The Heyday of the Empire-System: The Rise and Fall of a Systemic Order, 1856–1955

The Heyday of the Empire-System argues that the late 19th and early 20th centuries were defined by the co-existence, competition and hybridization of imperial and state logics. Rather than a simple story of empire’s decline and the nation-state’s rise, it reveals a multi phase transition in which empires not only persisted but intensified.

Bringing together leading scholars of International Relations, the volume maps how these two systemic logics interacted to produce a hybrid global order whose legacies continue to shape world politics today. By reframing this crucial century as the era of a distinct empire-system, it offers a fresh and compelling account of how modern international society came to be.