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Philip Mansel

Levant: Splendour and Catastrophe on the Mediterranean Hardcover – 11 Nov. 2010

by Philip Mansel (Author)

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Levant is a book of cities. It describes Smyrna, Alexandria and Beirut when they were windows on the world, escapes from nationality and tradition, centres of wealth, pleasure and freedom. Smyrna, Alexandria and Beirut challenge stereotypes. They were both cosmopolitan cities and centres of nationalism. Using unpublished family papers, Philip Mansel describes their colourful, contradictory history, from the beginning of the French alliance with the Ottoman Empire in the sixteenth century to their decline in the mid twentieth century. Smyrna was burnt; Alexandria Egyptianised; Beirut lacerated by civil war. Levant is the first history in English of these cities in the modern age. It is also a challenge from history. It is about ourselves; it shows how Muslims, Christians and Jews have lived together in cities. Levantine compromises, putting deals before ideals, pragmatism before ideology, made these cities work, until states reclaimed them for nationalism. Smyrna, Alexandria and Beirut have a message for today.

Print length

400 pages
Language

English
Publisher

John Murray
Publication date

11 Nov. 2010
Dimensions

23.37 x 15.75 x 4.32 cm
ISBN-10

0719567076
ISBN-13

978-0719567070
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Review

'Fascinating . . . the strengths of the book are colossal. Philip Mansel's knowledge of the history and culutre of these places is encyclopaedic; he has walked their streets, met the scions of their famous families and penetrated their private archives. His eye for detail is sharp; telling anecdotes are culled from memoirs of all kinds, and the sights and smells of each city are vividly conjured up. At the same time, major developments in political history are explained with clarity and precision.
To anyone who has read Mansel's Constantinople: City of the World's Desire, it will be sufficient to say: read this one too. To anyone who has not, I can only say: read both of them'

(Noel Malcolm, Sunday Telegraph)

'Excellent . . . thought-provoking . . . thoroughly researched . . . One of its strengths lies in the colourful quotations from letters, diaries and travel narratives' (Giles Milton, Literary Review)

'Philip Mansel's impressive return to the Middle East . . . Instead of composing an elegy on a once powerful civilisation, Mansel has given the Levantine world its chronicle, and restored its weight in history' (Jason Goodwin, Spectator)

'Elegiac' (Independent Christmas history round-up)

'With sober judgement but passionate feeling, Mansel has produced a work of formidable scholarship and subtlety, rich in colour, sights, personalities and horrifyingly abundant incident. Levant shows the destructivness of nationalism, offers precepts for the coexistence of Muslims, Christians and Jews and has wisdom and sensibility all of its own' (Richard Davenport-Hines, TLS)

'Philip Mansel's Levant . . . comes from the pen which, more sharply than any other, has delineated Istanbul. Here, with evocations of Smyrna, Alexandria and Beirut, all of which he knows well, Mansel gives us history, travel-writing and evocation of place with spare lack of sentimentality, but passionate intensity. The chapters on Beirut, in the light of what is continuing there to this sad hour, are especially poignant. Highly recommended' (A. N. Wilson, New Statesman)

'An engrossing, historical tapestry' (Philip Adair, Scotsman)

'I could scarcely put down this magnificent book, with its galloping narrative, its worldly analysis, sparkling anecdotes and its unforgettable cast of the decadent, the cosmopolitan and the cruel' (Simon Sebag-Montefiore, Financial Times)

'A highly enjoyable and intricately worked account of three great Mediterranean ports . . . [Mansel has] a sharp eye for detail and a deep understanding of the dynamics of traditional empires and societies' (The Economist)

'A masterly work . . . prodigious' (Independent)

'All three [ports, Beirut, Alexandria and Izmir] were remembered in vast amounts of memoirs and official documentation, which Mansel handles with his usual elegance and skill' (Guardian)

Book Description

The first English-language history of Beirut, Alexandria and Smyrna in the modern age

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ John Murray; First Edition (11 Nov. 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0719567076
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0719567070
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 23.37 x 15.75 x 4.32 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 2,119,289 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 1,272 in History of Northern Africa
- 1,551 in Egyptian History (Books)
- 1,574 in History of Turkey

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4.4 80 ratings

About the author

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Philip Mansel

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Philip Mansel is a historian of France and the Middle East; he has lived in Paris, Beirut and Istanbul, and now lives in London. His books on French history include Louis XVIII (1981); The Court of France 1789-1830 (1989); Paris between Empires (2001), a history of Paris as a European capital under the restoration and the July Monarchy; The Eagle in Splendour: Inside the Court of Napoleon (reprint 2015); and most recently King of World: The Life of Louis XIV (2019). On the Middle East he has written Constantinople: City of the World’s Desire (1995) ; Levant (2010) on Smyrna, Alexandria and Beirut; and Aleppo: the Rise and Fall of Syria’s Great Merchant City (2016). They emphasise the importance of France and French culture for those cities. His books have been translated into several languages including French, Italian, German, Greek, Turkish and Arabic. He has written for many newspapers and magazines, including The International Herald Tribune, The Spectator; History Today; the TLS; and Cornucopia.

In 1995 he was a co-founder of the Society for Court Studies (www.courtstudies.org), designed to promote research on courts and dynasties, and in 2010 of the Levantine Heritage Foundation, dedicated to the study of the history and cultures of the Eastern Mediterranean (www.levantineheritage.com). In 2012 he received the London Library Life in Literature award and in 2019 the Franco-British Book Prize. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and the Royal Society of Literature, and President of the Conseil scientifique of the Centre de Recherche du Chateau de Versailles.(CRCV).

