The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000

Front Cover
Vintage Books, 1989 - Business & Economics - 677 pages
2 Reviews
With 200,000 hardcover copies in print, this book has received worldwide attention. Kennedy explains how the various world powers have risen and fallen over the five centuries since the formation of the "new monarchies" in Western Europe.

From inside the book

 

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Page 33
Nonetheless , that was not how the other princes and states viewed this mighty
agglomeration of Habsburg power . ... say that the chief aim of the French in
Europe over the next two centuries would be to break the influence of the
Habsburgs .
Page 35
rary could appreciate , had Charles V succeeded in crushing the Protestant
princes of Germany in the 1540s , it would have been a victory not only for the
Catholic faith but also for Habsburg influence — and the same was true of Philip
II ' s ...
Page 41
... finally recognizing their full independence ; but this was done to deprive
France of an ally , and the Franco - Habsburg ... Peace of Westphalia ( 1648 ) at
last brought tranquillity to Germany , and allowed the Austrian Habsburgs to retire
from ...

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The rise and fall of the great powers: economic change and military conflict from 1500 to 2000

User Review  - Not Available - Book Verdict

Yale historian Kennedy surveys the ebb and flow of power among the major states of Europe from the 16th centurywhen Europe's preeminence first took shapethrough and beyond the present erawhen great ... Read full review

User Review - Flag as inappropriate

Learning from History, July 19, 2003
<P>
Kennedy chronicles the rise of the Great Powers starting with the Ming Dynasty in China and taking us all the way to the contemporary times of the 1980s.
By analyzing world history through the prisms of economical, political, and military status of each great rising power, Kennedy fuses a theory of why certain countries throughout history (1500-present) rose to be regional or world powers and why they later collapsed.
<P>
As the other reviewers noted, Kennedy's book falls short of accurately predicting the changes that were to follow the publication date of his book (fall of Russia, Asian market crises). Nevertheless this book is a valuable historical resource. 

Contents

The Rise of the Western World
3
World Power Centers in the Sixteenth Century
5
2
18
Copyright

32 other sections not shown

Other editions - View all

The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers
Paul Kennedy
Limited preview - 2010
The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict ...
Paul M. Kennedy
Snippet view - 1987
The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict ...
Paul M. Kennedy
Snippet view - 1987
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Common terms and phrases

agricultural alliance Allied already American armed army Austria balance become Britain British campaign caused century China colonial consequence considerable costs decades decisive decline defense despite difficult Dutch early East eastern economic effect Empire especially Europe European example existed expansion exports fact fighting Finally fleet forces foreign France France's French further German given greater growth Habsburg hand imperial important increasing industrial interest investment Italy Japan Japanese land larger late later leading least less major manufacturing military million move naval navy North output overseas peace percent perhaps period Plan political population position possessed problems production relative remained rise Russia seemed share ships Soviet Spain Spanish strategical strength struggle successful Table territories tion trade troops turn United USSR weapons West western

References to this book

About the author (1989)

Paul Kennedy is the author or editor of thirteen books, including Preparing for the Twenty-first Century and The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers, which has been translated into more than twenty languages. He serves on the editorial board of numerous scholarly journals and has written for The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, The Atlantic Monthly, and several other publications. Educated at Newcastle University and Oxford University, he is a former fellow of the Institute for Advanced Studies at Princeton University and of the Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung in Bonn.

Bibliographic information

QR code for The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers
TitleThe Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000
History/Political Science
AuthorsPaul Kennedy, Paul M. Kennedy, Professor Paul Kennedy
Editionillustrated
PublisherVintage Books, 1989
Original fromthe University of California
Digitized8 Sep 2008
ISBN0679720197, 9780679720195
Length677 pages
Subjects ›  › 

Business & Economics / Economic History
History / Modern / 20th Century
History / World
  
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