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Understand the Middle East (Since 1945): Teach Yourself
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An essential guide to one of the world's most turbulent regions
Understand the Middle East (since 1945) examines the origins and development of the events which have dominated the headlines for the last six decades. Covering everything from religion and politics in the aftermath of the Second World War to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, war in Iraq and the terrorism of the present day it will change the way you think about the region.
Understand the Middle East (since 1945) includes:
Chapter 1: The crossroads of the world
What is the Middle East?
The geography of the Middle East
Peoples and Societies
Religion
Chapter 2: States and mandates: Middle Eastern politics to the end of the Second World War
Ottoman collapse
Three agreements
The Arabian peninsula
Iran
Egypt
Iraq
Syria, Lebanon and Transjordan
Chapter 3: The promised land
Palestine
Zion
The British mandate
The state of Israel
Chapter 4: Gamal Abdul Nasser
The First Arab-Israeli war
A region of instability
Nasser
The Suez crisis
Chapter 5: War to war
The Suez war
The consequences of Suez
Between the wars
The Palestinians
The path to war
Chapter 6: Divisions and developments 1967-73
The Six Day War
The consequences of war
Enter Sadat and Assad
Palestine militant
Sadat's patience runs out
The Fourth Arab-Israeli War
The oil weapon
Chapter 7: Lebanon bleeds
Uneasy peace
Civil war
Israeli intervention
Israeli invasion
Towards settlement
Chapter 8: Camp David
'We can negotiate'
Shuttle diplomacy
A moment in history
Camp David
Chapter 9: Revolution and war
King of Kings
The Iranian Revolution
The rise of Saddam Hussein
Chapter 10: Intifada
Fruitless negotiation
The Palestinians
Intifada
The state of Palestine
Hopes of settlement
Chapter 11: Desert Storm
Saddam bankrupt
Operation Desert Shield
Operation Desert Storm
Repercussions and revolts
Chapter 12: The 1990s: Searching for settlement
Instability, religion and power
The Declaration of Principles
Struggling for peace
A broader peace
The peace process crumbles
The Second Intifada
Chapter 13: Decision time: 9/11 and the Arab world
The Middle East in 2001
9/11 and America's War on Terror
A new millennium: 1. Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria
A new millennium: 2. Saudi Arabia and the Gulf
Chapter 14: Tragedy and intransigence: Iraq and Iran in the new millennium
Insurgency and democracy
Towards settlement
Twenty-first-century Iran
Chapter 15: Israel-Palestine in the new century
New century, old problems
Peace plans and disengagement
Olmert, Abbas and Hamas
More jaw, more war
.
Learn effortlessly with a new easy-to-read page design and interactive features:
Not got much time?
One, five and ten-minute introductions to key principles to get you started.
Author insights
Lots of instant help with common problems and quick tips for success, based on the author's many years of experience.
Test yourself
Tests in the book and online to keep track of your progress.
Extend your knowledge
Extra online articles to give you a richer understanding of the subject.
Five things to remember
Quick refreshers to help you remember the key facts.
Try this
Innovative exercises illustrate what you've learnt and how to use it.
256 pages, Paperback
First published August 27, 2010
13 people are currently reading
94 people want to read
About the author
Stewart Ross
366 books36 followersStewart Ross has written more than 300 titles, fiction and non-fiction, for children and adults. Many are about (or inspired by) history. He lives near Canterbury, England.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
January 31, 2025
Straightforward, with an engaging tone, this book is an excellent introduction to the history of the Middle East. Ross has done well to condense a huge amount of information into a concise and very readable title. He weaves the histories of individual countries seamlessly into a narrative and mostly does an impressive job at providing a balanced view.
Ross explains the roots of the current conflicts and challenges in the Middle East in 19th and 20th-century European imperialism, and the development of the State of Israel from the mid-20th century. Describing the Six-Day War, he says, ‘The map… shows a tiny Israel surrounded by vast expanses of Arab-held territory: surely this time Goliath would crush the puny David? But Israel was not a puny David. By 1967, it was more an outpost of the West. The governments and people of the US, France and West Germany sustained, armed and guarded it.’
In places, though, the role of the imperial powers is neglected. For instance, discussing Iraq, Ross notes that ‘One of the principal reasons for the instability of the Middle East in recent times has been the painful process of defining and creating nation states in a region to which the concept was largely alien.’ The main issue here is that ‘defining and creating nation states’ was a European colonial project.
