The middle east: a brief history of the last 2,000 years

Charts The Successive Transformations Of The Middle East; Details The Forces That Have Shaped The History Of The Region: The Islamic Religion And Legal System; The Traditions Of Government; The Immense Variety Of Trade And The Wide Range Of Crops; The Elites–military, Commercial, Religious, Intellectual And Artistic–and The Commonality, Including Such Socially Distinct Groups As Slaves, Women, And Non-believers. 1. Before Christianity — 2. Before Islam — 3. Origins — 4. The ‘abbasid Caliphate — 5. The Coming Of The Steppe Peoples — 6. The Mongol Aftermath — 7. The Gunpowder Empires — 8. The State — 9. The Economy — 10. The Elites — 11. The Commonalty — 12. Religion And Law — 13. Culture — 14. Challenge — 15. Change — 16. Response And Reaction– 17. New Ideas — 18. From War To War — 19. From Freedom To Freedom. Bernard Lewis. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 394-396) And Index.