Abstract

History is a weapon. The powerful have their version of events, the people have another. And if we understand how the past was forged, we arm ourselves to change the future.

This is a history of struggle, revolution and social change: of hominids, hunters and herders; of emperors and slaves; of patriarchs and women; of rich and poor; of dictators and revolutionaries. From the ancient empires of Persia and Rome to the Russian Revolution, the Vietnam War, and the 2008 Crash, this is a history of greed and violence, but also of solidarity and resistance.

Many times in the past, a different society became an absolute necessity. Humans have always struggled to create a better life. This history proves that we, the many, have the power to change the world.
'In a world of deepening danger where reactionary narratives continue to hijack the mainstream, Neil Faulkner makes a powerful and necessary case reminding us of the truly radical history driving human social and political evolution'
Rachel Holmes, author of 'Eleanor Marx: A Life'
'One of the finest historians on the left'
John Newsinger, author of The Blood Never Dried: A People's History of the British Empire (Bookmarks, 2006)
'Staggeringly ambitious'
New Internationalist