Innovation in world civilization -- Medieval transformations -- Papal Revolution -- Military revolutions -- Discovery of the world -- Explosion of the printed word -- The Reformation -- Scientific revolutions -- Commercial revolutions -- Political revolutions -- Industrial Revolution -- Technological Revolution -- Crises of the West -- Social Revolutions -- Conclusions: A new type of society.

Examining nine landmark battles from ancient to modern times--from Salamis, where outnumbered Greeks devastated the slave army of Xerxes, to Cortes’s conquest of Mexico to the Tet offensive--Victor Davis Hanson explains why the armies of the West have been the most lethal and effective of any fighting forces in the world. Looking beyond popular explanations such as geography or superior technology, Hanson argues that it is in fact Western culture and values–the tradition of dissent, the value placed on inventiveness and adaptation, the concept of citizenship–which have consistently produced superior arms and soldiers. Offering riveting battle narratives and a balanced perspective that avoids simple triumphalism, Carnage and Culture demonstrates how armies cannot be separated from the cultures that produce them and explains why an army produced by a free culture will always have the advantage.

The West's history is one of extraordinary success; no other region, empire, culture, or civilization has left so powerful a mark upon the world. The Rise of Western Power charts the West's achievements-representative government, the free enterprise system, modern science, and the rule of law-as well as its misdeeds-two frighteningly destructive World Wars, the Holocaust, imperialistic domination, and the Atlantic slave trade. Adopting a global perspective, Jonathan Daly explores the contributions of other cultures and civilizations to the West's emergence. Historical, geographical, and cultural factors all unfold in the narrative. Adopting a thematic structure, the book traces the rise of Western power through a series of revolutions-social, political, technological, military, commercial, and industrial, among others. The result is a clear and engaging introduction to the history of Western civilization.

From the bestselling author of The Ascent of Money and The Square and the Tower “A dazzling history of Western ideas.” —The Economist “Mr. Ferguson tells his story with characteristic verve and an eye for the felicitous phrase.” —Wall Street Journal “[W]ritten with vitality and verve . . . a tour de force.” —Boston Globe Western civilization’s rise to global dominance is the single most important historical phenomenon of the past five centuries. How did the West overtake its Eastern rivals? And has the zenith of Western power now passed? Acclaimed historian Niall Ferguson argues that beginning in the fifteenth century, the West developed six powerful new concepts, or “killer applications”—competition, science, the rule of law, modern medicine, consumerism, and the work ethic—that the Rest lacked, allowing it to surge past all other competitors. Yet now, Ferguson shows how the Rest have downloaded the killer apps the West once monopolized, while the West has literally lost faith in itself. Chronicling the rise and fall of empires alongside clashes (and fusions) of civilizations, Civilization: The West and the Rest recasts world history with force and wit. Boldly argued and teeming with memorable characters, this is Ferguson at his very best.

Paul Kennedy's classic naval history, now updated with a new introduction by the author This acclaimed book traces Britain's rise and fall as a sea power from the Tudors to the present day. Challenging the traditional view that the British are natural 'sons of the waves', he suggests instead that the country's fortunes as a significant maritime force have always been bound up with its economic growth. In doing so, he contributes significantly to the centuries-long debate between 'continental' and 'maritime' schools of strategy over Britain's policy in times of war. Setting British naval history within a framework of national, international, economic, political and strategic considerations, he offers a fresh approach to one of the central questions in British history. A new introduction extends his analysis into the twenty-first century and reflects on current American and Chinese ambitions for naval mastery. 'Excellent and stimulating' Correlli Barnett 'The first scholar to have set the sweep of British Naval history against the background of economic history' Michael Howard, Sunday Times 'By far the best study that has ever been done on the subject ... a sparkling and apt quotation on practically every page' Daniel A. Baugh, International History Review 'The best single-volume study of Britain and her naval past now available to us' Jon Sumida, Journal of Modern History

How and why did Europe rise to world pre-eminence? Providing an overview of this central historical conundrum of modern times, Historians Debate the Rise of the West enables students to grasp major scholars’ evaluations of the biggest picture of all: how Western civilization fits into modern world history. Most historians who write in this area subscribe to a combination of interpretations set forward by scholars of the field, like David Landes, Jared Diamond or Kenneth Pomeranz. But it is often difficult to understand the position they are coming from, and for readers to understand clearly how Europe made the transition from merely one of many developing civilizations to the world’s first industrial power. In this volume, Jonathan Daly introduces us to the main interpretations of Europe’s rise that have been proposed over the past half-century and presents the views of these historians and schools of scholarship, advocating for each point of view and letting each author speak for him or herself through the inclusion of brief textual selections. Also included are interesting biographical details for each scholar, as well as a list of further reading for each chapter and a collection of maps. An ideal introduction for students of world history.

