A World Connecting

Between 1870 and 1945, groundbreaking advances in communication and transportation redefined the globe, erasing distance and inspiring an unprecedented flow of people, products, and ideas. A World Connecting, a collection of interpretive essays by preeminent historians including Emily S. Rosenberg, Charles S. Maier, Tony Ballantyne, Antoinette Burton, Dirk Hoerder, Steven C. Topik, Allen Wells, Akira Iriye, and Jurgen Osterhammel, captures this transformative era. The essays examine the dual character of modern interconnectedness—a period of soaring ambitions alongside deep-seated anxieties and rivalries. Each contribution offers insights into themes such as modern state-building, imperial encounters, migration, commodity chains, and transnational social and cultural networks, emphasizing the complex interplay between integration and division. In this meticulously crafted volume, the authors trace how emerging statehood and shifting imperial fortunes led to new forms of border control and societal reorganization. As technological progress and global flows reshaped boundaries, the book illuminates how the world both united and fractured in unexpected and profound ways.