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The Age of Revolution: 1749-1848 (Vintage)

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Though it was originally published in 1962, Eric Hobsbawm's The Age of Revolution still can be considered one of the most astute and authoritative analyses of the French and Industrial Revolutions. Through his recognition that these two revolutions were linked through various historical circumstances Hobsbawm illuminates the period that began with the rise of Jacobinism and ended with the failure of the 1848 uprisings. Unfortunately, Hobsbawm's work in not accesible to the novice historian. The reader must possess at least a casual knowledge of the French and Industrial Revolutions to adequetely comprehend Hobsbawm's conclusions.

Additionally, some readers might rebuke Hobsbawm for his at times awkward phrasing. Of course, most historians struggle severely with writing as a result of the monumental difficulties inherent in the endeavor of trying to record through language the essence of a historical period. Consequently, Hobsbawm should be forgiven if a few of his sentences require re-reading.

Irrespective of the simply technical, however, the Age of Revolution suggests why Hobsbawm is considered to be one of the great modern historians. Certainly, some readers are critical of Hobsbawm for his Marxist tendancies, but these crtics generally are serving their instinctual prejudices rather than maintaining an adherence to objective reasoning. Hobsbawm possesses a mind that shuns simple conclusions in favor of complex answers that raise even more complex questions.

This is an economic History, so if you want an introduction to this period, this book is NOT the place to start. Read Durant's last two volumes ("Rousseau and Revolution" and "The Age of Napoleon", and/or Gordon A. Craig's "Europe: 1815-1914" if you're looking for details on who was in power, what battles were fought, what the main works of art were, etc.

But if you are curious about why and how the Industrial Revolution created so much hardship and how the French Revolution changed the European attitude toward revolution in general, this is the book to read. Hobsbawm is a well-known Marxist, but it was the events of this age that spawned Marxism, and it behooves us to understand why that was. For this purpose, you couldn't ask for a better guide.

Unfortunately, Hobsbawm is a moderately difficult read. Take it a little bit at a time.

Even though not every detail of every battle is mentioned, so much else is described and analysed this book is actually tough going for me.The sentences and paragraphs are long and there is enough detail for me to get lost along the way and have to go back at regular intervals. Someone with a more analytical mind than me might find it easier. Worth the effort, though! (The proofreading could have been a little better...)

Readers don't criticize Marxist historians because of unexamined prejudice, rather it is because of Marxists' generally lopsided treatment of history. Marxists are second to none when covering economic subjects (unless, of course, you happen to disagree with the Marxist theory of capital), and these are important for an understanding of history. But, contrary to what the Marxists would have you believe, they are not the only things. A second objection is that Marxist histories are most often based upon an obsolescent view of human nature.