Here is the list as of now, if any mistakes are there please let me know. Also, hyperlinks and other changes will be made soon (putting them in alphabetical order for exaple)
American History:
European History:
History of Civilization:
Economic History:
History of Thought:
Others I don't know where to put are:
"You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows"
Bob Dylan
GilesStratton: Since we already have an economics and a political philosophy reading list and there have been plenty of topics concerning history I was wondering whether or not it might not be worthwhile to compile a history reading list. Anybody wishing to help?
Since we already have an economics and a political philosophy reading list and there have been plenty of topics concerning history I was wondering whether or not it might not be worthwhile to compile a history reading list.
Anybody wishing to help?
Well, that depends. What is our focus? History of business? Or government? Or just civilization?
Being American I could recommend some good American books, particular the revisionist works, but we need to narrow what topic we're shooting for.
sicsempertyrannis:Well, that depends. What is our focus? History of business? Or government? Or just civialization?
Anything really.
Some subsections I can imagine are:
And perhaps some others.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niall_Ferguson
This rights good stuff.
RayLopez: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niall_Ferguson This rights good stuff.
I remember Hoppe makes a note of him in Democracy: The God That Failed.
I would like to learn more about the history of economic thoughts. I'm sure there are soom good online articles somewhere. Sometimes Mises and the like wrote their treatises to counter some other schools of thought.
Well so far for US history I can think of Woods, DiLorenzo, Flynn, Rothard and I don't really know any others.
Capitalism and the Historians edited by FA HayekAn Austrian Perspective on the History of Economic Thought by Rothbard
That's all I've got.
A great revisionist work on medieval history is The Medieval Machine by Jean Gimpel. The Medieval era was a time of weak states (weakened by the first independently powerful international church/temple in history). Gimpel's work shows how that relative freedom made for a medieval industrial revolution that is ignored by almost all scholars, because it doesn't fit with their view of the middle ages as a thousand-year superstitious dream in between the "progressive" classical and modern eras (when states were strong).
And a good follow-up to that would be A Distant Mirror by Barbara Tuchman, which is about France and England in the 14th century, a time when the renascent state rose up again and destroyed much of the prosperity that had been built up by the Medieval industrial revolution in the preceding millennium.
Austrian Theory of the Business Cycle in 9 steps (Soliciting comments)
Daniel J. Sanchez: A great revisionist work on medieval history is The Medieval Machine by Jean Gimpel. The Medieval era was a time of weak states (weakened by the first independently powerful international church/temple in history). Gimpel's work shows how that relative freedom made for a medieval industrial revolution that is ignored by almost all scholars, because it doesn't fit with their view of the middle ages as a thousand-year superstitious dream in between the "progressive" classical and modern eras (when states were strong). And a good follow-up to that would be A Distant Mirror by Barbara Tuchman, which is about France and England in the 14th century, a time when the renascent state rose up again and destroyed much of the prosperity that had been built up by the Medieval industrial revolution in the preceding millennium.
Thank you very much, I'll add these to list once it is compiled.
Articles and papers would also be appreciated.
GilesStratton:Thank you very much, I'll add these to list once it is compiled.
Sure thing. A note to prospective readers... Medieval Machine reads like an excellent 250 page essay, making the case for the "medieval industrial revolution" thesis. A Distant Mirror reads almost like a historical novel, because in addition to telling the story of the century as a whole, Tuchman (a famously good writer) centers her narrative around one particular nobleman.
Of those that I've read, the three most important historical monographs by Rothbard are
Also fascinating is Liberty vs Power in Europe and England, an excerpt from his colonial American history Conceived in Liberty. And his discussions of the libertarian origins of Rhode Island and the proto-libertarian Quakers and Baptists from that work are thrilling to read.
And, in addition to the already mentioned, and hugely important History of Economic Thought, A History of Money and Banking in the United States is a must-read.
A book that Rothbard has cited, and which seems interesting (though I haven't read it) is Gabriel Kolko's The Triumph of Conservatism: A Reinterpretation of American History.
