“A rich combination of historical expertise, comparative perspective, and engagement with contemporary trends at the outset of the twenty-first century. It should be a foundational text and point of reference for teaching and scholarship on imperial histories and on American power in today’s world.”- John Sidel, London School of Economics; “An exceptionally comprehensive look at empire in a genuinely global context. The scope and sophistication of these essays are unequaled anywhere.”- Franklin W. Knight, Johns Hopkins University; “Without doubt an important contribution to world diplomacy and a credit to the University of Wisconsin Press for publishing it.”- Red Wing Republican Eagle; “A rich, globally vast portrait of imperial decline that should interest scholars engaged in any aspect of history touched by empire’s receding, relentlessly grasping tendrils.”- H-Net Reviews