Book Review: Exploring the world’s powerhouses throughout time

From the Ottomans to the Habsburgs, author Krishnan Kumar details the fascinating history of imperial conquerors.
Updated 04 December 2017
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Book Review: Exploring the world’s powerhouses throughout time

In the very first sentence of his newly-released book, author Krishan Kumar reveals that the study of empires has never been so popular. This revelation might come as a surprise for those of us who believed that with the demise of European empires — the British, French, Dutch, Belgian and Portuguese — after World War II, imperialism had become an outmoded concept.
Empires were large-scale, multinational and multicultural entities and this book examines the ideas and ideologies that shape not only our thinking on those entities, but also the policies of imperial rulers themselves.
According to the book, most Europe-based empires were inspired by the Roman Empire. They learned from it — especially its decline in the 15th century.
The Roman Empire inspired so many others but itself looked further back in history — to the Ancient Greek leader Alexander the Great — for inspiration. In fact, when Chandragupta Maurya, the founder of the 3rd century BCE Maurya Empire, was asked how he built up his power, he is said to have replied: “I watched Alexander when I was still a young man.” Alexander the Great, he claimed, could have gone on to conquer all of India because his model of rule was superior to that of all the Indian princes.
Fast forward to the Roman Empire and thinkers such as Cicero were of the opinion that “the extension of citizenship to all of Rome’s subjects was of the essence of Rome’s empire, expressing its highest and most characteristic principle. It was the thing that made it distinctive in the world, setting it off from all other states and empires, past and present,” according to the book.
In his book, Kumar has selected five empires: The Ottoman, Habsburg, Russian, British and French. “At least I can say that the empires I have chosen represent, by any standard, size, power (and) impact, the most important of the modern empires and that all of them would have to be included in any account of the role of empires in the world.”
The first empire Kumar tackles is the Ottoman Empire. European writer have often wrongly confused Turks with the Ottomans and the latter has often been described as being savage and cruel.
The Ottoman Empire can be defined as a dynastic, multinational empire, ruling over a variety of peoples. In writer Colin Imber’s words, “the Ottoman Empire was not…exclusively Islamic, nor was it exclusively Turkish. Rather it was a dynastic empire in which the only loyalty demanded of all its multifarious inhabitants was allegiance to the sultan… It was, in the end, the person of the sultan and (religious), ethnic, or other identities that held the empire together.”
Ottomans were not exclusively Turks. The term Turk refers to an ethnic group that includes members from the Balkans, Anatolia and Arab countries. The Ottomans had a mission to protect all Muslims and to spread the cause of Islam in the world. The Ottoman Empire was a Muslim empire. Throughout its history, Islam was an indelible part of its identity. Ottoman rule was characterized by a pragmatism and realism that created “a remarkable model of how different communities can live under the mantle of a supranational power. However, when Turkish nationalism emerged in the 19th century, its ideas entirely opposed to the Ottoman tradition, (it) would lead eventually to the dissolution of the empire itself.
The Habsburg Empire is probably the least known among the empires chosen by Kumar. He describes it as “tortuous, treacherous and protean.” Indeed, the Habsburg Empire ruled a disparate group of countries that included Spain, Italy, Burgundy, the Netherlands, Austria, Bohemia, Hungary, Croatia and parts of Germany. The Habsburg Empire also ruled over territories in Africa, Asia and the New World. Germans were the largest single group within the Habsburg Empire, which was founded in the 1520s, and the German language and German culture became dominant at its imperial court.
The Habsburg Empire lasted for 600 years, however, it did not fall because of any economic miscalculations. In fact, historian Michael Mann believes “the Habsburg economy was a capitalist success and Kumar adds that the empire’s downfall happened when it lost World War I.
The three remaining empires — the British, the French and the Russian — fell after World War II. It is in Russia where the loss of its imperial past is felt so strongly. Vladimir Putin himself declared that the dismantlement of the Soviet Union was “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century” and “a genuine tragedy for the Russian people.”
Europe no longer runs the world. Its empires have disappeared. However, Russia under Putin is still showing a strong affinity toward imperialism. Look toward the east and it is clear that China is a new superpower. After centuries of neglect, China has recovered and it is on the verge of becoming the world’s largest economy. Could it be the new face of imperialism? Empires may have vanished but is the nation state that claims sovereignty and tends toward ethnic uniformity a viable alternative? Only time and academic study will tell.
“Empires, for all their faults, show us another way, a way of managing the diversity and differences that are now the inescapable fate of practically all so-called nation-states,” Kumar concludes.