It is hard to write both accurately and concisely on such a broad subject, and Ross mostly achieves this. A few inaccuracies have crept in though. It’s a common myth that the USA supports Israel because of the Jewish lobby. The main reason has always been strategic, as described above. In an otherwise excellent description of the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, he conflates the Jewish people with the State of Israel, saying ‘The vast reservoir of international sympathy for the Jews, present since the Holocaust, had all but run dry.’
Overall though, this is an extremely valuable general overview of the history of the Middle East.
Ross explains the roots of the current conflicts and challenges in the Middle East in 19th and 20th-century European imperialism, and the development of the State of Israel from the mid-20th century. Describing the Six-Day War, he says, ‘The map… shows a tiny Israel surrounded by vast expanses of Arab-held territory: surely this time Goliath would crush the puny David? But Israel was not a puny David. By 1967, it was more an outpost of the West. The governments and people of the US, France and West Germany sustained, armed and guarded it.’
In places, though, the role of the imperial powers is neglected. For instance, discussing Iraq, Ross notes that ‘One of the principal reasons for the instability of the Middle East in recent times has been the painful process of defining and creating nation states in a region to which the concept was largely alien.’ The main issue here is that ‘defining and creating nation states’ was a European colonial project.
It is hard to write both accurately and concisely on such a broad subject, and Ross mostly achieves this. A few inaccuracies have crept in though. It’s a common myth that the USA supports Israel because of the Jewish lobby. The main reason has always been strategic, as described above. In an otherwise excellent description of the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, he conflates the Jewish people with the State of Israel, saying ‘The vast reservoir of international sympathy for the Jews, present since the Holocaust, had all but run dry.’
Overall though, this is an extremely valuable general overview of the history of the Middle East.
January 24, 2021
The absolute perfect beginners guide to the Middle East. I’ve long had an interest in the current affairs of the region, but it never went any deeper than that. Then one day I decided to go in-depth for once, and try and understand the history behind the politics. This book kept popping up every time I searched for a good source, and so I bought it. Admittedly it skips out on a few events, and completely glosses over several countries in the region, but it’s made clear right at the start that it’s only an entry-level book. For that reason I cannot recommend it enough. If, like me, you want to learn more about the Middle East, but don’t know where to start, this book should be right at the top of your list.
June 10, 2025
Short readable intro to the complex history of the region. My only fault is that at times I felt the author glossed over interesting narratives that could have been expanded on I.E. Saudia Arabias fight against communism and how it aligned them with Israel.
However given the scope of history the author (successfully) included and the size of the book. I feel this is nitpick.
However given the scope of history the author (successfully) included and the size of the book. I feel this is nitpick.
April 3, 2023
With limited (and seemingly justified) value judgements, this book has finally allowed me to begin to understand the political middle Eastern landscape.
July 14, 2025
längster Wikipedia-Eintrag, den man aber unbedingt lesen muss, it's a pain but worth it
September 5, 2015
I found this a clear and coherent account of the Middle East from the fragmentation of the Ottoman Empire in WW1 to the Blair-Bush war on Iraq (I was reading a slightly earlier edition). Not in the flat textbook tone which one dreads in introductory outlines but written with an engaging authorial voice, with some dry asides but no condescending jocularity either, thank goodness. Inevitably dense with names, acronyms and dates; most are familiar but I'll need to read several books before these become familiar mental furniture. In my edition, there are a few maps but no photographs, and, as another reviewer says, a selection of documentaries would usefully complement the material here. Useful book, well worth spending time with.
May 23, 2013
An excellent introduction. The different histories are well integrated and keep to a linear chronology. I will search out other history books in the same series! Compares favourably to many historical editions in the Oxford "Very Short Introductions To" series, which are often too fussy or opaque for a beginner.
November 22, 2011
Attempting to shed some light on things that would probably require anyone two extra brains to even being to understand them, here's a book that actually doesn't do a bad job of it. And, just like the previous phrase, it needs to be read at least twice.
April 23, 2015
This book gives us knowledge about all the countries in middle-east. So many historical events really made my heart hard. It is good to watch some youtube videos on the historical events after reading few chapters about it to better understand more about it.
October 31, 2012
Good if you are fascinated by Middle Eastern politics as I am.
February 16, 2016
I think this is a really good book as a basic introduction into the region. if you are looking for further information on many of the topics discussed then you will need to look in other places.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews