Middle East Monarchies : The Challenge of Modernity

A discussion of the fundamentals and performance of monarchies in the Middle East. The authors focus on four themes: the roots and characteristics of Middle East monarchies; the causes of collapse or longevity; the performance of present-day monarchies; and the problems they face. Annotation Offers an in-depth discussion of fundamentals and performance of monarchies in the Middle East. Focuses on the roots and characteristics of these monarchies, and examines causes of the collapse of some and the longevity of others. Looks at performance of present-day monarchies and problems they face, using case studies and comparative essays to illustrate varying capacities of the region's monarchies to cope with modernity during the 20th century. The author is associate professor in the Department of Middle Eastern and African Studies and senior research associate at the Moshe Dyan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies, Tel Aviv University. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR Though monarchies have been deemed obsolete by many observers, recent history testifies to their profound resilience. This volume offers an in-depth discussion of the fundamentals and performance of monarchies in the Middle East. The authors focus on four themes: the roots and characteristics of Middle East monarchies, the causes of the collapse of some and the longevity of others, the performance of present-day monarchies, and the multiplicity of problems that they face. Case studies and comparative essays illustrate the varying capacities of the region's monarchies to cope with the successive challenges of modernity during the course of the twentieth century.