Though the history of terrorism stretches back to the ancient world,
today it is often understood as a recent development. Comprehensive
enough to serve as a survey for students or newcomers to the field, yet
with enough depth to engage the specialist, The Routledge History of
Terrorism is the first single-volume authoritative reference text to
place terrorism firmly into its historical context.
Terrorism is a transnational phenomenon with a convoluted history that
defies easy periodization and narrative treatment. Over the course of 32
chapters, experts in the field analyze its historical significance and
explore how and why terrorism emerged as a set of distinct strategies,
tactics, and mindsets across time and space. Chapters address not only
familiar topics such as the Northern Irish Troubles, the Palestine
Liberation Organization, international terrorism, and the rise of
al-Qaeda, but also lesser-explored issues such as:
- American racial terrorism
- state terror and terrorism in the Middle Ages
- tyrannicide from Ancient Greece and Rome to the seventeenth century
- the roots of Islamist violence
- the urban guerrilla, terrorism, and state terror in Latin America
- literary treatments of terrorism.
With an introduction by the editor explaining the book's rationale and
organization, as well as a guide to the definition of terrorism, an
historiographical chapter analysing the historical approach to terrorism
studies, and an eight-chapter section that explores critical themes in
the history of terrorism, this book is essential reading for all those
interested in the past, present, and future of terrorism.