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Filip

Levant

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 August 2023

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It arrived on time. The book was in pristine condition.

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GregB

A welcome addition...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 February 2011

Verified Purchase

...to the existing small stock of books about the great Mediterranean port cities, a subject which I find fascinating (of relatively recent works, I have Mansel's own history of Constantinople from 1453 to 1924, Mark Mazower's 'Salonica: City Of Ghosts', Peter Ackroyd's idiosyncratic history of Venice, Jan Morris on Trieste and Robert Hughes on Barcelona.) Mansel has killed three birds with one stone by writing an interweaving modern history of Smyrna, Beirut and Alexandria and the result is splendid. The combination of straight factual history with anecdotes about the cities and their colourful characters, all against the backdrop of the declining Ottoman Empire, works very well and one's interest is sustained as Mansel switches from one to another as his narrative progresses. Moreover, the stories of Beirut and, above all, Alexandria, have topical interest given the political unrest in Lebanon and the recent uprising in Egypt. On the latter, the story of Mehmet Ali's dynasty, culminating in the military takeover of 1952 with its own resulting 'dynasty' lasting until only recently provides an excellent backstory to the current situation.

I cannot agree with the previous reviewer as this is by no means a specialist or excessively scholarly work (though it's clearly very well-researched and Mr. Mansel is evidently a scholar) and it can be read without any previous knowledge of the subject (one might want to check on the odd detail but that's easy enough these days with the aid of the Internet), though it certainly helps to have a prior interest in these once-magic Levantine cities. Actually, my only 'criticism' is a very mild one: the cover of the book bears a beautiful picture, but it is of none of the three cities in the book. It's Constantinople.

The mingling of different races and religious groups and their periodic descent into communal violence might give pause for thought on the topical question of multiculturalism in our societies, but that tangential aspect is not essential for an appreciation of the book as straightforward history. (My own view, for what it's worth, however, is that it bears out the view that multiculturalism doesn't work and the cracks never take long to show.)

Now, we only need a decent history of the historic Italian port of Genoa, as there doesn't seem to be one - at least a modern one - as far as I can see. Perhaps Mr. Mansel might consider the task now...

23 people found this helpful

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Vincenzo Valentini

Beautiful rendition of a fascinating tale.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 September 2012

Verified Purchase

Being an avid traveller and a lover of historical books, this opus magna detailing in a compelling and engrossing way the history of three capital cities of the Mediterranean, was ideally suited for me, and definitely I was delighted by it.
Izmir, Alexandria and Beirut are important names in our minds of Mediterranean peoples and for some uncanny reasons all these three cities seem to be possessed by a similar genius loci, capable of instantly telling something even to the casual traveller. Their histories are masterfully narrated by the author, that often does not refrain from political comments and references to the contemporary age, that I found always to the point. A particular mention must be made of the author's style that, while quite dense, is always readable and logically organised. This is one of the rarest books that I found 100% in agreement with, as the events that shaped up often dramatically the lives of these three cities are always presented in a very convincing way, that leaves very little to different interpretations. I especially liked the easiness with which Mansel managed to describe a confused little war like the Balkans Wars of 1912-13. No mean feat at the light of the importance of this conflict as the catalyst of the Great War. A gorgeous book that must be recommended to everybody with an interest in the history of human endeav

14 people found this helpful

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Studente

Definitely worth it

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 31 March 2021

Verified Purchase

This is an excellent read and journey. Maybe I was already won over from the start, since I’m a lover of everything Mediterranean, but the sheer depth and scope of detail covered by the author is only matched by the fact he successfully manages to help you paint your own panorama to plot it all on in your head. If you like the region and you like history, this book is worth it.

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The Prodigal Son

It was well worth the effort that the author clearly put into the researching and writing of it

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 January 2017

Verified Purchase

I had read the author's book on Constantinople and enjoyed it very much. This prompted me to buy this one on the Levant and I was not disappointed. As the FT's reviewer says (quoted on the front cover), it is "magnificent".

However, as another reviewer, @A Kid's Review, says, Mansel assumes that the reader already has considerable knowledge of the history of the Levant, and especially of Greece and of the Ottoman Empire and I agree with that statement.

On the other hand, I do not agree at all with @Tharsein Hri, who says that Mansel is totally biased towards the Turks as I feel that Mansel constantly strives to be objective.

2 people found this helpful

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Eva Walters

A very interesting assessment of the cities of a bygone age.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 March 2013

Verified Purchase

Philip Mansel recreates the history of Smyrna, Beirut and Alexandria which due to the Arab Spring shows us that history repeats itself over and over again.

One person found this helpful

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Mark Armstrong

A wonderful writer, clear concise

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 August 2015

Verified Purchase

Fascinating. Every bit as interesting as his Constantinople. They now are side by side in my bookcase. I have many friends who either grew up in the cities he described or whose parents did. It has helped me enormously in understanding them and their world.
A wonderful writer , clear concise, A master of detail, I could not put this book down.

One person found this helpful

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C. Collins

Interesting insight into the Middle East

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 July 2013

Verified Purchase

Well written and interesting to read, I found this quite useful in giving me an understanding of how the Eastern Med developed up to the war period. The region had a surprising impact on the West and this is a good historical background. It's not dull in any way.

3 people found this helpful

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Levant: Splendour and Catastrophe on the Mediterranean Hardcover – 11 Nov. 2010

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