An Economist Best Book of the Year. “Sweeping . . . an ambitious synthesis . . . [Evans] writes with admirable narrative power and possesses a wonderful eye for local colour. . . Fascinating." - The Wall Street Journal. Covering the period from the fall of Napoleon to the outbreak of World War I. This gripping narrative ranges across a century of social and national conflicts. Among the great themes it discusses are the decline of religious belief and the rise of secular science and medicine, the journey of art, music, and literature. This comprehensive and sweeping account gives the reader a magnificently human picture of Europe in the age when it dominated the rest of the globe. "A massive and masterful account . . . This is a beautifully written, wide-ranging study that explores in depth the political, social, and economic factors that shaped and continue to shape modern Europe and the wider world.”—Booklist,(starred review)