Meanings
- obsoleteuncountableThe act of conquering or subjugation in war.
- uncommonuncountableinternational lawThe annihilation of a sovereign state through its complete destruction in a war.
Strupp goes on to speak of transfer of territory ‘by annexation after debellation’.
1951, Hersch Lauterpacht, editor, Annual Digest and Reports of Public International Law Cases […] Year 1946, →ISBN, page 1892 more examples
This time, the arguments of those who favored the total debellation of the defeated adversary were again defeated […]
2009, Michael Howard, “Preface”, in The Making of Peace: Rulers, States, and the Aftermath of War, →ISBN, page xiiThey exclude […] wars that resulted in surrender or “debellation,” in which one side is completely vanquished […]
2017, Michael J. Glennon, “How Not To End War”, in The Lawfare Book Review, page 7Synonyms: debellatio
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe annihilation of a sovereign state through its complete destruction in a war.
Origin
- Medieval Latindēbellātiō“total defeat”
- Englishdebellation
Borrowed from Medieval Latin dēbellātiō (“total defeat”), from dēbellō (“conquer, subjugate”).
More words from Medieval Latin
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
debellation. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/debellation
“debellation.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/debellation. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “debellation,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/debellation.
Source: debellation on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.