Ariel Durant Books

The Age of Voltaire (Volume 9): A biography of a great man and the period he embodied. We witness Voltaire's satiric work in the salons and the theater as well as his banishment to England. With him we view the complex relationships between nobility, clergy, bourgeoisie and peasantry in the France of Louis XV. We explore the music of Bach and the struggle between Frederick the Great and Maria Theresa of Austria. And finally we hear an imaginary discussion between Voltaire and Pope Benedict XIV on the significance and value of religion.

A history of European civilization from 1789 to 1815.

A history of European civilization from Wyclif to Calvin: 1300-1564.

Includes material on the influence of biology, race, character, morals, religion, economics, socialism, government, and war on history.

Here is the first volume of this Story of Civilization, Our Oriental Heritage, complete in itself. Dr. Durant worked on it steadily from 1927 to 1932, & the book represents the third complete rewriting. Our Oriental Heritage deals first with the establishment of civilization, then takes up, not in rapid review but in richly fascinating detail, the colorful, complex dramas of the Near East, India & her neighbors, & the Far East. The story is carried up to mid-30s. The Story of Civilization represents the most comprehensive attempt in our times to embrace the vast panorama of human history & culture.