Europe since the Seventies

Jeremy Black is Professor of History at the University of Exeter. One of Britain’s leading military historians, he has written over eighty books, including: Maps and Politics (Reaktion, 1996), Why Wars Happen (Reaktion, 1998), Britain since the Seventies (Reaktion, 2004), War since 1945 (Reaktion, 2004), Altered States: America since the Sixties (2004), all published by Reaktion.

"Contending that the year 1945 as the by-now-traditional caesura is too remote for 21st-century students of contemporary history, Black reviews European environmental, social, economic, and political trends since the 1970s in chapters by turns insightful but sometimes cursory. A liberal critic of the European Union, he convincingly reveals its democratic deficits, especially its top-heavy bureaucracy, which very often sets a corporatist agenda against constituents wishes . . . Recommended." - Choice"Black presents a well-structured, well-balanced and well-informed overview of the major developments in Europe since the 1970s. He does not hide his personal views, for instance, about the EUs Common Agricultural Policy, the European Social Model, or President Mitterrand . . . Nevertheless, Black is reflexive about his own preconceptions. As evidence of the resilience of different national perspectives, he notes, his book provides a liberal, anti-dirigiste British view." - Journal of Contemporary European Studies"The greatest strength of Europe since the Seventies is Blacks ability to weave a historical narrative that continually speaks to present-day concerns, including economic recession, environmental change, European integration, and challenges to national identity posed by immigration." - H-net reviews