Yeah, I'd thought of Kolko already, I'll see if I can't compile an early list and have it up tonight, as always thank you for your contributions. Also if anybody has any more categories they would be appreciated.
A lot of the books I will be putting up in the first list would be based on reviews or summaries so they may not be perfect.
Oh, and how could I forget the definitive work on my favorite historical figure (as is evidenced by my avatar)?:
John Lilburne: The First English Libertarian
Ok, here's what I've got so far for American history:
This is just a short list to begin with, I'll add more later, there are also plenty of books missing because they'll fall into other sections (economic history for example).
Ok, here's what I've got so far, it's still not nearly complete and a lot of these books aren't libertarian or Austrian. Also, a lot of these catagories may not fit perfectly (for example a book that covers both American and European history, or a book that could be economic history), hyperlinks will be added when the list is done.
February 17 - 1600 - Giordano Bruno is burnt alive by the catholic church. Aquinas : "much more reason is there for heretics, as soon as they are convicted of heresy, to be not only excommunicated but even put to death."
This list is a splendid resource. Thanks much, Giles.
Daniel J. Sanchez: This list is a splendid resource. Thanks much, Giles.
Thank you, I've been meaning to do it for some time. I'm looking for more books now once I'm done with that I'll begin adding audio tapes, articles and papers and then finally organizing it.
More books I'll add tomorrow are:
Levine, Boldrin - Against Intellectual Monopoly
Armentano - Antitrust and Monopoly
Sumner - The Conquest of the United States by Spain
Acton - Lectures on Modern History
Maitland - The Selected Historical Essays of Maitland
Wood - The Uses of History
Blanning - The Pursuit of Glory
Zamoyski - Rites of Peace
Blanning - Oxford History of Modern Europe
Doherty - Radicals for Capitalism
Doyle - The Oxford History of the French Revolution
Cook - Routledge Companion to Early Modern Europe
Cook - Routledge Companion to European History Since 1763
Breuilly - Austria, Prussia and the Making of Modern Germany
Ferguson - Virtual History
Pipes - Property and Freedom
One other area of the booklist I'd like to explore are revisionist takes on supposedly 'good' events. Sure there a few revisionist takes on the New Deal and the earlier Progressive Era, but I'd like to see revisionist works on the 'Glorious' Revolution, for example.
Under American History I would add Tansill's Backdoor to War, and under Economic History add Charles Adam's For Good and Evil.
I think I put Adam's book under history of civilization, but I'll move it if you think it's better where it is, thanks for the other suggestion.
A few more suggestions...
History of Civilization:Cohn The Pursuit of the MilleniumShafarevich The Socialist Phenomenon (hard to find but covers non-western socialist societies - Incas, Jesuit Paraguayans, etc.)Keeley The War Before CivilizationRosenberg & Birdzell How the West Grew Rich
American History:Flemming The Illusion of VictoryAnd like it or not I also recommend a couple of neoconservative books for their factual content. Max Boot The Savage Wars of Peace (Everyone needs be familiar with the career of Smedley Butler)Joshua Muravchik Heaven on Earth: The Rise and Fall of Socialism
And FWIW I second the recommend for Kolko's book.
I would also like to add Wolfgang Schivelbush's Three New Deals: Reflections on Roosevelt's America,Mussolini's Italy, and Hitler's Germany. It's quite interesting.
Oh, I'm sorry it happens to be already on the list.
I would put it as a mix between European and American History.
DBratton: A few more suggestions... History of Civilization:Cohn The Pursuit of the MilleniumShafarevich The Socialist Phenomenon (hard to find but covers non-western socialist societies - Incas, Jesuit Paraguayans, etc.)Keley The War Before CivilizationRosenberg & Birdzell How the West Grew Rich American History:Flemming The Illusion of VictoryAnd like it or not I also recommend a couple of neoconservative books for their factual content. Max Boot The Savage Wars of Peace (Everyone needs be familiar with the career of Smedley Butler)Joshua Muravchik Heaven on Earth: The Rise and Fall of Socialism And FWIW I second the recommend for Kolko's book.
