The processes that drive modern politics in Europe have deep and complex origins. Patterns of migration, invasion and dominance, formed over several thousand years, still determine Europe’s cultural landscape. Today’s Europeans have not yet learned how to take into account the national, regional and ethnic tangle and have developed a sense of cultural insecurity which cannot be satisfied by economic prosperity alone. In this provocative and lively book, Simon Mundy discusses the forces that have shaped this sense and argues that cultural problems need cultural solutions. It is debate of this calibre which can take us into the twenty-first century with the ideal of a peaceful and dynamic Europe transformed from vision into reality. This book should be prescribed reading for all Europeans.

Simon Mundy has been President of the European Forum for the Arts and Heritage and Director of Britain’s National Campaign for the Arts, has directed festivals in Scotland and the Netherlands, published five collections of poetry and several books on musicians. He is a consultant to many of Europe’s institutions and frequently moderates at international meetings.