End Times

Peter Turchin draws on vast historical data and new models to explain why societies become unstable. His account follows the pressures that build when elites grow too powerful, inequality widens, and more people compete for status and influence.

The result is a history-driven explanation of political rupture that connects past breakdowns in imperial China, medieval France, and the American Civil War to the present. It suits readers who want a clear, big-picture account of how societies change and what may be needed to move beyond repeating old patterns.