The World in 1800

by Olivier Bernier

"Olivier Bernier's richly detailed, engaging, and elegant books offers a splendid refresher course on a pivotal moment in world history - the dawn of the modern era." - Francine du Plessix Gray In the year 1800, almost everyone lived very much as their ancestors had, going back countless generations. In the countryside, illiterate peasants - the majority of the population - still scratched out a living from the soil, while in the cities, merchants hawked their wares in open-air market stalls and nobles led lives of opulent leisure. Yet everywhere were unmistakable signs that all of this would soon change forever. Spread by France's seemingly invincible citizens' army, the seeds of republicanism had been planted throughout Europe. In the Americas, the United States had proved to the world the feasibility of a government of, by, and for the people, and Mexico was threatening to follow its lead. And while it still took four months for an official dispatch to travel from London to Calcutta, Europe's leading nations - France and England - had established global empire-building strategies. In the year 1800, the world suddenly found itself enmeshed in a web of money, war, and political intrigue, out of which a new world - our world - was struggling to be born. Bringing all his talents as a first-rate storyteller to bear, Bernier takes us inside the courts and parliaments of the major powers to listen in on the political discourse of the day. He leads us into the boudoirs and ballrooms of the rich, the cramped homes of the middle class, and the hovels of the poor to provide an intimate glimpse of the private lives of the first modern men and women. A spellbinding account of one of the most momentous chapters in the story of civilization, The World in 1800 is a singular achievement by a premier historian and an irresistible read.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World History, Historical

393 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 4, 2000

Reviews

[Bill]

This book was useful to me as one sorely lacking in knowledge of basic eastern histories (Japan, China, Turkey, India) and good refresher summaries of the Napoleonic romps through Europe; the Adams/Jefferson transition in the young United States and the post-Catherine II Russia.

"The World in 1800" provides a great sampler of the many world histories other than the typical Euro- or US-centric fare many of us have been left with from mandated reading to fulfill history credits in college. This point in history is really quite fascinating, as it finds most of the world in the clutches of colonialism and the beginning of the end of imperial dynasties and of the arguments that would lead to the end of slavery.

There are excellent synopses of what what then going in in Mexico, Peru and Brazil as well, which give some insights also into the struggle of two other European colonial powers - Portugal and Spain - to control and exploit countries at vast distance. This book will whet your appetite to fill those nagging historical gaps of knowledge.

[Aria · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dnf p. 21. The writing flows very well. That's about the end of the good stuff, though.

I started having problems w/ this book in the preface. "The first real democracy proved itself in the United States when..." Sorry, what? What happened to Greece? Also, how is it the 1st, "real democracy," when it's not even a true direct democracy, but rather a representative democracy? Why does that supposedly make it more "real"?

Also, on p.1, in the very 1st paragraph, no less, there's this nugget: "In 1789, for the first time in Europe, the French Revolution asserted that the basic necessities of civilized life included equality before the law, liberty, and the right for every people to choose its government. By 1800, the United States had a constitution that guaranteed this." Did it? Really? Lol. I sure don't know what the Suffragettes or non-white citizens were going on about in the 1st part of the 1900's then. Going back to the difference in direct vs representational democracies though, those who make up the "every people" here only get to choose part of the government. The electoral college chooses the President in the U.S. The "people" only get to make suggestions, as far as that goes. They also can't choose a lot of other positions, like some of the judiciary. So, they get to choose representatives, & people for some lower level civil offices. Saying the people choose the government is wildly over-stating the situation. But it's the 1st "real" democracy. Sure. Okay, guy.

Yeah, maybe skip this one.

[Marc Gerstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting approach to historical writing. I kept thinking of this as horizontal history. Brenner picked one period of time, 1800 (including the swaths of time leading up to and following the yer 1800) and covering the a large portion of the world; Europe, North America, South America, Asia, India, Turkey and Africa. This is in stark contrast to traditional (vertical) history, which focuses on a single place and traces developments over a long period of time.

I think there is a very valuable place for this sort of horizontal history. It enables us to see how different parts of the world impact other parts. And there’s quite a lot of this. The period around 1800 was dominated by the transition to modernity, when the ideas of the European Enlightenment manifested themselves in real world affairs to varying degrees.

It would be fascinating to see treatments like this for other periods. Unfortunately, I think this will stand as a one off. Author Olivier Bernier has written a lot abut that specific time period, mainly set in Europe, and particularly France. This book seems to reflect an offshoot of this main pre-occupation, rather than a desire to re-think historical writing. But even if this approach does stand alone, at least its; worth appreciating the one period, 1800, we got.

[Roberta Muelling · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an easily readable world history. I didn’t realize so much had happened around that time. Unfortunately, the ebook was rife with typos and mistakes. I can only hope they cleaned them up for the hardback copy.

[Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

Only made it through the introduction. A book which talks about "primitive civilizations" and only talks about Africa in the context of slavery is not worth reading, especially if written so recently. Very disappointed.

[Marijean Miyar · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a tour de force, the entire wold, or most of it, around 1800. This edition suffered from silly mistakes and typos that a more thorough editing should have fixed. Nevertheless, Bernier writes with fluidity, and pages turn quickly and often rivetingly.

[David Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a really nice global view of the world 200 years ago. Like and yet unlike our world of today, the forces that influenced the 19th and 20th century were clearly evident.

I found though that trying to include everything left one wanting more detail about some of the areas.

[Mike McSorley]

Wonderful

Enjoyed tremendously . The events that created a new world of possibilities. Events did not take place in a vacuum but had the power to shape people's in every corner of the globe.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed it. Info about Mexico City, Peking, etc. at the time besides Europe and the US.

[Robert2481 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating book. The amount of information about so many different segments of the world in 1800 is simply astounding. Bernier seems to be an expert on everywhere.

['Aussie Rick' · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this was an interesting view of the world and events in 1800. The author takes the reader across Europe, between the warring nations of France, England, Austria, Prussia and Russia, and then onto the America's. He continues the journey into China, Japan, India, the Ottoman Empire and finishes in Africa. The author, Olivier Bernier introduces us to the leaders, people, customs, art, cities and life of the inhabitants of these countries. Although the book is about 450 pages, in reality he can only offer us an interesting overview of these people and places. In no manner is this an in-depth account but it is an enjoyable story none the less. The main theme of the book, I think, is to show how the world was becoming smaller, that the countries were in fact linked in one manner or another. That event's in Revolutionary France could have an impact on the inhabitants and events in furthermost Africa. It was interesting to read of Napoleon and his campaigns (in brief) and find out that at the same time what was happening in the United States, or in Peru, Brazil or China. I would have liked a few more pictures and maps and at times I did find that the narrative bogged down but overall this was a very enjoyable piece of historical writing. I think that anybody that enjoys a decent history book without too many facts and figures should enjoy this book.

[Prasan Kaikini · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting view of the political, social and economic state of the world - mostly the Western world - in 1800. A new country had just been established, the worst of the French revolution was over, England was recovering from the loss of its American colony and embarking on building a new colony in India...

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Ho Shen and Aimee Dubucq de Rivery are two people who need movies.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful illuminating. Like a telescope into the past.

[Bryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really nice introduction to the transition between early modern and our own modern age