This paper explains why the Syrian Army, despite not being combat ready when the country’s civil war erupted in 2011, has over the last five years withstood a public revolt, a war of numerous fronts and thousands of defections. As the paper's author sees it, the pre-war army’s networks of patronage and nepotism created a parallel chain of command that has actually helped strengthen the Assad regime. While exploring this theme, the author also discusses 1) the territorial organization of the Syrian Army; 2) the regime’s use of paramilitary forces; and 3) the implications of foreign intervention in the current conflict for the Syrian military.