Get 20% off sitewide with promo code SUMMER22 at checkout! Shop now ยป
For more great books, visit TheExperimentPublishing.com.
The Shortest History of Europe
How Conquest, Culture, and Religion Forged a Continent
By John Hirst
Three millennia of history on a momentous, world-changing continent, distilled into 208 thrilling pages, from The Shortest History series!
Celebrated historian John Hirst draws from his own lectures to deliver this ultra-accessible master class on the making of modern Europe, from Ancient Greece through World War II. With over 600,000 copies sold worldwide, this brief history is a global sensation propelled by a thesis of astonishing simplicity: Just three elements—German warfare, Greek and Roman culture, and Christianity—come together to explain everything else, from the Crusades to the Industrial Revolution. Hirst’s razor-sharp grasp of cause and effect helps us see with sparkling clarity how the history of Europe—the crucible of liberal democracy—shapes the way we live today.
Celebrated historian John Hirst draws from his own lectures to deliver this ultra-accessible master class on the making of modern Europe, from Ancient Greece through World War II. With over 600,000 copies sold worldwide, this brief history is a global sensation propelled by a thesis of astonishing simplicity: Just three elements—German warfare, Greek and Roman culture, and Christianity—come together to explain everything else, from the Crusades to the Industrial Revolution. Hirst’s razor-sharp grasp of cause and effect helps us see with sparkling clarity how the history of Europe—the crucible of liberal democracy—shapes the way we live today.
Look Inside
Meet the Author

John Hirst
More about the authorReview quotes
“Crisp, lucid, and evocative.”—Australian Book Review
“A wise, illuminating little book.”—The Sydney Morning Herald
“An entertaining, learned piece of historical compression.”—The Age
“Beautifully and sparely constructed, yet rich in fact, feeling and detail, sweeping, challenging and funny.”—James Button, journalist and edito
“Great stuff, the book as a whole is constantly thought-provoking.”—Courier Mail
“A wise, illuminating little book.”—The Sydney Morning Herald
“An entertaining, learned piece of historical compression.”—The Age
“Beautifully and sparely constructed, yet rich in fact, feeling and detail, sweeping, challenging and funny.”—James Button, journalist and edito
“Great stuff, the book as a whole is constantly thought-provoking.”—Courier Mail
Product Details
- 224
- November 08, 2022
- 9781615199143