Edited by Peter Fibiger Bang, C. A. Bayly, and Walter Scheidel

• Unparalleled coverage of the phenomenon of empire in world history, reaching either further back or across a greater expanse of space than any predecessor
• A daring synthesis of the imperial experience across the full span of history
• An important paradigm for the study of empire, generating a non-Eurocentric world history
• A unique combination of syntheses, comparative thematic discussions, and in-depth treatment of a very wide range of individual empires, from Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas
• Against the backdrop of world history, European colonial powers emerge unexpectedly as an especially unstable form of imperialism