Read more
The book explores the affairs of Mount Lebanon and its surrounds through fourteen centuries, beginning with the emergence of its Christian, Muslim and Islamic-derived communities between the sixth and eleventh centuries. Against this backdrop, it interprets the modern republic of Lebanon from Ottoman antecedents to present day crises.
List of contents
- Acknowledgments
- A Note on Transliteration
- Glossary
- Timeline for Lebanon and its Communities
- Introduction
- Part One Foundations
- 1. Emerging Communities, 600-1291
- 2. Druze Ascent, 1291-1633
- 3. Mountain Lords, 1633-1842
- Part Two Modern Lebanon
- 4. Emerging Lebanon, 1842-1942
- 5. Independent Lebanon, 1943-1975
- 6. Broken Lebanon, 1975-2011
- Conclusion
- Abbreviations
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
About the author
William Harris is Professor of Politics at the University of Otago. He has taught at Princeton University, Haigazian University College in Beirut, Middle East Technical University in Ankara, and the University of Exeter. He is the author of The Levant: A Fractured Mosaic and Faces of Lebanon: Sects, Wars, and Global Extensions.
Summary
The book explores the affairs of Mount Lebanon and its surrounds through fourteen centuries, beginning with the emergence of its Christian, Muslim and Islamic-derived communities between the sixth and eleventh centuries. Against this backdrop, it interprets the modern republic of Lebanon from Ottoman antecedents to present day crises.
Additional text
Lebanon is defined by its religious diversity, its communities long predating the modern state. In this lucid and engaging new history, William Harris traces the evolution of the Christian, Muslim, and Druze communities of Mount Lebanon over fourteen centuries, the better to understand the dangerous sectarian democracy of modern Lebanon. A bold and authoritative analysis based on Arabic and European sources that will guide Western readers through the maze of Lebanese history and politics.