What We Are Reading Today: ‘Dragonflies and Damselflies of the World’ by Klass-Douwe B. Dijkstra

Updated 1 min 20 sec ago
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘Dragonflies and Damselflies of the World’ by Klass-Douwe B. Dijkstra

Airily dancing over rivers and ponds, the thousands of colorful dragonfly and damselfly species that cohabit our planet may seem of little importance.

Few life-forms, however, convey the condition of the most limiting resource on land and life’s most bountiful environment as well as they can: While the adults are exceptional aerial hunters, their nymphs are all confined to freshwater.

“Dragonflies and Damselflies of the World” showcases their beauty and diversity while shedding light on how they evolved into the vital symbols of planetary health we celebrate today.


Emirates Airline Festival of Literature announces 2025 lineup

Updated 12 November 2024
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Emirates Airline Festival of Literature announces 2025 lineup

DUBAI: The Emirates Airline Festival of Literature organizers announced the lineup of award-winning authors and speakers for its 2025 edition on Tuesday.
The annual literary event, set to take place from Jan. 29 to Feb. 3 at the InterContinental Dubai Festival City, promises more than 150 events, including talks, panel discussions, and workshops, all under the theme “Where Stories Happen.”

Leading the list of authors is US-Indian writer and Stanford University professor Abraham Verghese, author of “The Covenant of Water,” which rose to fame when it was chosen for Oprah Winfrey’s book club.

Also included in the lineup are Nobel Prize laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah, Emmy Award-winning journalist Hala Gorani, Palestinian chef and hotelier Fadi Kattan, and author and illustrator of the popular “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series Jeff Kinney.

Closer to home, Saudi author Faisal J. Abbas will talk about his new book, “Anecdotes of an Arab Anglophile,” a witty and thoughtful take on what it is like being an Arab in London.

“With everything going on in the world, now more than ever, we need stories. We need human connection. We need to come together in the ‘sanctuary of dreams’ … which the festival offers,” Tamreez Inam, head of programming, told Arab News.

“The festival welcomes people who want to dream and imagine a world that celebrates our shared humanity and offers a place where people can tell their own stories, find themselves in other stories and connect at that very human level. And I think that’s why the 2025 festival is so important; it’s needed more than ever now,” she added.

Dania Droubi, the festival’s chief operating officer, revealed that the event will also host an international youth program.

“We have 150 university students from around the world coming to participate in our program, and they are going to be here in Dubai,” she said.

“They’re all students who speak Arabic and who study Arabic. They are going to be here to meet with another 150 from the UAE-based universities, and they’re here to attend and see the authors and the speakers … and just participate in these discussions, because the youth are the future.”


What We Are Reading Today: ‘Leonardo da Vinci: An Untraceable Life’ by Stephen J. Campbell

Updated 11 November 2024
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘Leonardo da Vinci: An Untraceable Life’ by Stephen J. Campbell

Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) never signed a painting, and none of his supposed self-portraits can be securely ascribed to his hand.

Addressing the ethical stakes involved in studying past lives, Stephen J. Campbell shows how this invented Leonardo has invited speculation from figures ranging from art dealers and curators to scholars, scientists, and biographers, many of whom have filled in the gaps of what can be known of Leonardo’s life with claims to decode secrets, reveal mysteries of a vanished past, or discover lost masterpieces of spectacular value.


What We Are Reading Today: ‘Clouds’ by Edward Graham

Updated 10 November 2024
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘Clouds’ by Edward Graham

The mystery of clouds has captivated scientists and artists alike.

This unique book shows you how to use the meteorological techniques of nephology to identify these elusive and transmutable shapes.

“Clouds” blends a lively and engaging narrative by one of today’s leading meteorologists with an essay on historic cloud art, and includes a wealth of breathtaking cloud studies by some of the greatest artists ever to look skyward.


What We Are Reading Today: ‘Understanding the Digital World’

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Updated 09 November 2024
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘Understanding the Digital World’

  • Kernighan touches on fundamental ideas from computer science and some of the inherent limitations of computers, and new sections in the book explore Python programming, big data, and much more

Author: BRIAN W. KERNIGHAN

In this updated edition of “Understanding the Digital World,” Brian Kernighan explains how computer hardware, software, and networks work.

Topics include how computers are built and how they compute; what programming is; how the Internet and web operate; and how all of these affect security, privacy, property, and other important social, political, and economic issues.

Kernighan touches on fundamental ideas from computer science and some of the inherent limitations of computers, and new sections in the book explore Python programming, big data, and much more.