History of Civilization:Cohn The Pursuit of the MilleniumShafarevich The Socialist Phenomenon (hard to find but covers non-western socialist societies - Incas, Jesuit Paraguayans, etc.)Keley The War Before CivilizationRosenberg & Birdzell How the West Grew Rich
Thank you, I'll add those tonight.
Updated again.
Back Door to WarFrederic Sanborn, Roosevelt is frustrated in Europe -- Roosevelt makes war in Europe
Merchants of Death -- two socialists tell how laissez faire arms manufacturers make markets for their productsMichael Pearson, The Sealed Train -- the one and only history of the bolshevik revolutionSidney Fay, The Origins of the World War -- essential reading on the first warJohn Turner, Shall it be again ? -- socialist tells how Wilson manipulated the United States into first world war
Alternative history of the glorious revolution:
Sydney Fisher, The true history of the American Revolution -- Cornwallis did everything he could NOT to defeat Washington and his army, the whole thing was a fluke, an unintended consequence--------Charles Beard, An economic interpretation of the constitution of the United States -- not libertarian, not even closeGustavus Myers, History of the Supreme Court of the United States -- alternative to libertarian view of history, Mr. Myers was marxist-----Garet Garrett, People's Pottage -- a libertarian view on Roosevelt and his Dealquote from the book:"There was probably no blueprint of the New Deal, nor even a clear drawing. Such things as the A.A.A. and the Blue Eagle were expedient inventions. What was concealed from the people was a general revolutionary intention--the intention, that is, to bring about revolution in the state, within the form of law. This becomes clear when you set down what it was the people thought they were voting for in contrast with what they got. They thought they were voting:For less government, not more;For an end of deficit spending by government, not deficit spending raised to the plane of a social principle, and,For sound money, not as the New Deal afterward defined it, but as everybody then understood it, including Senator Glass, formerly Secretary of the Treasury, who wrote the money plank in the Democratic party platform and during the campaign earnestly denounced as akin to treason any suggestion that the New Deal was going to do what it did forthwith proceed to do, over his dramatic protest.The first three planks of the Democratic Party platform read as follows:We advocate:"1. An immediate and drastic reduction of governmental expenditures by abolishing useless commissions and offices, consolidating departments and bureaus and eliminating extravagance, to accomplish a saving of not less than 25 per cent in the cost of Federal government...."2. Maintenance of the national credit by a Federal budget annually balanced...."3. A sound currency to be maintained at all hazards."Mr. Roosevelt pledged himself to be bound by this platform as no President had ever before been bound by a party document. All during the campaign he supported it with words that could not possibly be misunderstood. He said:"I accuse the present Administration (Hoover's) of being the greatest spending Administration in peace time in all American history--one which piled bureau on bureau, commission on commission, and has failed to anticipate the dire needs or reduced earning power of the people. Bureaus and bureaucrats have been retained at the expense of the taxpayer. ... We are spending altogether too much money for government services which are neither practical nor necessary. In addition to this, we are attempting too many functions and we need a simplification of what the Federal government is giving to the people."This he said many times.Few of the great majority that voted in November, 1932 for less Federal government and fewer Federal functions could have imagined that by the middle of the next year the extensions of government and the multiplication of its functions would have been such as to create serious administrative confusion in Washington, which the President, according to his own words, dealt with in the following manner:"On July eleventh I constituted the Executive Council for the simple reason that so many new agencies having been created, a weekly meeting with the members of the Cabinet in joint session was imperative.... Mr. Frank C. Walker was appointed as Executive Secretary of the Council."Fewer still could have believed that if such a thing did happen it would be more than temporary, for the duration of the emergency only; and yet within a year after Mr. Roosevelt had pledged himself, if elected, to make a 25 per cent cut in Federal government by "eliminating functions" and by "abolishing many boards and commissions," he was writing, in a book entitled On Our Way, the following:"In spite of the necessary complexity of the group of organizations whose abbreviated titles have caused some amusement, and through what has seemed to some a mere reaching out for centralized power by the Federal