Warfare and taxes reshaped the English economy, and at the heart of these dramatic changes lay an issue that is still very much with us today: the tension between a nation's aspirations to be a major power and fear of the domestic consequences of such an ambition--namely, the loss of liberty.

    But today, at the dawn of the new Millennium, Europe is pointing a new way to the future. In this major new book, best-selling author Jeremy Rifkin argues that Europe has a vision of its own and is overtaking America as the world's next superpower. The American Dream was based on economic growth, personal wealth and independence. It was synonymous with love of country and patriotism, frontier mentality and the unbridled exercise of power. Yet what were once considered prime virtues - cherished and idealised not only in America but throughout the world - are increasingly seen by many as drawbacks and even impediments. But while the American Dream tires and languishes in the past, a new European Dream is being born. Today we see a new set of values emerging which are focused on sustainable development, quality of life and multilateralism. More cosmopolitan and less concerned with the brute exercise of power, the European Dream is better positioned to accommodate the many forces that are propelling us into a more interconnected and interdependent world. Where does Britain fit into this story? The British find themselves betwixt and between a fading American Dream and a newly emerging European Dream which is gaining the upper hand in our contemporary global age. Rifkin argues that Britain is uniquely positioned to play a bridge role between Europe and America and has the potential to help create a synergy between the two superpowers of the 21st century. But in order to exercise any real influence in world affairs, Britain must choose to be part of a larger political entity. In a globally connected world, no people can exist any longer as an island unto themselves. The only question for Britain is whether it will make its home with America or with Europe.

    In this monumental study, acclaimed historian Frank Trentmann unfolds the extraordinary history that has shaped our material world, from late Ming China, Renaissance Italy and the British empire to the present. Astonishingly wide-ranging and richly detailed, Empire of Things explores how we have come to live with so much more, how this changed the course of history, and the global challenges we face as a result.

    Written in 1936 and published the following year, this brilliant and profound evaluation of Stalinism from the Marxist standpoint prophesied the collapse of the Soviet Union and subsequent related events.The effects of the October Revolution led to the establishment of a nationalized planned economy, demonstrating the practicality of socialism for the first time. By the 1930s, however, the Soviet workers' democracy had crumbled into a state of bureaucratic decay that ultimately gave rise to an infamous totalitarian regime. Trotsky employs facts, figures, and statistics to show how Stalinist policies rejected the enormous productive potential of the nationalized planned economy in favor of a wasteful and corrupt bureaucratic system.Six decades after the publication of this classic, the shattering of Stalinist regimes in Russia and Eastern Europe has confused and demoralized countless political activists. The Revolution Betrayed offers readers of every political persuasion an insider's view of what went wrong.

    With far-right nationalist parties on the rise across the continent and the United Kingdom planning for Brexit, the European Union is in disarray and plagued by doubts as never before. Krastev includes chapters devoted to Europe's major problems (especially the political destabilization sparked by the more than 1.3 million migrants from the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia), the spread of right-wing populism (taking into account the election of Donald Trump in the United States), and the thorny issues facing member states on the eastern flank of the EU (including the threat posed by Vladimir Putin's Russia). He concludes by reflecting on the ominous political, economic, and geopolitical future that would await the continent if the Union itself begins to disintegrate.

    Tracing the interaction between food and strategy, on both the military and home fronts, this title demonstrates how the issue of access to food was a driving force within Nazi policy and contributed to the decision to murder hundreds of thousands of 'useless eaters' in Europe.

    But the world we live in today and the problems that plague it can actually be traced back a decade earlier. 1979 was the year that the postwar order evaporated, reshaping the international system and making way for a new era of global history. Christian Caryl discusses each of the year's five major counterrevolutions in turn, weaving together the dramatic stories into a paradigm-shifting revision of our recent history. The result is a startling new argument about the hinge on which the twentieth century turned.

    Moving from a sweeping overview of history to blow-by-blow accounts of his negotiations with world leaders, Henry Kissinger describes how the art of diplomacy has created the world in which we live, and how America’s approach to foreign affairs has always differed vastly from that of other nations. Brilliant, controversial, and profoundly incisive, Diplomacy stands as the culmination of a lifetime of diplomatic service and scholarship. It is vital reading for anyone concerned with the forces that have shaped our world today and will impact upon it tomorrow.

