If there is a fundamental truth of geopolitics, it is this: whoever controls central Europe controls the entire continent, and whoever controls all of Europe can dominate the world. In this authoritative account of the past half millennium of European history, prizewinning historian Brendan Simms shows how the battle for mastery over the heart of the European continent has long shaped global affairs. Beginning in 1457, when the collapse of the Byzantine Empire laid Europe open to Ottoman incursion, Simms leads readers through the epic struggle for control of the European heartland--a fight that continues in the twenty-first century. A commanding work of history by a renowned scholar, Europeintegrates religion, politics, military strategy, and international relations to show how the modern world was forged in the crucible of Europe.