A History of Modern Lebanon

by Fawwaz Traboulsi

This is the second updated edition of the first comprehensive history of Lebanon in the modern period. Written by a leading Lebanese scholar, and based on previously inaccessible archives, it is a fascinating and beautifully-written account of one of the world's most fabled countries. Starting with the formation of Ottoman Lebanon in the 16th century, Traboulsi covers the growth of Beirut as a capital for trade and culture through the 19th century. The main part of the book concentrates on Lebanon's development in the 20th century and the conflicts that led up to the major wars in the 1970s and 1980s. This edition contains a new chapter and updates throughout the text. This is a rich history of Lebanon that brings to life its politics, its people and the crucial role that it has always played in world affairs.

Genres: History, Lebanon, Nonfiction, Middle East, Politics, Grad School

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Associate professor of Political Science and History at the Lebanese American University, and the American University of Beirut. Dr. Traboulsi has been a visiting professor at New York University, the University of Michigan, Columbia University, and Cairo University, and a fellow at St. Antony’s College, Oxford, and the Wissenshaftskolleg, Berlin. His books, papers and articles have dealt with the history, politics, social movements, political philosophy, folklore, and art in the Arab World. Dr. Traboulsi’s translations include Edward Said’s Out of Place and Humanism and Democratic Critique. And his latest publication is A History of Modern Lebanon (in English and Arabic, 2007). Fawwaz Traboulsi, a long time journalist, is a columnist for as-Safir daily (Lebanon).

Reviews

[Stephen S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid introduction to Lebanese history.

Contrary to other reviews on here, I found this book to be as even handed as it could possibly be while remaining succinct. Though it certainly is not a book that anybody sympathetic to Kataeb would enjoy.

A shame that even though this was pubished in '07 it leaves off with Ta'if - so much has happened since but, Traboulsi luckily has some great output since.

Wholeheartedly recommend as a basic introduction.

[Wissam Raji · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is an interesting book about the history of Lebanon. The reader will definitely learn a lot about the modern history of Lebanon starting from the 16th century. However, the author's political affiliation made him draw certain relations and conclusions that are not objective and are not reliable mainly about the Phalangists and the Lebanese Forces. I mention some of the shortcomings:
1- Hafez Assad wanted to help the Christians of Lebanon against the Palestinians in 1976. This is not completely accurate although it is true that the Syrian army entered Lebanon to assist the Christians against the Palestinians. However, the reason was mainly for Syria's interest and to limit the power of PLO fearing their power will expand and reach Syria. Actually, when Sadat signed the peace treaty with Israel in Camp David, Assad's attitude changed completely towards the PLO after he concluded that they will be cornered by Jordan, Egypt, KSA, etc... and things started taking a turn.
2- The author mentioned that Bachir Gemayel is a fundamentalist, Christian. This is a biased conclusion. He was not a fundamentalist. All that it takes is to listen to all of his speeches and read his lectures and one can clearly conclude that he was not a fundamentalist.
3- The author compares the triplicate agreement in 1986 with Taef and mentions that those who rejected it in 1986 accepted Taef. This is not true. The two agreements although they shared some common items but were completely different. Moreover, the balance of power has changed from 1986 till 1989 so acceptance and rejection is subject to power proportionality.

[Robert Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a tremendously useful introduction to Lebanese history. It's fairly dry, but I think that was necessary to get through the extraordinary breadth of material covered. As a modern history, the book starts with Ottoman control, but there's a chronology at the back that attempts to cover everything since the Muslim conquest. I do think a certain level of background knowledge of the history of the region is necessary to get the most out of this book. The author's somewhat idiosyncratic (perhaps more authentic?) choices for names of significant figures were sometimes confusing too. It took me a few mentions to realize that Jamal Abd Al-Nasir was the famous midcentury ruler of Egypt. All told though, a fabulous book. I had pretensions of writing and producing a video series on Lebanese history, and this book helped me see that I have no chance of ever being able to do that. The information provided will be invaluable in my future work, however.

Traboulsi's work did prompt an interesting thought. I've long been aware of Lebanon's unworkable Sectarian system, adopted with independence from France in the 1940s. The roles of President, Prime Minister, Speaker of the House, and many others are portioned out according to one's religious identity. The chaos and corruption this has brought is legendary. They have regular elections, but there's a reason nobody really refers to it as a democratic country. The stresses of the system most disastrously led to the 1975-1990 civil war. The author does a great job walking us through that conflict's hideous complexity in the final quarter of the book. He outlines the system's failure, but I believe he also delineates a dubious but real benefit.

Lebanon, with all its failings, might have preserved more of the old middle east than any other country in the region. Nationalism has been a firestorm across the region's old diversity. Sure, most MENA countries retain some minorities, but from Turkey all the way around to Morocco, these minorities are embattled, and in many cases they have been chased out or assimilated or are on their way to one of those fates. It's possible that Lebanon has just provided a slower, more painful way of reaching the same result, but regardless, it has been delayed. I suspect that the patchwork of faiths Lebanon still presents, is much closer to the Ottoman past than anything else in the region.

[Charbel Marcha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Has some valuable information but it's clouded with bias. Imo any book on history, especially touching on a recent civil war, should do it's best to understand both view points and pose them both objectively.

[Arya · Rating 4 out of 5]

phenomenal! traboulsi has a really good methodology and is very nuanced. knew the kataeb and lebanese forces were evil but man, they are so much worse than i assumed.

two things could have been better though. firstly, an index of the important figures would have helped keep track of who was with what party, especially as some notables have similar names (i struggled as an arab!)
secondly, a bit more focus given to the changing political landscapes. if this was someones introduction to the modern history of the region, then events like egypt's shift to friendly relations with the zionist entity would seem very bizzare. while this is a book about lebanon, a paragraph here and there summarising these changes (which did heavily effect lebanon) would be useful.

a very worthwhile read as lebanon's development is very unique!