    In the depths of the Great War, with millions dead and no imaginable end to the conflict, societies around the world began to buckle. The heart of the financial system shifted from London to New York. The infinite demands for men and matériel reached into countries far from the front. The strain of the war ravaged all economic and political assumptions, bringing unheard-of changes in the social and industrial order.A century after the outbreak of fighting, Adam Tooze revisits this seismic moment in history, challenging the existing narrative of the war, its peace, and its aftereffects. From the day the United States enters the war in 1917 to the precipice of global financial ruin, Tooze delineates the world remade by American economic and military power.Tracing the ways in which countries came to terms with America’s centrality—including the slide into fascism—The Deluge is a chilling work of great originality that will fundamentally change how we view the legacy of World War I.

    Coup d'Etat outlines the mechanism of the coup & analyzes the conditions political, military & social, that gives rise to it. In doing so, the book sheds much light on societies where power does indeed grow out of the barrel of a gun & the role of law is a concept little understood.List of FiguresList of TablesForewordPreace to the 1st EditionPreface to the 1979 EditionWhat is the coup d'état? --When is a coup d'état possible?The strategy of the coup d'étatThe planning of the coup d'étatThe execution of the coup d'étatAppendicesTablesIndex

    

    Negotiations for the accession of six new states have begun, and membership, which already covers almost all of Western Europe, will soon extend to most of Central and Eastern Europe. The Union's institutions have been reformed, and its powers may soon reach beyond the economy and the environment into the fields of foreign policy and defense. This thorough yet succinct introduction has been completely updated to take the many recent developments into account. John Pinder provides a detailed and coherent view of the evolution of the European Union, and investigates its future as Europe thrives in the new millennium.

    'Powerful, intelligent, hard-hitting, well-written ... absolutely required reading for every Briton who is considering voting on 23 June' Andrew Roberts. MEP and award-winning political writer Daniel Hannan argues for a British exit ahead of the coming referendum. Hannan demonstrates that the EU is past its sell-by date, rendered obsolete by technological advances, shrinking economically and less relevant to our economic needs than ever. Worse than that, he shows that the EU can’t reform, can’t be democratic and can’t be divorced from its goal of ever-closer political union. Staying in does not mean staying the same and a vote to leave – far from being the risky choice – is actually the safe one. Finally, Hannan argues that Britain doesn’t have to stay in the EU to remain at the heart of Europe and considers the global role a confident nation freed from EU strictures could play. 'Before voting in this historic referendum you should read this brilliant book. If you’ve decided to vote Leave this will enthuse you, if you’re not yet sure, it will convince you' Michael Gove. 'A 'must read' for anyone who is surprised that so many of us now want to leave the EU' Lord Owen. 'I defy anyone who is undecided on the EU to read this book and not be a convinced Leaver. The case against EU membership is not Left-wing or Right-wing: it's democratic. Daniel Hannan shows how bright the UK's future will be once we leave behind the corporatist racket in Brussels' Kate Hoey. 'I defy anyone who is undecided on the EU to read this book and not be a convinced Leaver' Kate Hoey. 'The perfect book for someone who wants to hear a calm, clear set of reasons for leaving the EU' Baroness Jones.'When it comes to the EU Dan Hannan has forgotten more than most people ever knew. He knows it from the inside, deep inside. He knows the venality, the incompetence, the bloated budgets and salaries, the many failures cynically covered up. He knows the staggering sums dragged from the pockets of the British taxpayer and the miserable return we get from them. The Brussels-worshipping brigade would be very wise not even to try to contest the points he makes in this book. For the rest of us it's an eye-opener.' Frederick Forsyth. 'The case against the EU should be made in positive, optimistic and internationalist terms. Daniel Hannan has done us a favour by making the democratic and economic case for independence. If you're undecided, this book might surprise you' Helena Morrissey.

    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

    Yet just a hundred years ago is was the ancestral pile of the Fitzwilliams - an aristocratic clan whose home and life were fuelled by coal mining. Black Diamonds tells of the Fitzwilliams' spectacular decline: of inheritance fights; rumours of a changeling and of lunacy; philandering earls; illicit love; war heroism; a tragic connection to the Kennedys; violent death; mining poverty and squalor; and a class war that literally ripped apart the local landscape. The demise of Wentworth and the Fitzwilliams is a riveting account of aristocratic decline and fall, set in the grandest house in England.