Bøker av Jeremy Black

Takes the analysis of modern warfare into the twentieth century. Beginning with the British conquest of Egypt in 1882, this book goes on to examine the Spanish-American War of 1898, the Boer War and the Balkan conflicts leading to world war in 1914.

A wide-ranging and comprehensive survey of warfare from the outbreak of the American War of Independence to the British conquest of Egypt. Drawing on both primary and secondary sources, it offers an account of civil and international conflicts involving Western powers, integrating both naval and land warfare.

In this up-to-date account of European warfare since 1815, important treatments of major conflicts - especially World Wars I and II - are combined with insightful analyses of military developments and of their wider political and social contexts.

This is a history of warfare, wars and the armed forces of Europe from the military revolution of the mid-17th century to the Napoleonic wars.

War was a central theme in the world history of the late fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, with military capability and activity central to its states, societies, economies and cultures.

It was during the course of the eighteenth century that Britain status as a major maritime and commercial power was forged, shaping the political, economic and military policies of the nation for the next two centuries. This title examines how British political culture and public debate in this period responded to.

What is total war? Definitions abound, but one thing is certain-the concept of total war has come to be seen as a defining concept of the modern age. In The Age of Total War, celebrated historian Jeremy Black explores the rise and demise of an era of total war, which he defines in terms of the intensity of the struggle, the range (geographical and/or chronological) of conflict, the nature of the goals, and the extent to which civil society was involved. He contends that this era (roughly 1860-1945) was markedly different from the warfare that characterized earlier periods, and that it is very different from the situation that has evolved since, with its emphasis on asymmetrical conflict and limited warfare.Acknowledging that various definitions are problematic and often contradictory, Black argues that 1860 to 1945 was an era in which the prospect of war and the consequences of it were crucially important for human history. Trends and developments subsequent to 1945 have combined, Black asserts, to make a return to total war unlikely.

The 17th century has been seen as a period of 'crisis' or transition from the pre-modern to the modern world. Jeremy Black explores this crucial period in world history from the perspective of war and military institutions. Genuinely global in range, the book engages with and challenges the idea of a 'military revolution'.

Information is power. For more than five hundred years the success or failure of nations has been determined by a country’s ability to acquire knowledge and technical skill and transform them into strength and prosperity. Leading historian Jeremy Black approaches global history from a distinctive perspective, focusing on the relationship between information and society and demonstrating how the understanding and use of information have been the primary factors in the development and character of the modern age. Black suggests that the West’s ascension was a direct result of its institutions and social practices for acquiring, employing, and retaining information and the technology that was ultimately produced. His cogent and well-reasoned analysis looks at cartography and the hardware of communication, armaments and sea power, mercantilism and imperialism, science and astronomy, as well as bureaucracy and the management of information, linking the history of technology with the history of global power while providing important indicators for the future of our world.

A thought-provoking and important book that raises essential issues crucial not only for understanding our past but also the present day.In this panoramic history, Jeremy Black tells how slavery was first developed in the ancient world, and reaches all the way to the present in the form of contemporary crimes such as trafficking and bonded labour. He shows how slavery has taken many forms throughout history and across the world - from the uprising of Spartacus, the plantations of the West Indies, and the murderous forced labour of the gulags and concentration camps.Slavery helped to consolidate transoceanic empires and helped mould new world societies such as America and Brazil. Black charts the long fight for abolition in the nineteenth century, looking at both the campaigners as well as the harrowing accounts of the enslaved themselves.Slavery is still with us today, and coerced labour can be found closer to home than one might expect.

Jeremy Black sets the politics of eighteenth century Britain into the fascinating context of social, economic, cultural, religious and scientific developments. The second edition of this successful text by a leading authority in the field has now been updated and expanded to incorporate the latest research and scholarship.

The books in the Essential Bibliographies series include an essay by a noted scholar on the important historiographical issues and a pertinent bibliography for a particular period or theme in military history.

This book provides an accessible and up-to-date account of the rich military history of the nineteenth century. It takes a fresh approach, making novel links with conflict and coercion, and moving away from teleological emphases. Naval developments and warfare are included, as are social and cultural dimensions of military activity.

Examines the influence of trade and empire from 1689 to 1815, a crucial period for British foreign policy and state-building. This book also analyzes how the relationships between trade, empire and foreign policy were perceived abroad and how this contributed to an analysis of Britain as a distinctive state, and with what consequences.

Provides an overview of Great Power politics and world order. This book offers historical case-studies, which throw light on both the power in question and the international system of the period, and how it had developed from the preceding period. It is intended for students of international relations, strategic studies and international history.

The position of the nobility depended on a stable world which accepted their authority: but, in the eighteenth century, that world was becoming increasingly fractured as a result of social and economic developments and new ideas. Since nobles were, in economic terms, an extremely disparate group, ranging from the near destitute to the unimaginably wealthy, how could this ruling class preserve a coherent identity? Was wealth more important than birth or education? How should wealth be retained or accumulated? And what role did women play in shoring up noble pre-eminence?In this wide-ranging study, Jerzy Lukowski addresses these issues, and shows the pressures and tensions - both from governments and from the lower orders - which challenged traditional ruling groups in Europe during the century before the French Revolution. Lukowski explains the basic mechanisms of noble existence and examines how the European aristocracy sought to maintain a sense of solidarity in the midst of widespread change.

Relations with Continental Europe have been a central issue in British history. It is at once an important contribution to British history and a crucial work for those seeking to understand Britain's past and present position in Europe.

A New History of England

The sixty-year reign of George III (1760-1820) witnessed and participated in some of the most critical events of modern world history. This biography deals comprehensively with the politics, the wars, and the domestic issues, and harnesses the richest range of unpublished sources in Britain, Germany, and the United States.

Travel for pleasure developed greatly in the 18th century, and here Jeremy Black examines travel on the Continent, the so-called "Grand Tour".

Focusing on navies as instruments of power and analysing what they indicate about the nature of state systems and cultures all over the world, Black provides an overview of the most significant debates within the field.

The books in the Essential Bibliographies series include an essay by a noted scholar on the important historiographical issues and a pertinent bibliography for a particular period or theme in military history.

This new edition of this highly successful and influential work includes two entirely new chapters - on Europe and the wider world and on the Revolutionary crisis - and is extensively revised throughout.

Providing an account of the nature, purpose and experience of war since 1450, this text investigates both land and sea warfare and examines weaponry, tactics, strategy and resources as well as the political, social and cultural impact of conflict.

This bold new 'thought book' re-positions military history at the beginning of the twenty-first century, reveals the main trends in the practice and approach to military history and proposes a new manifesto for the subject to move forward.