government, there has run a very definite, deep, and permanent objective."Few of the majority that voted in November 1932 for an end of deficit spending and a balanced Federal budget could have believed that the President's second budget message to Congress would shock the financial reason of the country, or that in that same book, On Our Way, he would be writing about it in a blithesome manner, saying: "The next day, I transmitted the Annual Budget Message to the Congress. It is, of course, filled with figures and accompanied by a huge volume containing in detail all of the proposed appropriations for running the government during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1934 and ending June 30, 1935. Although the facts of previous appropriations had all been made public, the country, and I think most of the Congress, did not fully realize the huge sums which would be expended by the government this year and next year; nor did they realize the great amount the Treasury would have to borrow."And certainly almost no one who voted in November, 1932 for a sound gold standard money according to the Glass money plank in the platform could have believed that less than a year later, in a radio address reviewing the extraordinary monetary acts of the New Deal, the President would be saying: "We are thus continuing to move toward a managed currency."The broken party platform, as an object, had a curious end. Instead of floating away and out of sight as a proper party platform should, it kept coming back with the tide. Once it came so close that the President had to notice it. Then all he did was to turn it over, campaign side down, with the words: "I was able, conscientiously, to give full assent to this platform and to develop its purpose in campaign speeches. A campaign, however, is apt to partake so much of the character of a debate and the discussion of individual points that the deeper and more permanent philosophy of the whole plan (where one exists) is often lost."At that the platform sank.And so the first problem was solved. The seat of government was captured by ballot, according to law."
_____
For anarchists, a should read:
The unknown revolution, 1917-1921 [by] Voline [i.e. V.M. Eikhenbaum; translated by Holley Cantine]. Foreword by Rudolf Rocker Eikhenbaum, Vsevolod Mikhailovich, 1882-1945; DK265 .E413
The writer claims that when it came to fighting, they (the social revolutionaries) won that civil war and not the bolsheviks
You know, I'm looking over this list, and I'm reminded of a thought that came to me when I was standing in the history section of my school library: As a history major, nearing the end of my college education, I really haven't learned dick about history. So much out there, so little time, and so many useless core programs you have to suffer through. One of my professors once asked if you could really "learn" history through a class/lecture format. I couldn't answer then, and I still don't know.
Well, time to start reading. After I finish off Rothbard's Betrayal of the American Right, perhaps it's time to sharpen my knowledge of Europe...
So much there I want to read, particularly in the European History and History of Civilisation categories...yet, so little capital.
Reading Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn's Monarchy and War in The Myth of National Defence got me very interested in European History. I NEED MORE NOURISHMENT.
When in the Course of Human Events by Charles Adams is an excellent American Civil War book.
Although I haven't read, I 've read Churchill, Hitler, and the Unnecessary War, Pat cites A.J.P Taylor quite frequently and Taylor wrote The Origins of the Second World War.
That is definitely on my list.
AK Press has a huge history section, not all anarchist though: http://www.akpress.com/2005/topics/history
European and American History
"The first Accounts we have of Mankind are but so many Accounts of their Butcheries.All Empires have been cemented in Blood..."
- Edmund Burke, A Vindication of Natural Society
Here, I`ve uploaded the two scans I have in English:AJP Taylor - The Course of German History:http://www.2shared.com/file/9227733/a3c4a4da/AJP_Taylor_-_The_Course_of_German_History.htmlLarry Wolff - Inventing Eastern Europe:http://www.2shared.com/file/9227910/265bae8/Larry_Wolff_Inventing_Easter_Europe.html
Good list! I highly recommend the DiLorenzo books. I've reviewed a few of them.Book Review: Lincoln UnmaskedBook Review: The Real Lincoln
Interested in economics, watches, or fountain pens?http://amateureconblog.blogspot.com/
What are some history topics suitable for a libertarian interested in doing a PhD?
Sukrit Sabhlok:What are some history topics suitable for a libertarian interested in doing a PhD?
Depends on the subject matter you intend to study.
- Europe
- America
-Asia
And there are several subgroups under those.
'Men do not change, they unmask themselves' - Germaine de Stael
For economic history. Why not Rothbard's thesis?
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