Geography Is Destiny (Hardback)

Britain and the World, a 10,000 Year History

Ian Morris

The story of Britain, from its first moments as an island to its possible future

'Ian Morris has established himself as a leader in making big history interesting and understandable' Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs and Steel

'Morris succeeds triumphantly at cramming 10,000 years of history into a single book' Robert Colvile, Times


Geography is Destiny
tells the history of Britain and its changing relationships with Europe and the wider world, from its physical separation at the end of the Ice Age to the first flickers of a United Kingdom, struggles for the Atlantic, and rise of the Pacific Rim.

Applying the latest archaeological evidence, Ian Morris explores how geography, migration, government and new technologies interacted to produce regional inequalities that still affect us today. He charts Britain's geopolitical fortunes over thousands of years, revealing its transformation from a European satellite into a state at the centre of global power, commerce, and culture. But as power and wealth shift from West to East, does Britain's future lie with Europe or the wider world?

Publication date: 12/05/2022

£25.00

ISBN: 9781781258354

Imprint: Profile Books

Subject: Current Affairs, History & Classics, Politics & Economics

Geography Is Destiny (Ebook)

Britain and the World, a 10,000 Year History

Ian Morris

The story of Britain, from its first moments as an island to its possible future

'Ian Morris has established himself as a leader in making big history interesting and understandable' Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs and Steel

'Morris succeeds triumphantly at cramming 10,000 years of history into a single book' Robert Colvile, The Times

For hundreds of years, Britannia ruled the waves and an empire on which the sun never set - but for
thousands of years before that, Britain had been no more than a cluster of unimportant islands off Europe's north-west shore.

Drawing on the latest archaeological and historical evidence, Ian Morris shows how much the meaning of Britain's geography has changed in the 10,000 years since rising seas began separating the Isles
from the Continent, and how these changing meanings have determined Britons' destinies.

From being merely Europe's fractious, feuding periphery - divided by customs, language and landscape, and always at the mercy of more powerful continental neighbours - the British turned themselves into a United Kingdom and put it at the centre of global politics, commerce and culture.

But as power and wealth now shift from the West towards China, what fate awaits Britain in the twenty-first century?

Publication date: 12/05/2022

£10.99

ISBN: 9781782833512

ISBN 10 / ASIN: B07KJMNFYY

Imprint: Profile Books

Subject: Current Affairs, History & Classics, Politics & Economics

Geography Is Destiny (Audiobook)

Britain and the World, a 10,000 Year History

Ian Morris

The story of Britain, from its first moments as an island to its possible future

'Ian Morris has established himself as a leader in making big history interesting and understandable' Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs and Steel

'Morris succeeds triumphantly at cramming 10,000 years of history into a single book' Robert Colvile, Times


Geography is Destiny
tells the history of Britain and its changing relationships with Europe and the wider world, from its physical separation at the end of the Ice Age to the first flickers of a United Kingdom, struggles for the Atlantic, and rise of the Pacific Rim.

Applying the latest archaeological evidence, Ian Morris explores how geography, migration, government and new technologies interacted to produce regional inequalities that still affect us today. He charts Britain's geopolitical fortunes over thousands of years, revealing its transformation from a European satellite into a state at the centre of global power, commerce, and culture. But as power and wealth shift from West to East, does Britain's future lie with Europe or the wider world?

Publication date: 12/05/2022

£24.99

ISBN: 9781800811225

ISBN 10 / ASIN: B09WW39CJM

Imprint: Profile Books

Subject: Current Affairs, History & Classics, Politics & Economics

Read by: Matt Bates

Geography Is Destiny (Paperback)

Britain and the World, a 10,000 Year History

Ian Morris

The story of Britain, from its first moments as an island to its possible future

'Ian Morris has established himself as a leader in making big history interesting and understandable' Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs and Steel

'Morris succeeds triumphantly at cramming 10,000 years of history into a single book' Robert Colvile, The Times

For hundreds of years, Britannia ruled the waves and an empire on which the sun never set - but for
thousands of years before that, Britain had been no more than a cluster of unimportant islands off Europe's north-west shore.

Drawing on the latest archaeological and historical evidence, Ian Morris shows how much the meaning of Britain's geography has changed in the 10,000 years since rising seas began separating the Isles
from the Continent, and how these changing meanings have determined Britons' destinies.

From being merely Europe's fractious, feuding periphery - divided by customs, language and landscape, and always at the mercy of more powerful continental neighbours - the British turned themselves into a United Kingdom and put it at the centre of global politics, commerce and culture.

But as power and wealth now shift from the West towards China, what fate awaits Britain in the twenty-first century?

Publication date: 02/02/2023

£12.99

ISBN: 9781781258361

Imprint: Profile Books

Subject: Current Affairs, History & Classics, Politics & Economics

Reviews for Geography Is Destiny

'A 'big ideas' gallop ... Morris succeeds triumphantly at cramming 10,000 years of history into a single book'

Robert Colvile The Times

'Morris is a jaunty, accessible writer, especially strong on his home field of archaeology, and this is a book brimming with neat slogans and ideas'

Dan Jones Sunday Times

'Morris writes with great knowledge and wisdom and a certain panache ... I can't think of a better, more thought-provoking and generally wise introduction to the 'long' history of Britain's changing relations with continental Europe and the wider world than Geography is Destiny, or one that is such a terrific read'

Bernard Porter Literary Review

'

Praise for Ian Morris:
'A great work of synthesis and argument, drawing together an awesome range of materials and authorities

'

Andrew Marr 

'A fresh perspective ... Ian Morris has established himself as a leader in making big history interesting and understandable'

Jared Diamond, author Guns, Germs, and Steel

'Clever, acute and counterintuitive ... a pleasure to read'

Dominic Sandbrook Sunday Times

'Brilliantly argued across a huge sweep, combining history with human geography, human and natural sciences. It is a magnificent and stimulating read, and should be given to anyone involved in the business of war and peace, or the human fate in any respect - and already a book of the year'

Robert Fox Evening Standard

'A provocative and extraordinary contribution to wide-screen comparative history ... a true banquet of ideas'

Boyd Tonkin Independent

'This is an astonishing book, full of controversy, brilliantly researched and thoughtfully argued ... one of the most fascinating and thought-provoking histories I've read in years'

 Daily Telegraph

'One doffs one's hat to Morris's breadth, ambition and erudition'

 Sunday Times

'An astonishing work'

David S. Landes, author The Wealth and Poverty of Nations

'An exuberant and wonderfully entertaining tour de force of history, archaeology, anthropology, geography, evolutionary biology and technological and military speculation... a terrific book'

David Crane The Spectator

'It is the book's elegantly succinct prose that will most captivate readers ... filled with lucid explanations of the most recondite questions, with many revealing quotations and witty asides'

Edward Luttwak Prospect

'Remarkable ... historian Morris argues not only that war is a source of technological advance but that it brings peace ... the thesis is disturbingly persuasive'

Martin Wolf Financial Times

'Gleefully provocative yet alarmingly persuasive... one of the most original history books in years'

 Mail on Sunday

Ian Morris

Ian Morris

Ian Morris is Willard Professor of Classics, Professor of History and a fellow of the Archaeology Centre at Stanford University. He is the bestselling author of Why the West Rules – For Now and has appeared on a number of television networks, including the History Network and PBS.

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