The Middle East: Temple of Janus by Desmond Stewart

The Middle East: Temple of Janus

A comprehensive history of the Middle East from 1869 to the present

by Desmond Stewart

Hamish Hamilton, 1971, [First Edition], hardcover, dustjacket

Very Good Condition, minor edge and shelf wear, minor creasing to half-title page, no inscriptions, dustjacket shows a little edge and shelf wear with a little creasing and rubbing to edges and corners (see photographs)

“This is a history of the last hundred years in the world’s most fascinating and volatile region.  For the past century, since the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, the Middle East has been alternately attracted and repelled by the West to which, in turn, it has been a battleground, a source of oil and a perplexing problem.  Desmond Stewart brilliantly evokes this century of violence and upheaval, linking the important battles and the rise and fall of states with the personalities of the men who shaped the region’s destiny.
Here are vivid portraits of Khedive Ismail, the Egyptian ruler who feared that the Canal – which he opened – would come to own Egypt; of the last great Sultan, the harem-bred Abdul Hamid; of Theodor Herzl, founder of political Zionism; of Lawrence of Arabia, enigmatic British agent; of contemporary leaders like David Ben-Gurion, Gamal Abdul Nasser and Nasser’s successor, Anwar al-Sadat.
Drawing on detailed research, as well as more than twenty years’ experience in the area and personal acquaintance with several modern leaders, Desmond Stewart succeeds in illuminating not only the events of recent Middle East history, but the conflicts between fanatics and moderates which often underlie them.”