Lebanon: A History, 600 - 2011 (Studies in Middle Eastern History)

The book is very helpful for those who wish to know the history of Lebanon and its complex ethnic composition. It explains the factors that caused the divisions and eventual wars between its ethnicities, and why Lebanon became essentially a divided state along those ethnic lines. The book is well researched and provides numerous references to external sources.

Really good look at the personalities, history and actions, in only lightly masked circum-speak, of the 1400 years since the Romans/Byzantines were forced out of what today is Lebanon. The family names of the tribal leaders mark one of the hidden (from outsiders) continuities of Lebanon and its politics and history which this book lays out very clearly. A good place to start for anyone wanting to understand why Lebanon is the way it is today, and why the Lebanese do so very well - once they leave Lebanon.

good information for an unknown country

The book traces the various religious sects, as well as major families and clans, back to before the Crusades. Lebanon seems to be different from almost all other modern nations in that it was never really a nation. At no time did the average person feel they owed their allegiance to a country; they were Shia, or Sunni, or Alawite, or Druze, or Maronite, but never Lebanese. Despite this, they formed a collective that, for a time, functioned well and produced prosperity. But that seems gone now, and unlikely to return.I think the book might have done a bit more to amplify the surrounding empires and cultures that washed over Mount Lebanon over the centuries, but I found it informative and a good companion to the History of Byzantium and of the Ottoman Empire.

good

Well written and researched work on an important historical entity in the Mediterranean. Offers good historical coverage and analysis of the various religious communities and political families. Interesting parallels between modern and medieval Lebanon are elaborated.

A lot of information presented in a rush. It seems to assume the reader already has some knowledge of the subject

wished it was a little more indepth.