Pivot Cities in the Rise and Fall of Civilizations (Innovations in International Affairs)

"Based on the author's long experience in academic life and the public realm, especially in foreign policy, this book argues that a single categoric classification of cities is inadequate, and that cities have had different and varied impacts and positions throughout the history of civilization. The author examines how the formation, transformation, destruction or reestablishment of many civilizational cities reveals a clearer picture of the cornerstones of the course of human history. These cities, which play a decisive and pivotal role in the direction of the flow of history as well as providing us with a compass to guide our efforts to understand and interpret this flow, are conceptualized by the author as civilizations' "pivot cities". This innovative book explores the role of great cities in political historical change, presenting an alternative view of these pivot cities from a culturalist perspective. Within this framework, the role played by pivot cities in the history of civilization may be considered under seven distinct headings: pioneering cities which founded civilizations; cities which were founded by civilizations; cities which were transplanted during the formation of civilizations; "ghost cities" which lost their importance through shifts in political power and civilizational transformation; "lost cities" which were destroyed by civilizations; cities on lines of geocultural/geoeconomic interaction; and cities which combine, transform or are transformed by different civilizations. The author's concept of pivot cities explores the interplay between vital cities and civilizations, which bears on the future of globalization at a time of instability, as projected continuing de-Westernization becomes a theme in studies of global history. This book provides highly productive discussions relevant to the literature on city-civilization relationships and the historicity of pivot cities. Its clear language, rich content, deep and original perspective, interdisciplinary approach and rich bibliography will ensure that it appeals to students and scholars in a variety of disciplines, including cultural studies, political science, comparative urban studies, anthropology, history and civilizational studies"-- Provided by publisher Cover Half Title Series Page Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents List of maps Acknowledgments Preface Part I Intellectual experiences and methodological framework Chapter 1 Introduction: Intellectual background My first encounters with cities: Traces of place From empirical consciousness to theory: Civilizational self-perception and cities Notes Chapter 2 Critical analysis of city historiography: A methodological framework Methodological criticism An exemplary analysis of methodological dilemma: Ottoman cities in city historiography The city as the subject of the history of civilizations: Classification of pivot cities Notes Part II The role of pivot cities in the history of civilizations Chapter 3 Civilization-founding pivot cities: Pioneering cities Pataliputra: A model of spatial and social order Athens: Cultural center of civilizational continuity From Rome to Pax Romana: From a city to an imperial political order Medina: A prototype for cities of Islamic civilization Notes Chapter 4 Pivot cities founded by a civilization: The rise of cities as political centers after the formation of a civilizational paradigm The Islamic city: The building of “new medinas” in different cultural basins The power centers of Western civilization: Modernity and ascendant cities Notes Chapter 5 Pivot cities transplanted during the formation of civilizations: Alexandrian, Ottoman, and modern networks of cities The Alexandrian cities and civilizational interaction The Seljuk-Ottoman city tradition on the Khorasan–Anatolia–Rumelia line Modern economo-political transfer cities Notes Chapter 6 “Ghost cities”: The decline of pivot cities through power shifts and civilizational transformation The era of ascendancy: Binding different cultural geographies The era of decline: End of the multicultural social environment Ultimate destiny: From pivotal role to a “ghost city” Notes Chapter 7 “Lost cities”: Pivot cities liquidated with a civilization Invasion End of political dominance Historical non-existence Notes Chapter 8 Pivot cities on lines of geoeconomic/geocultural interaction: Centers of civilizational encounters The Mesopotamia–Anatolia–Levant line The Central Asia–Iran–India line The Central Asia–steppes line The Andalusia–North Africa–Sahara line Notes Part III Transforming/transformed pivot cities where civilizations meet Chapter 9 Jerusalem: The soul of civilizations’ history and spiritual transformation Formation and legacy of Jerusalem: Inter-civilizational background Efforts to destroy Jerusalem and the defiant city spirit: Babylonians and Romans The recovery of city spirit and continuity: Omar, the Ayyubids, and the Ottomans Attempts to establish a one-dimensional city: Crusaders and Israel Notes Chapter 10 Cairo and civilizational interaction: The transformative power of place Civilizational interaction of internal and external elements Civilizational encounters of intellectual/spiritual legacy of humankind Civilizational pluralism: Cultural fabric and architectural heritage Notes Chapter 11 Istanbul: A civilization-blending subject city Istanbul as an ancient synthesis between two diverse constituent/pioneer city prototypes: Rome and Medina Conquest and reconquista: The two faces of military expansion in Europe Istanbul as the pivot city of civilizational transformation City culture and architectural change Notes Bibliography Index