Table of Contents

1. Prologue; 2. Pangaea revisited, the Neolithic reconsidered; 3. The Norse and the Crusaders; 4. The Fortunate Isles; 5. Winds; 6. Within reach, beyond grasp; 7. Weeds; 8. Animals; 9. Ills; 10. New Zealand; 11. Explanations; 12. Conclusion.

Promotional Information

A fascinating study of the important role of biology in European expansion, from 900 to 1900.

Reviews

Review of previous edition: 'Crosby has unfolded with great power the wider biopolitics of our civilization.' Nature

Review of previous edition: '[This] book is important, and required reading for politicians worldwide … Nuclear war may be spectacular and a valid focus for our exertions, but ecological insouciance is even more dangerous because it is unspectacular, and it merits efforts to combat it as strenuous and urgent.' The Guardian

Review of previous edition: 'The biological bases of radically changing historical ecosystems must never be forgotten - and Crosby has made them intelligible as well as memorable.' Natural History

Review of previous edition: 'Crosby argues his case with vigour, authority and panache, summoning up examples and illustrations that are often as startling in their character as in their implications. Ecological Imperialism could not ask for a more lucid and stylish exponent.' The Times Literary Supplement

Review of previous edition: 'In telling his very readable story, Mr Crosby combines a historian's taste for colorful detail with a scientist's hunger for unifying and testable generalization … [He] shows that there is more to history than kings and battles, and more to ecology than fruits and nuts.' The Wall Street Journal