When Greece's economic troubles began to threaten the stability of the European Union in 2010, the nation found itself in the center of a whirlwind of international finger-pointing. In the years prior, Greece appeared to be politically secure and economically healthy. Upon its emergence in the center of the European economic maelstrom, however, observers and critics cited a century of economic hurdles, dictatorships, revolutions, and more reasons as to why their current crisis was understandable, if not predictable. The ancient birthplace of democracy and countless artistic, literary, philosophical, and scientific developments had struggled to catch-up to its economically-thriving neighbors in Western Europe for years and quickly became the most seriously economically-troubled European country following a fiscal nosedive beginning in 2008. When the deficit and unemployment skyrocketed, the resulting austerity measures triggered widespread social unrest.

The entire world turned its focus toward the troubled nation, waiting for the possibility of a Greek exit from the European Monetary Union and its potential to unravel the entire Union, with other weaker members heading for the exit as well. The effects of Greece's crisis are also tied up in the global arguments about austerity, with many viewing it as necessary medicine, and still others seeing austerity as an intellectually bankrupt approach to fiscal policy that only further damages weak economies.

In Modern Greece: What Everyone Needs to Know(R), Stathis Kalyvas, an eminent scholar of conflict, Europe, and Greece combines the most up-to-date economic and political-science findings on the current Greek crisis with a discussion of Greece's history. Tracing the nation's development from the early nineteenth century to the present, the informative question-and answer format covers key episodes including the independence movement of the early nineteenth century, the massive ethnic cleansing in Turkey and Greece following World War I, the German occupation in World War II, the following brutal civil war, the conflict with Turkey over Cyprus, the military coup of 1967, democracy at long last, and the country's entry into the European Union.

Written by one of the most brilliant political scientists in the academy, Modern Greece is the go-to resource for understanding both the current crisis and the historical events that brought the country to where it is today.

What Everyone Needs to Know(R) is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press.

Table of Contents:
Introduction Chapter One: Modern Greece as a project Did Modern Greece spring from Ancient Greece? How did the Greek National movement begin? What were the social sources of Greek Nationalism? Who were the Nationalists? How did Greece secede from the Ottoman Empire?Who rebelled? How did a Greek state emerge out of the war? How did international politics impact on the war? What was the European reaction to the Modern Greek project? How was the new state built? Why was nation-building successful? What was the state of the economy in 19th century Greece? How did democracy come to Greece? How did the new democratic institutions operate? How did Greece become a national of small land-holders? Chapter Two: State Consolidation and National Expansion What was the fate of Trikoupis' modernization project? What was the Great Idea? Who were the unredeemed Greeks? What were the consequences of irredentist foreign policy? What was the Macedonian Conflict? How did Greece double its territory? What was the National Schism? What was the Anatolian Disaster? What was the impact of the Anatolian Disaster? How did the military become politicized? How popular was communism in Greece? Chapter Three: War, Occupation, and Civil War What were the causes of the Greek Civil War? How did the occupation morph into civil war? What explains the rise of the communists? Why did KKE's competitors in the resistance fail? What drove collaboration in Greece? How was the postwar fate of Greece sealed? How did Greece become the frontline of the Cold War? Why did the winners win and the losers lose? What is the legacy of the Civil War Chapter Four: The Greek Miracle and Its Aftermath How did Greece take off? What Greece a democracy? What caused the April 1967 coup? Why was the transition to democracy so smooth? What was Greek Socialism and what explains its success? What was the impact of EU membership? Is Greek politics clientelistic? Why are Greeks and Turks fighting? Chapter Four: The 2010 Crisis Was the adoption of the Euro a good idea for Greece? How did Greece end up with an explosive debt? What has been the effect of the austerity program and the IMF/ECB/EU bailout? Conclusion What are the broader lessons of the Greek story? What does the future hold for Greece?