Britain's Europe
Subtitle: a thousand years of conflict and cooperation
By: Brendan Simms
Publisher: Allen Lane, an imprint of Penguin Books
Published: 2016
Place of publication: [London] UK
Language: eng
Number of pages: 302
ISBN-13: 9780241275962
Subjects: History; Foreign relations; Diplomatic relations
Description: Britain has always had a tangled, complex, paradoxical role in Europe's history. It has invaded and been invaded, changed sides, stood aloof, acted with both brazen cynicism and the cloudiest idealism. Every century troops from the British Isles have marched across the mainland in pursuit of a great complex of different goals, foremost among them the intertwined defence of parliamentary liberty in Britain and the 'Liberties of Europe'. Dynastically Britain has been closely linked to countries as varied as Spain, the Netherlands, Germany and France. In this bracing and highly enjoyable book, Brendan Simms describes the highlights and low-points in the Euro-British encounter, from the Dark Ages to the present. The critical importance of understanding this history is shown in the final chapter. It dramatizes the issues around British relations with the European Union and how, far from being a narrowly legalistic or financial concern, a referendum on continued membership raises fascinating questions: about both the United Kingdom's own horizons and what it can offer to the Union's vision of itself. --
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 249-302).
Table of contents: title: Introduction : our European story; title: The bonds of 'Christendom' : Europe and the creation of England; title: 'A piece of the continent' : Europe and the making of the United Kingdom; title: 'The bulwarks of Great Britain' : the United Kingdom and the continent in the age of absolutism; title: There goes the neighbourhood : Britain and Europe in the age of revolution; title: 'The great bank of Europe' : Britain and the continent in the age of Napoleon; title: 'Where the weather comes from' : Britain and Europe in the age of nationalism; title: 'Under a single sway' : Britain and Europe in the age of total war; title: 'Our destiny has been to help shape Europe' : Britain and the continent in the age of European integration; title: Britain : the last European great power; title: A European Britain or a British Europe? The United Kingdom and continental union; title: Conclusion.