Search results for ""author john darwin""

Tamerlane, the Ottomans, the Mughals, the Manchus, the British, the Soviets, the Japanese and the Nazis.All built empires they hoped would last forever: all were destined to fail. But, as John Darwin shows in his magnificent book, their empire building created the world we know today. From the death of Tamerlane in 1405, last of the ‘world conquerors’, to the rise and fall of European empires, and from America’s growing colonial presence to the resurgence of India and China as global economic powers, After Tamerlane provides a wonderfully intriguing perspective on the past, present and future of empires.

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Within twenty years of victory in the Second World War Britain had ceased to be a world power and her global empire has dissolved into fragments. With what now seems astonishing rapidity, and empire three centuries old, which had reached its greatest extent as late as 1921, was transformed into more than fifty sovereign states. Why did this great transformation come about? Had Britain simply become too weak in a world of superpowers? Had the pressure of colonial nationalism suddenly become overwhelming? Or had the British themselves decided that they no longer needed an empire, and that interests were better served by joining the rich man's club of Europe? In this short book, these and other theories are examined critically. The aim is not to present a detailed narrative of Britain's imperial retreat but to introduce the reader to the current state of debate in a rapidly expanding subject.

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"Whichever way I take I meet myself returning." A poetic journey from the mills and moors of the industrial north to the meals and mosques of the Byzantine middle-east and back again. I Meet Myself Returning is about finding your feet in our convoluted world and letting them take you to a place to call your own. And occasionally stopping off for a pint. "John Darwin's poems are when one pint with an old friend turns into six. When you spend five minutes walking around a city that you've never visited before, but somehow feel at home. His words are visceral, delicate, vulnerable and utterly engrossing." - Matt Abbott, poet, educator & activist "For those of us who struggle with the concept of permanence, who gulp when we're asked where we're from and shiver when we're asked who we are, this is a collection that is sorely needed. It's the antidote to the straight-edge, consumer-driven Grand Designs poison of 21st Century life and it should be prescribed to everybody." - Geneviève L. Walsh, spoken word artist

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From the provincial peccadilloes of Prestwich in Manchester to coffee houses and bars by the Bosporus in Istanbul, John Darwin explores life's three stages of arriving, staying for a bit, and then leaving. A poetic reflection on the ennui of the everyday, intermittent pleasures, and the quest to understand love and belonging.

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From the acclaimed historian of global empire, the dramatic story of how steam power reshaped our cities and our seas, and forged a new world orderSteam power transformed our world, initiating the complex, resource-devouring industrial system the consequences of which we live with today. It revolutionized work and production, but also the ease and cost of movement over land and water. The result was to throw open vast areas of the world to the rampaging expansion of Europeans and Americans on a scale previously unimaginable.Unlocking the World is the captivating history of the great port cities which emerged as the bridgeheads of this new steam-driven economy, reshaping not just the trade and industry of the regions around them but their culture and politics as well. They were the agents of what we now call 'globalization', but their impact and influence, and the reactions they provoked, were far from predictable. Nor were they immune to the great upheavals in world politics across the 'steam century'.This book is global history at its very best. Packed with fascinating case histories (from New Orleans to Montreal, Bombay to Singapore, Calcutta to Shanghai), individual stories and original ideas, Darwin's book allows us, for better or worse, to see the modern age taking shape.'A fine, important and original book ... wonderful' Paul Kennedy, Literary Review

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A both controversial and comprehensive historical analysis of how the British Empire worked, from Wolfson Prize-winning author and historian John DarwinThe British Empire shaped the world in countless ways: repopulating continents, carving out nations, imposing its own language, technology and values. For perhaps two centuries its expansion and final collapse were the single largest determinant of historical events, and it remains surrounded by myth, misconception and controversy today.John Darwin's provocative and richly enjoyable book shows how diverse, contradictory and in many ways chaotic the British Empire really was, controlled by interests that were often at loggerheads, and as much driven on by others' weaknesses as by its own strength.

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The only handbook devoted to splicing today's ropes, this bestselling reference covers every kind of splicing project a boater will ever need. Featuring step-by-step illustrations and explanations for the most useful and popular splices in traditional twisted and modern braided ropes as well as wire, it covers:- how to splice high-tech, slippery, synthetic ropes such as Spectra, Dyneema and Kevlar- mainstream rope materials such as Dacron and nylon- all standard rope constructions, including solid braid, double braid, parallel core, plaited and three-strand rope- how to splice wire for shrouds and halyards, and rope to wire splicesThis new edition has been expanded to include a section on wire selection, new wire splices and several attractive knot and splice-based projects: rope fenders, rope cargo nets, rope ladders and rope bow puddings. There isn't a rope project on board that can't be tackled with this guide.‘Covers every splicing project a yachtsman will ever need.' Kelvin Hughes‘Aimed at the beginner, though the in-depth stuff will appeal to old hands too.' Classic Boat

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