[Nina · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want to learn more about Lebanon and how its past has shaped its current political reality, I think this is a really good place to start. It offers a comprehensive retelling of the nation’s most important moments. However, I do think it’s necessary to have some background knowledge on both Lebanon and the Middle East, because the book doesn’t really offer that. For instance, it assumes that the reader already knows what the Ottoman Empire’s Tanzimat is. I think that this is a pity, because even if this had been quickly explained in a footnote, I believe the book would have been much more accessible for the general public. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed reading it and it’s one of only a few (English) academic works that covers Lebanon’s history.

[NED ALI · Rating 5 out of 5]

Traboulsi's book is definitely a must read for all those interested in the politics of Lebanon. However, there are instances where one could clearly see shortcomings in the author's methodology. Another problem in Fawwaz's book and other research is the use of random instances to make sweeping conclusions, often unsubstantiated.
In spite of the shortcomings, the book remains the most significant modern history of the country ever produced in an academic and orderly fashion. The class analysis is illuminating, and highlights once again the extent of short-sightedness of essentialist Middle East scholars.

[Mohamed Awada · Rating 3 out of 5]

The content is very interesting. I found the book very enriching, and now I know a lot more about the history of Lebanon.
However, Professor Fawwwaz's style of writing can be better, and if you are not really motivated to read the book, it is easy to doze off while reading!

[Sonya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read for a class on Lebanon. Very dry, excessively detailed history for my purposes. This was an introduction to Lebanese literature, and way too much material here. Hard for me to judge as this is probably more valuable to those studying Lebanese history.

[Quin Nugteren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very concise reading of such a tragic history. It is incredibly refreshing to read something that at the same time shows the roots of Lebanon's sectarian political system while at the same time demonstrating how the civil war that led to it was no historical necessity. Lazy analyses of Lebanon often do lead to these conclusions and completely disregard the underlying material factors and the influence of Middle Eastern political upheavals in the 20th century. I got lost in the tangled web of names and factions sometimes, but if you're more familiar with the recent history of the ME it won't scare you

[Iryna BEG · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author presents a fairly detailed, almost encyclopedic history of Lebanon over the past two centuries, with a large number of proper names and references. However, I was unpleasantly surprised by certain judgments and by the persistent underlying narrative that Lebanon was part of Syria, which does not reflect historical reality. On the one hand, the author questions the Lebanese people’s aspiration for self-determination in the early twentieth century, while overlooking the fact that Syria was in a similar position at the time — both being part of a larger empire and lacking a unified, clear consensus on independence as separate states.

[sube · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book sets to explain Lebanon's history from the Emirate of Mount Lebanon to the Ta'if Agreement, from a Marxist-inclined view point.

It was to me very helpful in understanding the emergence of the sectarian system (though it was not discussed in-depth enough), while also looking at the social forces behind each force which continually drove Lebanon forward - looking at both internal and external factors continually.

Very much recommended, though the chapter on culture I felt a bit useless. Beyond that very readable.

[Jad · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing piece of work. It sheds light on the origins of Lebanon, and how the different social, economic and political events helped shape it's current state. Lebanon's history is too important to be forgotten and distorted by the political elite that has come to rule it after the civil war, and Dr. Traboulsi's book does just that. Required reading for everyone interested in understanding this seemingly unfathomable country.

[Natalia · Rating 5 out of 5]

📚⚡Hace muchos años compré este libro para estudiar sobre el contexto libanés y su historia para mi tesis. Ante la escasez de bibliografía en este tema, este libro fue de gran utilidad. Un libro muy dinámico sin perder profundidad, fácil de leer y muy muy práctico para entender la historia del Líbano. Muy recomendable 👍

[Fawzi Halimi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A comprehensive history of Lebanon since Ottoman times. One of the few books that does not look at its history exclusively from an internal/external conflict, but goes in depth into its demographics, cultural aspects, and socioeconomic status.

[Spencer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative, but very dense.

[Garrett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very uneven handling of subjects throughout. Either painfully granular detail or broad strokes of complicated events.

[Joey Ayoub · Rating 5 out of 5]

By far the most accessible and concise history of Lebanon from the 16th century (before there was a 'Lebanon') to 1990. I highly recommend this book.

[Bassem Saghir · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for anyone who's lebanese as it covers many of the events omitted from our high school history curriculums.

[Riwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 SO GOOD

[Tamara]

ما شاء الله 🫠

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read, bit of a difficult translation

[Elio Nakouzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent resource by a top academic.
This book reviews the history of Lebanon in three main parts:
1) During the Ottoman rule, including Emirate Mt. Lebanon, the Kaem-makamiyya, Mutasarrifiya systems. 2) The state of Lebanon 3) The civil war.

One of the main advantages compared to other similar books is that that author discusses economic factors and their relevance to the main events, which would otherwise escape the casual historian. For example, some of the economic causes that contributed to the civil unrest during the 1820s, 1858-1861, and 1975-1976 are discussed, in addition the status of the Lebanese economic sectors throughout history.

The history of Lebanon is very complex and convoluted but this is in my opinion a fair account. I thought the author was rather objective, but slightly leftist, at least economically, if not politically.

The book is a bit dry and not written in a particularly enthralling way. But it is what the title says it is, and I definitely recommend it.

[Mano Chil · Rating 5 out of 5]

I simply loved reading this book because - along with describing the politics of the day - it described the social aspects and changes that were evolving during each period in Lebanon's history.

[فلاح رحيم · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full of neglected lessons and historical wisdom.

[Rana~ Saliba · Rating 3 out of 5]

while very informative, it's not very explanatory.