Michael Gentile
With a focus on civilian life, this contribution outlines a conceptual-analytical framework for the interpretation of the development of, and observable diversity among, military frontline cities. This article is based on the author’s wartime (2023–2025) field work in Ukraine, specifically in Izium (Kharkiv oblast), Kramatorsk, Slovyansk, and Druzhkivka (Donetsk oblast). The framework brings together two taxonomies capturing, respectively, the spatial and the temporal dimensions of the evolution of military frontline cities in Ukraine and, potentially, beyond. The spatial dimension is related to the differences between free, enemy-occupied, liberated, and enemy-claimed cities. The temporal dimension is conceptualized through an approximative phase-based model, with the phases being defined as shock reaction, stabilization, the approaching frontline, acute threat, siege and urban warfare, and after the battle.