What do you think?
Rate this book
Great Power Diplomacy: The Skill of Statecraft from Attila the Hun to Kissinger
A captivating history of diplomacy--and an urgent reminder of why we need to revive its lost arts to survive in a dangerous era of great power competition
From the beginning of time, human societies have found themselves confronted by enemies too numerous or ferocious to defeat solely by force of arms. In these dramatic moments, wise leaders have turned to diplomacy to rearrange the gameboard in their favor and stymie seemingly unstoppable foes. In Great Power Diplomacy, American historian and diplomat A. Wess Mitchell recounts the forgotten story of how history's most legendary empires have used diplomacy as a tool of grand strategy to outwit, outmaneuver, and outlast militarily superior opponents.
Through fifteen centuries of history, Great Power Diplomacy recreates the perilous junctures, colorful personalities, and intricate statecraft that led to some of history's most stunning diplomatic achievements--and greatest disasters. The protagonists include giants like Richelieu, Metternich, Bismarck, and Kissinger, but also a lesser-known cast of scoundrels, eunuchs, drunkards, and fools. At every turn, fortune favored those great powers with the foresight and dexterity to build winning alliances, splinter enemy coalitions, and, when necessary, make peace with their bitterest foes.
Diplomacy of this kind has become a lost art in recent years as Western elites embraced the illusion that globalization and the spread of democracy would create a borderless world where nations would live in harmony and war would be abolished from the human story. But, as Great Power Diplomacy reveals, we will need to rediscover the secrets of skillful statecraft as the world enters an unstable new era in which continent-sized great powers compete for territory, resources, and prestige. By recalling diplomacy's rich past, we can equip ourselves for a more dangerous future.
From the beginning of time, human societies have found themselves confronted by enemies too numerous or ferocious to defeat solely by force of arms. In these dramatic moments, wise leaders have turned to diplomacy to rearrange the gameboard in their favor and stymie seemingly unstoppable foes. In Great Power Diplomacy, American historian and diplomat A. Wess Mitchell recounts the forgotten story of how history's most legendary empires have used diplomacy as a tool of grand strategy to outwit, outmaneuver, and outlast militarily superior opponents.
Through fifteen centuries of history, Great Power Diplomacy recreates the perilous junctures, colorful personalities, and intricate statecraft that led to some of history's most stunning diplomatic achievements--and greatest disasters. The protagonists include giants like Richelieu, Metternich, Bismarck, and Kissinger, but also a lesser-known cast of scoundrels, eunuchs, drunkards, and fools. At every turn, fortune favored those great powers with the foresight and dexterity to build winning alliances, splinter enemy coalitions, and, when necessary, make peace with their bitterest foes.
Diplomacy of this kind has become a lost art in recent years as Western elites embraced the illusion that globalization and the spread of democracy would create a borderless world where nations would live in harmony and war would be abolished from the human story. But, as Great Power Diplomacy reveals, we will need to rediscover the secrets of skillful statecraft as the world enters an unstable new era in which continent-sized great powers compete for territory, resources, and prestige. By recalling diplomacy's rich past, we can equip ourselves for a more dangerous future.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published October 14, 2025
33 people are currently reading
422 people want to read
About the author
A. Wess Mitchell
6 books12 followersAaron Wess Mitchell is the Assistant Secretary, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs at the United States Department of State. The former president of the Center for European Policy Analysis in Washington, DC, Mitchell holds a B.A. in History from Texas Tech University, a M.A. from the Center for German and European Studies at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, and a Ph.D. in Political Science from the Otto Suhr Institut für Politikwissenschaft at Freie Universität in Berlin, Germany.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 22, 2025
Standard, gullible claptrap about the west "securing peace and democracy" while the rest of the planet thinks in more brutal, 'primitive' terms (i.e. realpolitik and such). Under this conceptual scheme, all the objective evil we do is thus a 'reactive, necessary evil' 😂.
Parts of his book are valuable, but only when discussing the history of diplomacy as a whole in the premodern world. The value judgments that Mitchell attaches to the narrative, however, are often one-dimensional (especially as it pertains to the West as a concept).
What Mitchell is too cowardly to admit (or maybe too dim?) is that politics is, universally speaking, a dirty art -- on ALL sides. Not just when "they" do it. The funny part is that he seems to be aware of this now and then, but buries it in rhetoric quickly.
Seriously, how does this crap even pass for analysis? 🤣
Parts of his book are valuable, but only when discussing the history of diplomacy as a whole in the premodern world. The value judgments that Mitchell attaches to the narrative, however, are often one-dimensional (especially as it pertains to the West as a concept).
What Mitchell is too cowardly to admit (or maybe too dim?) is that politics is, universally speaking, a dirty art -- on ALL sides. Not just when "they" do it. The funny part is that he seems to be aware of this now and then, but buries it in rhetoric quickly.
Seriously, how does this crap even pass for analysis? 🤣
January 5, 2026
This review is for the Kindle Edition
I give the book 3 stars, noting that while it contains valuable historical information on diplomacy, it suffers from excessive redundancy. The book consists of nine chapters plus notes, bibliography, index, and map notes (totaling 328 pages).
Each chapter presents definitions and historical background for various case studies—ranging from the Byzantines, Habsburgs, Ottomans, Prussia, England, and others—spanning roughly 450 AD to the late 20th century. Although the case studies are well-written, I feel the author repeatedly revisits the same themes, making sections feel repetitive.
The review highlights interesting insights into the development of statecraft, such as the rise of diplomatic institutions, the use of envoys and ambassadors for gathering intelligence, and the effective reporting practices of 15th‑century Venetian diplomats. The Author also lists key lessons on effective diplomacy, emphasizing:
The need for adequate military and economic power
The value of specialized regional expertise (“China Hands”)
The importance of trust-building, thorough reporting, alliances, covert operations, and strategic timing
Diplomacy as a bridge between limited power and national objectives
Bottom line: I recommend the book for its detailed historical content, but I caution readers that the repetitive writing style may feel tedious.
I give the book 3 stars, noting that while it contains valuable historical information on diplomacy, it suffers from excessive redundancy. The book consists of nine chapters plus notes, bibliography, index, and map notes (totaling 328 pages).
Each chapter presents definitions and historical background for various case studies—ranging from the Byzantines, Habsburgs, Ottomans, Prussia, England, and others—spanning roughly 450 AD to the late 20th century. Although the case studies are well-written, I feel the author repeatedly revisits the same themes, making sections feel repetitive.
The review highlights interesting insights into the development of statecraft, such as the rise of diplomatic institutions, the use of envoys and ambassadors for gathering intelligence, and the effective reporting practices of 15th‑century Venetian diplomats. The Author also lists key lessons on effective diplomacy, emphasizing:
The need for adequate military and economic power
The value of specialized regional expertise (“China Hands”)
The importance of trust-building, thorough reporting, alliances, covert operations, and strategic timing
Diplomacy as a bridge between limited power and national objectives
Bottom line: I recommend the book for its detailed historical content, but I caution readers that the repetitive writing style may feel tedious.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews