The Origins of Political Order

From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution

Ranked #15 in Democracy, Ranked #18 in Political Sciencesee more rankings.

Virtually all human societies were once organized tribally, yet over time most developed new political institutions which included a central state that could keep the peace and uniform laws that applied to all citizens. Some went on to create governments that were accountable to their constituents. We take these institutions for granted, but they are absent or are unable to perform in many of today’s developing countries—with often disastrous consequences for the rest of the world.

Francis Fukuyama, author of the bestselling The End of History and the Last Man and one of our...
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We've comprehensively compiled reviews of The Origins of Political Order from the world's leading experts.

David Heinemeier Hansson [This book and "Political Order and Political Decay" is] a fantastic two-part book. (Source)

Venkatesh Rao This two-volume book is basically a very extended study of history from that starting point of ‘What happens if you look at history as a convergent evolutionary path that seems to end in liberal democracy? (Source)


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