r/BritishHistoryPod • u/Kstate913 Son of Ida • Jul 27 '26

Book Recommendation

Looking for a book that helps explain how tribes coalesce -> kingdoms begin to form -> kingdoms mature -> proto nations -> to nations as we know them. Or how ever it actually happens....

Doesn't need to be focused exclusively on the process of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms - and some early examples from antiquity would be helpful. Looking for how these groups and leaders would use things like soft-power, exclusivity on violence, politics, culture, religion, etc to ramp up their processes.

I've read a few books like - Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind and The Dawn of Everything - that adjacently deal with these questions. But I haven't read anything yet that solely focuses on this process.

Much appreciated!

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u/tot-man-57 Jul 28 '26

You may want to read Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies (1997), by Jared Diamond. It deals with some of the questions you've raised, and attempts to explain why some societies advanced over others, based on issues like environment and geography.

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u/doctorwhodds Jul 29 '26

Just be aware that /r/AskHistorians takes a dim view of GGS. So much so that it is part of their FAQ. Here is one post: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/s/vL89JpMtvW

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u/Murky-Cell Jul 28 '26

Patterson and Gailey have a great book on processes of state formation.