'A provocative and entertaining trot through the paradoxes of Spanish history' Literary Review
Spain is often overlooked as a mere tourist destination. Yet we ignore events there at our
peril for a long view of the country's history reveals how it has shaped the Western world by
presaging everything from the Crusades to the European Renaissance Western colonialism the
Second World War and the Cold War. This truth has never before been grasped however because
Spain is a Cassandra country. As with Troy's prophetess so Spain's prescience is doomed to be
ignored - not only by her neighbours but also by her own people. Today Spain has returned to
the headlines because she is once again caught in an ancient pattern of deciding through civil
conflict whether to remain united or splinter into many parts. We speak of the Spanish Civil
War as if there had only ever been one yet every century in Spanish history has seen bloody
engagement each time over intractable questions about national identity. Violencia tells the
colourful and highly engaging story of the country from its very beginnings to the present day
by combining decades of research with personal anecdote. The book uncovers for the first time
not only underlying shapes of Spanish history which are in danger of being repeated but also
the previously unacknowledged fact that events in the country have long predicted developments
in the West. It is a must read for anyone wishing to understand Spain and a complex and
changing world. 'Illuminating and always provocative' Paul Preston 'A thrilling page-turning
adventure' Jason Elliot
