The Mediterranean has always been a central stage in world history. Jeremy Black invites us on a great sea voyage, an initiation journey into the culture of the Mediterranean, from its beginnings to our time. He describes the development of the naval powers that operated in the sea, on the islands, and along its coasts. He shows us how the Roman Empire unified this sea and how it was later divided between Christianity and Islam. He narrates how the maritime empires of Pisa, Genoa, and Venice developed and declined, and how the Mediterranean ignited the imagination of Homer, Shakespeare, and many other creators. He examines the politics of the Mediterranean and the conflicts that took place in it and generally in its region, including the two world wars of the twentieth century, the Cold War, and the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. We learn how the Suez Canal became a new, significant sea route to India, but also how the legendary Riviera gained its tourist allure, while throughout the book, its port cities, Alexandria, Athens with Piraeus, Barcelona, Naples, Palermo, and Thessaloniki, "star" prominently.