"Tilly's thesis is presented with great lucidity... contributed to perform a service not merely for historians, but for mankind." French History

"An important, provocative theory, with much originality and richly documented .... extremely well written." American Journal of Sociology

"This is a good and important book. It is well written, and it presents the complex history of European state formation over a time span of one thousand years in a most understandable way. With a profound knowledge of history and an amazing compository skill, Tilly takes his readers by the hand and leads them." International Review of Social History