If there is a fundamental truth of geopolitics, it is this: whoever controls the core of Europe controls the entire continent, and whoever controls all of Europe can dominate the world. Over the past five centuries, a rotating cast of kings and conquerors, presidents and dictators have set their sights on the European heartland, desperate to seize this pivotal area or at least prevent it from falling into the wrong hands. From Charles V and Napoleon to Bismarck and Cromwell, from Hitler and Stalin to Roosevelt and Gorbachev, nearly all the key power players of modern history have staked their titanic visions on this vital swath of land.

In Europe, prizewinning historian Brendan Simms presents an authoritative account of the past half-millennium of European history, demonstrating how the battle for mastery there has shaped the modern world. Beginning in 1453, when the collapse of the Byzantine Empire laid Europe open to Ottoman incursion and prompted the dramatic expansion of the Holy Roman Empire, Simms leads readers through the epic struggle for the heart of Europe. Stretching from the Low Countries through Germany and into the North Italian plain, this relatively compact zone has historically been the richest and most productive on earth. For hundreds of years, its crucial strategic importance stoked a seemingly unending series of conflicts, from the English Civil War to the French Revolution to the appalling world wars of the 20th century. But when Europe is in harmony, Simms shows, the entire world benefits—a lesson that current leaders would do well to remember.

A bold and compelling work by a renowned scholar, Europe integrates religion, politics, military strategy, and international relations to show how history—and Western civilization itself—was forged in the crucible of Europe. 

A history of Europe characterised by constant Darwinian competition is right-wing and wrong-headed

- The Guardian rewiev (full text)

“Europe is a superb, sure-footed analysis… It is unabashedly political history, and the better for being so. Simms’ acumen and sharp opinions are a joy to read. This book will be appreciated both by the general reader, and by history teachers everywhere.”

- Paul Kennedy, J. Richardson Dilworth Professor of History, Yale University, and author of The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers

"[Europe] is more than an excellent introduction; it’s a major interpretational achievement."

- Norman Davies, St. Antony’s College, Oxford and Jagiellonian University, Krakow

"…This is [a] powerful case made by this gifted historian of Europe, whose expansive erudition revives the proud tradition of the history of geopolitics, and whose immanent moral sensibility reminds us that human choices made in Berlin (and London) today about the future of Europe might be decisive for the future of the world.” 

- Timothy Snyder, author of Bloodlands

“This is a brilliant and beautifully written history… Europe is a work of extraordinary scholarship delivered with the lightest of touches… Essential, absorbing reading” 

- William Shawcross

"Bloody European statecraft and the interminable battle over Germany make the world go round in this magisterial history of modern international relations… [Simms] offers compelling insights amid a grand narrative sweep."

- Publisher’s Weekly

"…Brendan Simms’ new history [is] especially timely. He has, in effect, dropped a big stone into the European pond and stood back to watch the ripples spread… It is a compelling and provocative thesis… This is sweeping history told with verve and panache, and it is all the more refreshing for that… [A] splendid book…"

- The Economist, 20th April 2013

Brendan Simm’s article about the role of Germany in Europe – The New Statesman.

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