The Illustrated History of the World: Volume 8: The European Empires

This book is the eighth volume in the wonderful Illustrated History of the World series. This book looks at the globe spanning European empires, their influence and the reaction to them around the globe. The book then continues on to follow Western history through the First World War and into the inter-war years.As with the other books in this series, this one is high quality, with many excellent pictures and maps. At times, in his zeal to expose the many problems with imperialism, the author abandoned historical detachment, but in spite of that, the book is very good. So, if you are interested in world history during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, then I would highly recommend this book to you. Also, I must say that if you are interested in world history in general, then I highly recommend this whole series to you.

The European Empires is volume eight of a ten volume series called The Illustrated History of the World. The first volume covered the origins of the human race through the first civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt. The second volume in the series reviewed the early cultures of India and China and then moved on to discuss Greek civilization. The third volume covered the rise and fall of the Roman Empire, from 800 BCE to 600 CE. The fourth volume surveyed the rise of Islam, the Arab empires, the decline of the Byzantine Empire, and the beginnings of modern Europe. The fifth volume offered a first look at Japanese, African, and American cultures and also brings the stories of India, China, and Europe up to the 18th century. The sixth volume looked at the forces that formed the modern face of Europe and colonialism's effects on the whole world. The seventh started with the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution, and Urbanization and went on to explore the French and American Revolutions, Napoleonic reforms, the nationalist revolutions of the mid-Nineteenth Century, the US Civil War, and British political reform.This eighth volume is focused on the European and US empires of the 19th century and their effects on world cultures. It includes sections on the dynamics of empire building and the relations between the various European countries. Then the book explores the effects of European and US domination on South America, Africa, the South Pacific, India, China, and Japan. It next explores the stresses on European empires and colonialism created by socialism, new technologies, population growth, and nationalism. The book ends with a study of the causes, tactics, and outcomes of the First World War. This is a book filled with photographs, maps and illustrations. Every page has at least one, and most are photographs of famous persons, events, or scenes. The text is well written and emphasizes brief summaries rather than scholarly examination. This makes it a good basic introduction and outline, but may be less useful to someone who wants to look at these subjects in greater depth. The lack of any bibliography of further readings is also a drawback for those wanting to seek more information. A two-page time chart of the period helps to put events in perspective. The chapter contents are confusingly placed at the end of the book, but they are well done and helpful for getting an overview of the author's approach. A two page listing of all the books in the series with their section and chapter titles helps to put the material into the broader view of all world history. All in all this is a great brief introduction to European and American colonialism in the 19th century. However the emphasis is decidedly European, and the author's British background is most strongly felt in this volume of the series. The type face is large and the lines are amply spaced. Couple this with the copious illustrations and the book is actually a very quick read for its size