The Balkans (UNIVERSAL HISTORY) - Softcover

Mark Mazower

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1842125443 ISBN 13: 9781842125441

Publisher: Phoenix, 2002

Synopsis

At the end of the twentieth century people spoke as if the Balkans had plagued Europe for ever. But two hundred years earlier, the Balkans did not exist. It was not the Balkans but the ¿Rumeli¿ that the Ottomans ruled, the formerly Roman lands they had conquered from Byzantium, together with their Christian inhabitants. In this original account of the region Mark Mazower dispels current Western clichés and replaces stereotypes with a vivid account of how mountains, empires and religions have shaped its inhabitants¿ lives. As a bridge between Europe and Asia it has been exposed to a constant incursion of nomadic peoples across the centuries.

Mazower¿s narrative ranges broadly both in time and in space, treating the former Turkish domains in Europe as part of a common if complex historical inheritance.

About this title

Review:

"A gem of a book, packed with illuminating information." --"The New York Review of Books""An invaluable resource for anyone hoping to gain an initial understanding of Balkan history." --"The New York Times""An excellent primer on the region's history." --"The Economist ""A highly suggestive analysis of an inexhaustible subject." --"Publishers Weekly"

From the Publisher:

Roy Foster explains why this is one of his favourites...
This is the kind of history that takes you straight to conclusions, with a swift and startling demonstration of event and effect, rather than painstakingly rehearsing every step of the way. It is a short and elegant book, but the variety of sources quoted and the breadth of reference show the author's unassuming control over his fractious subject.

Mazower demonstrates how recent the concept of 'the Balkans' is, and how freighted with preconceptions. He traces the geographical, demographic and political pressures which carved out interdependent but antagonistic political units; in the process he suggestively redefines our ideas of 'Europe', especially regarding its Ottoman dimension.

The reflections on subjects as diverse as the continuity of Byzantine culture, the fate of 'post-peasant' societies in the age of tourism, the uses of ecumenism (and occultism), and the relationship of nationalism and globalisation make this book far larger than its narrow covers suggest; the epilogue alone, 'On Violence', should be required reading for all students of modern history.

It takes as its epigraph the remark made by an Ottoman official to a French priest in 1848. 'When I travelled in Europe, I saw everywhere things I did not particularly like. Fine - I did not say, "That is no good." I wanted to know why things were thus.' Mazower himself is faithful to this precept, and it is one of the reasons why he has written a modern classic.

About this edition

• Publisher: Phoenix
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 1842125443
• ISBN 13: 9781842125441
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 176