A history of Western civilization's rise to global dominance offers insight into the development of such concepts as competition, modern medicine, and the work ethic, arguing that Western dominance is being lost to cultures who are more productively utilizing Western techniques.

Includes maps of: Zheng He's Seventh Voyage and da Gama's First Voyage; Ottoman Empire Disintegration from 1683; Prussian Expansion from 1668; United States Expansion from 1783; Gran Colombia's Disintegration; French and German Empires in Africa, 1914; Protestant Missionaries in China, 1902.

Rassela's question -- Competition -- Two rivers -- The eunuch and the unicorn -- The spice race -- The mediocre kingdom -- Science -- The siege -- Micrographia -- Osman and Fritz -- Tanzimat tours -- From Istanbul to Jerusalem -- Property -- New worlds -- Land of the free -- American revolutions -- The fate of the Gullahs -- Medicine -- Burke's prophecy -- The Jiggernaut of war -- Médecins sans frontières -- The skulls of Shark Island -- Black shame -- Consumption -- The birth of the consumer society -- Turning western -- Ragtime to riches -- The jeans genie -- Pyjamas and scarves -- Work -- Work ethic and work ethic -- Get your kicks -- The Chinese Jerusalem -- Lands of unbelief -- The end of days? -- Conclusion : the rivals.