Fragile Nation, Shattered Land: The Modern History of Syria

by James A. Reilly

Overview

How did the lands that are today Syria survive the vicissitudes of centuries of Ottoman, Egyptian, and French rule, only to stand in ruins today, shattered by a brutal civil war? To provide answers, James Reilly traces five centuries of Syrian history, from the Ottoman period to the present. Reilly brings to life the myriad historical, cultural, social, economic, and political factors that have bound Syrians together, as well as those that have torn them apart. Drawing on extensive primary sources and recent historiography in English, French, and Arabic, he has written an essential book for those who want to understand not only contemporary Syria, but also the Middle East region.


CONTENTS:

• Introduction.
• Syria Becomes Ottoman, Sixteenth to Seventeenth Centuries.
• Syria's "Long" Eighteenth Century: Political Crises and Local Rulers.
• Syria Between Europe and the Ottomans, 1820s-1900s
• The Idea of Syria and World War I.
• France and the Creation of the Syrian Territorial State.
• Crises of Independent Statehood.
• Thirty Years of Hafez al-Assad.
• A False "Spring" and Gathering Storms.
• Uprising, Civil War, and Fragmentation.
• Syria Divided.
  

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781626379992
Publisher:	Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	05/13/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	9 MB

About the Author

James A. Reilly is professor of history at the University of Toronto. His previous publications include A Small Town in Syria and The Ottoman Cities of Lebanon.

Editorial Reviews

12/10/2018

Reilly, a historian at the University of Toronto, distills half a millennium of conflict and shifting alliances into a clear, eminently readable work that demystifies the origins and fault lines of the current crisis in Syria. The region, defined by an accident of geography more than a strongly articulated national identity, was part of the Ottoman Empire for four centuries, became a French-controlled nation after WWI, and, more recently, “lacked the anchors to withstand the disintegrative effects of regional wars and political-sectarian rivalries, especially after the ill-conceived U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.” The environment that allowed Syria’s initial Arab Spring protests to emerge and spread was one in which governmental attention had shifted from the agricultural regions to the prosperous, mercantile urban communities, leaving a vacuum of power in the rural heartland. Though the events of the past decade are only reached in the final 25 pages, and Reilly offers few clues as to what the future may hold, his sweeping vision and encyclopedic knowledge of everything from crop yields to the Levantine educational system make this an essential book for anyone seeking to understand the modern Middle East. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

This book will be a certain, and immediate, classic. It is likely to be the best book published on Syria for a long time…. Outstanding.

Michael Provence

Reilly's Fragile Nation, Shattered Land is a gem.... almost every page delivers a sparkling insight set off by a simple and elegant style. This book should be read by anyone wishing to understand the deeper social and cultural dimensions of Syria's modern crisis.

Joshua Landis

With his deep understanding of Syria, James Reilly has produced a masterpiece that illuminates the country’s convoluted past and tragic present…. If there is one book you have to read about Syria to better understand the reasons behind its fragility, this is it.

Omer Taspinar

An epic history of modern Syria, this book is vital to understanding the roots of what has become the most devastating conflict of the 21st century…. Reilly helps explain the roots of Syria’s tragedy and the possible futures that may await it.

Murtaza Hussain