An Age of Neutrals provides a pioneering history of neutrality in Europe and the wider world between the Congress of Vienna and the outbreak of the First World War. The 'long' nineteenth century (1815–1914) was an era of unprecedented industrialization, imperialism and globalization; one which witnessed Europe's economic and political hegemony across the world. Dr Maartje Abbenhuis explores the ways in which neutrality reinforced these interconnected developments. She argues that a passive conception of neutrality has thus far prevented historians from understanding the high regard with which neutrality, as a tool of diplomacy and statecraft and as a popular ideal with numerous applications, was held. This compelling new history exposes neutrality as a vibrant and essential part of the nineteenth-century international system; a powerful instrument used by great and small powers to solve disputes, stabilize international relations and promote a variety of interests within and outside the continent.

A Choice Outstanding Academic Title 2015

'Comprehensive and full of arresting insights, Maartje Abbenhuis' new study compels us to reconsider not only the history of neutrality in the long nineteenth century, but also the conduct of and limits upon power politics. This book will resonate with historians and political scientists alike.'

William Mulligan - University College Dublin

‘An Age of Neutrals marks an impressive addition to the scholarly literature on neutrality. Integrating the work of historians, international lawyers and, in the broadest sense, international relations specialists, Abbenhuis sheds new light on our understanding of modern international practice in this key period of Europe’s history.’

Thomas Otte - University of East Anglia

‘An impressively thoroughly researched, thoughtfully argued, and wide ranging study that offers a series of important insights into a topic that played a central role in nineteenth-century diplomacy and for too long has been unjustly neglected.’

David Stevenson - London School of Economics and Political Science

‘Meticulously researched, Maartje Abbenhuis' Age of Neutrals not only exposes the critical role played by neutrality in the 'long nineteenth century', but also offers a profoundly arresting, innovative and at times provocative interpretation of the international politics of the era.’

Neville Wylie - University of Nottingham

'An Age of Neutrals is a rich, beautifully written, and expansive investigation into a long-lost diplomatic tradition.'

Source: H-Diplo

'In the twentieth-century age of total war and collective security, neutrality has not been highly regarded, but Maartje Abbenhuis convincingly argues that, between 1815 and 1914, neutrality was 'neither insignificant nor a policy reserved for the weak' … Abbenhuis has given us extremely useful ways in which to consider the value of neutrality in the nineteenth century.'

Nicole M. Phelps Source: American Historical Review

'… Abbenhuis’s [book is] ambitious and, above all, very readable … It is essential reading for all those interested in the international relations in the nineteenth century.'

Samuël Kruizinga Source: Low Countries Historical Review