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A History of Civilization, Volume One: Prehistory to 1715
History of civilization from prehistory to 1715
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
686 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1955
3 people are currently reading
38 people want to read
About the author
Crane Brinton
83 books32 followersClarence Crane Brinton (February 25, 1898 – September 7, 1968) was an American historian of France, as well as a historian of ideas. His most famous work, The Anatomy of Revolution (1938) likened the dynamics of revolutionary movements to the progress of fever.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 17, 2009
Found this amongst a stack of books in our basement as a kid. Nerrrrddded out on it. You fill in the blanks.
November 22, 2019
A very good book with chapters that take you from prehistory to 1715. Each chapter is a very good and easy read. Nice division of the eras and subjects. Very recommended
February 8, 2024
A History of Civilization, Volume One, by Professor’s Crane Brinton, John B. Christopher, and Robert Lee Wolff was assigned to me in a college course. I did not major in history, but I have always been interested in it, so I have read books since, that covered the same ground. When I read this book the first time I underlined sentences with a yellow marking pen. The second time I underlined sentences with my red Pilot pen. It was interesting to see how differently I evaluated sentences then and now.
The title is somewhat misleading, for this book only covers Western civilization. The nations of the Far East did not begin to effect the West until the Twentieth Century, but their effect was great then, so there should have been one chapter dedicated to the histories of China, Korea, and Japan.
A History of Civilization, Volume One covers the time to 1715. It is followed by A History of Civilization, Volume Two.
The Arabs and the Turks did influence the West during the time period of Volume One. They are covered in a perfunctory way. I would have liked to have learned more about the Turks. The Arabs never really recovered from the Mongol conquests of the thirteenth century. The Turks became the most dominant Muslim nation, and went on to establish the Ottoman Empire. Why and how did the Turks convert to Islam? I wish this book explained.
In the Preface the authors admit, “most humans cannot remember great systems of facts for very long unless they make fairly regular use of them.” Then they illustrated their insight by deluging me with a plethora of dates and names I am glad I will not be tested on, and which I must have dreaded when I was studying for exams on this book.
Nevertheless, if you ever need to know those facts it is nice to know they are all here.
Each chapter covers a period of Western history. Each chapter is followed by a list of books that can be read if you want to learn more about that historical period. Each chapter also has beautiful pictures about the period covered.
I was never assigned to read A History of Civilization, Volume Two. I am looking forward to reading it, because it will enhance my understanding of our own troubled era.
The title is somewhat misleading, for this book only covers Western civilization. The nations of the Far East did not begin to effect the West until the Twentieth Century, but their effect was great then, so there should have been one chapter dedicated to the histories of China, Korea, and Japan.
A History of Civilization, Volume One covers the time to 1715. It is followed by A History of Civilization, Volume Two.
The Arabs and the Turks did influence the West during the time period of Volume One. They are covered in a perfunctory way. I would have liked to have learned more about the Turks. The Arabs never really recovered from the Mongol conquests of the thirteenth century. The Turks became the most dominant Muslim nation, and went on to establish the Ottoman Empire. Why and how did the Turks convert to Islam? I wish this book explained.
In the Preface the authors admit, “most humans cannot remember great systems of facts for very long unless they make fairly regular use of them.” Then they illustrated their insight by deluging me with a plethora of dates and names I am glad I will not be tested on, and which I must have dreaded when I was studying for exams on this book.
Nevertheless, if you ever need to know those facts it is nice to know they are all here.
Each chapter covers a period of Western history. Each chapter is followed by a list of books that can be read if you want to learn more about that historical period. Each chapter also has beautiful pictures about the period covered.
I was never assigned to read A History of Civilization, Volume Two. I am looking forward to reading it, because it will enhance my understanding of our own troubled era.
June 21, 2014
Seriously out of date and 'civilization' here apparently only applies to the western world.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews