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Empire
- How Britain Made the Modern World
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble, Niall Ferguson
- Length: 16 hrs and 11 mins
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Publisher's summary
Penguin presents the unabridged audiobook edition of Empire by Niall Ferguson, read by Jonathan Keeble.
Once vast swathes of the globe were coloured imperial red, and Britannia ruled not just the waves but the prairies of America, the plains of Asia, the jungles of Africa and the deserts of Arabia. Just how did a small, rainy island in the North Atlantic achieve all this? And why did the empire on which the sun literally never set finally decline and fall?
Niall Ferguson's acclaimed Empire brilliantly unfolds the imperial story in all its splendours and its miseries, showing how a gang of buccaneers and gold diggers planted the seed of the biggest empire in all history - and set the world on the road to modernity.
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- What the British Did to India
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- Narrated by: Shashi Tharoor
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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In the 18th century, India's share of the world economy was as large as Europe's. By 1947, after two centuries of British rule, it had decreased six-fold. Beyond conquest and deception, the Empire blew rebels from cannons, massacred unarmed protesters, entrenched institutionalized racism, and caused millions to die from starvation. British imperialism justified itself as enlightened despotism for the benefit of the governed, but Shashi Tharoor takes on and demolishes this position, demonstrating how every supposed imperial "gift" was designed in Britain's interests alone.
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An entertaining and provocative history
- By James Moseley on 01-07-20
By: Shashi Tharoor
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Unfinished Empire
- The Global Expansion of Britain
- By: John Darwin
- Narrated by: Alex Hyde-White
- Length: 18 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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In Unfinished Empire, he marshals his gifts to deliver a monumental one-volume history of Britain's imperium - a work that is sure to stand as the most authoritative, most compelling treatment of the subject for a generation.
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Perfect
- By gogojimmy on 01-27-15
By: John Darwin
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Fire and Blood
- A History of Mexico
- By: T. R. Fehrenbach
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
- Length: 35 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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T. R. Fehrenbach brilliantly delineates the contrasts and conflicts between the many Mexicos, unraveling the history while weaving a fascinating tapestry of beauty and brutality: the Amerindians, who wrought from the vulnerable land a great indigenous Meso-American civilization by the first millennium BC; the successive reigns of Olmec, Maya, Toltec, and Mexic masters, who ruled through an admirably efficient bureaucracy and the power of the priests, propitiating the capricious gods with human sacrifices; the Spanish conquistadors, and much more.
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Good book bad narration
- By M. A. Chris Raine on 03-23-19
By: T. R. Fehrenbach
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The Great Democracies
- A History of the English Speaking Peoples, Volume IV
- By: Sir Winston Churchill
- Narrated by: Christian Rodska
- Length: 12 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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The fourth and last volume in Churchill's famous account spans 1815 to 1901. It closes when the British Empire is at its peak, with a staggering one-fifth of the human race presided over by the longest reigning monarch in British history: Queen Victoria.
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A fitting conclusion to Sir Winston's narrative.
- By Vradeen Sengir on 02-11-19
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Liberty's Exiles
- American Loyalists in the Revolutionary World
- By: Maya Jasanoff
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 16 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Maya Jasanoff won the National Book Critics Circle Award for her groundbreaking work Liberty's Exiles. After the American Revolution, 60,000 British loyalists fled the U.S. for Canada, the Caribbean, India, and other points abroad. Jasanoff traces their harrowing journeys across the globe, shedding light on their ambitions, the post-revolutionary world they encountered, and their legacies.
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Staggering in its Breadth
- By Anders P Morley on 02-21-21
By: Maya Jasanoff
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The Birth of Classical Europe
- A History from Troy to Augustine
- By: Simon Price, Peter Thonemann
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 14 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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To an extraordinary extent we continue to live in the shadow of the classical world. At every level, from languages to calendars to political systems, we are the descendants of a “classical Europe,” using frames of reference created by ancient Mediterranean cultures. As this consistently fresh and surprising new audio book makes clear, however, this was no less true for the inhabitants of those classical civilizations themselves, whose myths, history, and buildings were an elaborate engagement with an already old and revered past - one filled with great leaders and writers....
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Excellent overview of the Classical World
- By David I. Williams on 01-12-14
By: Simon Price, and others
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How the Scots Invented the Modern World
- By: Arthur Herman
- Narrated by: Robert Ian Mackenzie
- Length: 18 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Who formed the first literate society? Who invented our modern ideas of democracy and free market capitalism? The Scots. As historian and author Arthur Herman reveals, in the 18th and 19th centuries Scotland made crucial contributions to science, philosophy, literature, education, medicine, commerce, and politics - contributions that have formed and nurtured the modern West ever since. This book is not just about Scotland: it is an exciting account of the origins of the modern world.
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Eagerly Awaited Audiobook
- By Lulu on 09-01-16
By: Arthur Herman
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Imperial Twilight
- The Opium War and the End of China's Last Golden Age
- By: Stephen R. Platt
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 17 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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As one of the most potent turning points in the country's modern history, the Opium War has since come to stand for everything that today's China seeks to put behind it. In this dramatic, epic story, award-winning historian Stephen Platt sheds new light on the early attempts by Western traders and missionaries to "open" China even as China's imperial rulers were struggling to manage their country's decline and Confucian scholars grappled with how to use foreign trade to China's advantage.
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Balanced readable narrative about the Opium Wars
- By Carl A. Gallozzi on 09-05-18
By: Stephen R. Platt
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The Scratch of a Pen
- 1763 and the Transformation of North America
- By: Colin G. Calloway
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 6 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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In February, 1763, Britain, Spain, and France signed the Treaty of Paris, ending the French and Indian War. In this one document, more American territory changed hands than in any treaty before or since. As the great historian Francis Parkman wrote, "half a continent...changed hands at the scratch of a pen."
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Poor account - there are better
- By Brian on 07-18-06
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George Washington: The Founding Father (Eminent Lives)
- By: Paul Johnson
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 3 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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By far the most important figure in the history of the United States, George Washington liberated the 13 colonies from the superior forces of the British Empire against all military odds, and presided over the production and ratification of a constitution that (suitably amended) has lasted for more than 200 years. Yet today, Washington remains a distant figure to many Americans, a failing that acclaimed author Paul Johnson sets out to rectify with this brilliantly vivid, sharply etched portrait.
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Ideology interferes with story line
- By Miranda on 05-01-15
By: Paul Johnson
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Ferguson wouldn’t know history if it hit him in the head
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In his rich and nuanced portrait of the remarkable, elusive Rothschild family, Niall Ferguson uncovers the secrets behind the family's phenomenal economic success. He reveals for the first time the details of the family's vast political network, which gave it access to and influence over many of the greatest statesmen of the age. And he tells a family saga, tracing the importance of unity and the profound role of Judaism in the lives of a dynasty that rose from the confines of the Frankfurt ghetto and later used its influence to assist oppressed Jews throughout Europe.
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In this groundbreaking new biography, based on more than 10,000 hitherto unavailable letters and diary entries, best-selling author Niall Ferguson returns to his roots as a financial historian to tell the story of Siegmund Warburg, an extraordinary man whose austere philosophy of finance offers much insight today.
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A gem, if you are interested in these topics
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As one of the most potent turning points in the country's modern history, the Opium War has since come to stand for everything that today's China seeks to put behind it. In this dramatic, epic story, award-winning historian Stephen Platt sheds new light on the early attempts by Western traders and missionaries to "open" China even as China's imperial rulers were struggling to manage their country's decline and Confucian scholars grappled with how to use foreign trade to China's advantage.
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In Defense of German Colonialism
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Performance
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Famed historian, university professor, and author of the groundbreaking "The Case for Colonialism" Bruce Gilley demonstrates that, contrary to modern presuppositions, German colonialism from its early roots to the mid-twentieth century served overall as a global force for good in the world, elevating the lives of its subjects and encouraging scientific development while allowing native cultures to flourish within its governance.
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Finally, honesty prevails.
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Colonialism
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In the wake of the dissolution of the Soviet empire in 1989, many believed that we had arrived at the ‘End of History’—that the global dominance of liberal democracy had been secured forever. Now, however, with Russia rattling its sabre on the borders of Europe and China rising to challenge the post-1945 world order, the liberal West faces major threats. These threats are not only external. Especially in the Anglosphere, the ‘decolonisation’ movement corrodes the West’s self-confidence by retelling the history of European and American colonial dominance.
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The British in India
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Full of illuminating anecdotes drawn from memoirs, correspondence, and government documents, The British in India weaves a rich tapestry of the everyday experiences of the Britons who found themselves in “the jewel in the crown” of the British Empire. David Gilmour captures the substance and texture of their work, home, and social lives, and illustrates how these transformed across the several centuries of British presence and rule in the subcontinent, from the East India Company’s first trading station in 1615 to the twilight of the Raj and Partition and Independence in 1947.
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Legacy of Violence
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Overall
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Performance
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From a Pulitzer Prize–winning historian: a searing study of the British Empire that probes the country's pervasive use of violence throughout the twentieth century and traces how these practices were exported, modified, and institutionalized in colonies around the globe.
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Great ideas, but very disappointing execution
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By: Caroline Elkins
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The Anarchy
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Overall
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Performance
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The Anarchy tells the remarkable story of how one of the world’s most magnificent empires disintegrated and came to be replaced by a dangerously unregulated private company, based thousands of miles overseas in one small office, five windows wide, and answerable only to its distant shareholders. In his most ambitious and riveting audiobook to date, William Dalrymple tells the story of the East India Company as it has never been told before, unfolding a timely cautionary tale of the first global corporate power.
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excellent book but awkward narration
- By TexasVC on 02-25-20
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The British Empire
- By: Stephen W. Sears
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Here is the story of how the English acquired their vast domain; how they ruled, maintained, and exploited it; and how, within decades, they presided over its dissolution. Here are Britain's triumphs and also her stinging defeats, her heroes and her scoundrels. It is a full and fascinating chronicle of the growth of the British Empire and its people and of the impact that empire had on the rest of the world.
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Great presentation of a broad historical narrative
- By MiamiMe on 03-27-18
By: Stephen W. Sears
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The American Civil War
- By: Gary W. Gallagher, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Gary W. Gallagher
- Length: 24 hrs and 37 mins
- Original Recording
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Between 1861 and 1865, the clash of the greatest armies the Western hemisphere had ever seen turned small towns, little-known streams, and obscure meadows in the American countryside into names we will always remember. In those great battles, those streams ran red with blood-and the United States was truly born.
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Excellent Series
- By Rodney on 07-09-13
By: Gary W. Gallagher, and others
What listeners say about Empire
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- RefractionsoftheDawn
- 11-27-19
Apologies for Empire
Overall Ferguson meanders where he could state his point and give evidence directly, which feels like padding to an otherwise straightforward premise. Aside from putting every abuse of British power in a positive light, there are lessons to be learned here.
The performance was read well enough but the editing leaves dead air between some sentences, leaving you to wonder if you’ve lost connexion with your headphones.
It’s biased, but it’ll open one’s mind a bit.
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- Peter Ryers
- 02-24-18
Great read
A wonderfully insightful look at the British empire. Understandable and enjoyable for the non-historian.
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1 person found this helpful
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- kass voyson
- 12-09-22
Absolutely brilliant.
Incredibly good book and narration is as good as it gets. I happened to read Douglas Murray’s War on the West right after and and decided to get this one on audible and listen to it this time and I’m glad I did. The narrator is perfect
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1 person found this helpful
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- Jackson R.
- 10-13-18
Absolutely Wonderful!
I began this book with an interest and some prior knowledge of British Imperial history, but I was thoroughly amazed by this book. The way Ferguson explains the numerous facets of the Empire engaged me from the beginning. This is helped greatly by the voice acting. Using subtly different voices for different quotes isn't something usually found in a history book. Ferguson does a good job defending his view of the empire as a general force for good while not shying away from the tragedies and mistakes made as well. This is a must listen for sure.
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- J Dub
- 02-04-18
Good but not what I expected.
Well done but not what I expected. kinda dry. I was expecting more along his book, civilization.
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- pp2000
- 05-18-19
Great book
Thought provoking and engaging and opens your mind to the other side of the history. Each even in history has its good
And bad and this certainly enlightens as it entertains.
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- Scott Young
- 07-15-21
Illuminating and thrilling
This book should be quintessential study for anyone who wants to understand how the current world is the way it is. And the debt owed to the British people and their peculiar making of history.
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- Anonymous User
- 11-15-22
Honest & Brave Examination of British Imperialism
A candid appraisal of the British Empire that grapples with the horrors of empire as well as examines the heritage of empire from which we still benefit, and to which we owe so much.
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- Dan Davis
- 04-14-18
Enlightening
I am glad I finished this enlightening work. The middle drug out in details, but the body of work is worth the time.
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5 people found this helpful
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Story
- michael s
- 10-27-19
No country was better at Imperialism than Britain.
The narrator does an excellent job of voicing some of the people throughout history, especially Sir Winston Churchill.
You may pick a day, a year or a century and rightly find the British were cruel bastards. If given a choice, in the end, your country was better off with British rule than any other country.
They redeemed themselves early in the 19th century when they campaigned to end slavery. They did not ask the world twice to stop human trafficking. The Royal Navy enforced this proclamation. This was gun boat diplomacy at it's finest.
The Empire came about, in response to the European need for markets and growth. Holland, Spain, France and England were vying for new colonies in Africa and Asia. Britain was the most successful because the Industrial Revolution started in Britain. The IR succeeded because the British had an abundance of human capital, a stable government, the rule of law and a sound financial system. The Empire grew and succeeded when entrepreneurs were free to risk capital abroad and keep their gains. When a country was shown to be stable and investments profitable, the crown was ushered in to provide a framework to strengthen the society and develop a stable government.
In the end, the Empire began to falter, like a successful player of Monopoly. They had more than they could maintain and had to cut their losses.
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