participants for their proposals.
In-person participation at one of the two venues is expected, unless compelling personal circumstances or intercontinental travel make this impossible. Students and early-career scholars as well as unemployed researchers will be able to apply for up to 150 € of their travel expenses reimbursed.
For individual papers and project presentations, please send a 300-word abstract and a brief biographical note to [email protected] before January 15, 2026. Please indicate whether you plan to attend in Winnipeg or Madrid, or provide a short explanation if you are requesting online participation. If you wish to apply for travel support, please include this in your submission.
If you have any questions about the conference locations, please contact the local organizers. For questions about the conference series, please reach out to the coordinators. Detailed information about the locations, including useful details for participants, will be distributed in due time.
Participants are invited to submit their papers to the Diamond Open Access Online Journal “Deimos” after the conference:
https://journals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/index.php/deimos/index
Thematic panels may be proposed for the book series “Bellona.”
For updates on the conference, check out the homepage:
https://cahss.d.umn.edu/departments/history-political-science-international-studies/history/wawic