Awarded the Dexter Prize by the Society for the History of Technology, this book offers a comparative history of the evolution of modern electric power systems. It described large-scale technological change and demonstrates that technology cannot be understood unless placed in a cultural context.

ÔChina threat or China opportunity, like beauty, is in the eyes of the beholder. Western imaginations of China come under close scrutiny in this book, in a new, philosophical depth seldom attempted before. Dr Pan displays in full force his analytical skills and his mastery of knowledge, both East and West. Contrary to conventional approaches, he takes a step back to exercise a powerful reflective process to watch the China watchers, with illuminating results. Dr PanÕs book deserves wide and careful reading.Õ Ð Professor Gerald Chan, University of Auckland, New Zealand ÔThe rise of China is largely seen as either a threat or an opportunity. Chengxin Pan exposes both of these representations as expressions of Western fears and desires for certainty and predictability. His call for a more reflective and culturally sensitive understanding of China offers an important contribution to one of the big political debates of our time.Õ Ð Professor Roland Bleiker, University of Queensland, Australia ÔThis is a brilliant and insightful treatment of Western representations of China, with a theoretical framework suggesting they come not only from China itself, but also the West. Although it is not the first treatment of this topic, it is innovative in considering the ÒChina threatÓ and ÒChina opportunityÓ: both aspects of the rise of China are of crucial importance for our times. With provocative conclusions, it is a truly path-breaking contribution to the literature. I recommend it highly!Õ Ð Emeritus Professor Colin Mackerras, Griffith University, Australia ÔPan has produced a book which not only challenges some basic assumptions about the nature of ChinaÕs ÒriseÓ, but more importantly forces us to rethink the very basic starting points of how we know what we know about China.Õ Ð Professor Shaun Breslin, University of Warwick, UK How is the rise of China perceived in the West? Why is it often labelled as ÔthreatÕ and/or ÔopportunityÕ? What are the implications of these China imageries for global politics? Taking up these important questions, this groundbreaking book argues that the dominant Western perceptions of ChinaÕs rise tell us less about China and more about Western self-imagination and its desire for certainty. Chengxin Pan expertly illustrates how this desire, masked as China ÔknowledgeÕ, is bound up with the political economy of fears and fantasies, thereby both informing and complicating foreign policy practice in Sino-Western relations. Insofar as this vital relationship is shaped not only by ChinaÕs rise, but also by the way we conceptualise its rise, this book makes a compelling case for critical reflection on China watching. Knowledge, Desire and Power in Global Politics is the first systematic and deconstructive analysis of contemporary Western representation of ChinaÕs rise. Setting itself apart from the mainstream empiricist literature, its critical interpretative approach and unconventional and innovative perspective will not only strongly appeal to academics, students and the broader reading public, but also likely spark debate in the field of Chinese international relations.

Why does the West rule? In this magnum opus, eminent Stanford polymath Ian Morris answers this provocative question, drawing on 50,000 years of history, archeology, and the methods of social science, to make sense of when, how, and why the paths of development differed in the East and West — and what this portends for the 21st century. There are two broad schools of thought on why the West rules. Proponents of "Long-Term Lock-In" theories such as Jared Diamond suggest that from time immemorial, some critical factor — geography, climate, or culture perhaps — made East and West unalterably different, and determined that the industrial revolution would happen in the West and push it further ahead of the East. But the East led the West between 500 and 1600, so this development can't have been inevitable; and so proponents of "Short-Term Accident" theories argue that Western rule was a temporary aberration that is now coming to an end, with Japan, China, and India resuming their rightful places on the world stage. However, as the West led for 9,000 of the previous 10,000 years, it wasn't just a temporary aberration. So, if we want to know why the West rules, we need a whole new theory. Ian Morris, boldly entering the turf of Jared Diamond and Niall Ferguson, provides the broader approach that is necessary, combining the textual historian's focus on context, the anthropological archaeologist's awareness of the deep past, and the social scientist's comparative methods to make sense of the past, present, and future — in a way no one has ever done before.