A History of the World in 47 Borders

The Sunday Times #1 Bestseller

Preview

Failed to add items

Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping cart is already at capacity.

Add to basket failed.

Please try again later

Add to wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Remove from wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Adding to library failed

Please try again

Follow podcast failed

Unfollow podcast failed

LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free + £10 Audible voucher

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

Get this deal

Offer ends on 5 July 2026 at 11:59 BST.

More purchase options

A History of the World in 47 Borders

By: Jonn Elledge

Get this deal

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Offer ends on 5 July 2026 at 11:59 BST. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £17.94

'Fascinating' TOM HOLLAND
'A delight from start to finish' MIRANDA SAWYER
'A novel and fascinating perspective on world history' BILL BRYSON
'By turns surprising, funny, bleak, ridiculous, or all four of those at once' GIDEON DEFOE
'I love this book; I love Jonn Elledge; I love the way he looks at the world' MARINA HYDE

People have been drawing lines on maps for as long as there have been maps to draw on. Sometimes rooted in physical geography, sometimes entirely arbitrary, these lines might often have looked very different if a war or treaty or the decisions of a handful of tired Europeans had gone a different way. By telling the stories of these borders, we can learn a lot about how political identities are shaped, why the world looks the way it does - and about the scale of human folly.

From the Roman attempts to define the boundaries of civilisation, to the secret British-French agreement to carve up the Ottoman Empire during the First World War, to the reason why landlocked Bolivia still maintains a navy, this is a fascinating, witty and surprising look at the history of the world told through its borders.

The Sunday Times No 1 Bestseller April 2025

More praise for 47 BORDERS:
'Fascinating and hugely entertaining' MARINA HYDE
'You'll never look at a map the same way again' STEPHEN BUSH
'[A] clever, confounding history' PATRICK MAGUIRE
'A witty grand tour' DORIAN LYNSKEY
'Warm, funny and sharply political' PHIL TINLINE©2024 Jonn Elledge

Earth Sciences

Human Geography

Science

Social Sciences

World

Funny

Imperialism

Witty

War

Thought-Provoking

Ottoman Empire

Middle Ages

Latin American

Africa

Earth Sciences Human Geography Science Social Sciences World Funny Imperialism Witty War Thought-Provoking Ottoman Empire Middle Ages Latin American Africa

Critic reviews

A fascinating and often very funny history of one of our great current preoccupations: borders. (TOM HOLLAND)

Totally fascinating and hugely entertaining. This book is a nerd's paradise without borders - but with jokes. Jonn Elledge has such a gift for looking at complicated bits of the world, then telling you all about them in a way that feels not like a textbook, but like an incredibly fun and interesting conversation in the pub. (MARINA HYDE)

By turns surprising, funny, bleak, ridiculous, or all four of those at once, A History Of The World In 47 Bordersunknots some of the weird historical and geographical tangles we've managed to get ourselves into. And it's timely too, if only because our preoccupation with drawing lines never seems to abate. (GIDEON DEFOE)

Somehow, Jonn Elledge turns geo-political history into a funny, fascinating and revealing insight not only into the world today but into the frailty and determination of the human spirit. Packed with "I never knew that" information (the sort that you read out to anyone in the room with you), A History Of The World In 47 Bordersshows us that history doesn't repeat itself, but it plays out in weird ways right under our noses. He's such a lovely writer. A delight from start to finish. (MIRANDA SAWYER)

A brilliant account of how these lines on a map shape lives, destinies and economies. You'll never look at a map in the same way again. (STEPHEN BUSH)

The last decade in global politics is a reminder that history never moves in a straight line - but that hasn't ever stopped politicians and powerbrokers from trying to draw them on the maps that hang on the walls of our classrooms and corridors of power. This addictive book from the ever curious Jonn Elledge proves that and then some. Full of stories you thought you understood and those even the nerds in your life will never have known, this clever, confounding history will help you see the world from a new angle - if you can ever put it down. (PATRICK MAGUIRE)

All borders are artificial and every nation is an invention. Jonn Elledge provides a witty grand tour of the fascinating, disturbing and downright bizarre decisions that made the world what it is today. (DORIAN LYNSKEY)

This is brilliant fun, explaining the modern world in enjoyably bite-sized chapters. It's exactly the book you hope it will be. (ROB HUTTON)

Jonn Elledge is a wonderfully lively writer - warm, funny and sharply political, all at once. This makes him the perfect guide for a survey of world's borders, which are revealed, under his quizzical gaze, to be deadly serious and utterly absurd. (PHIL TINLINE)

Delightful. You'll learn more in one book than you did in years of school. (CHARLOTTE IVERS)

With a breezy, conversational tone, Elledge writes with wry humour and infectious enthusiasm.

Step forward Jonn Elledge with his amusing and illuminating account

Most relevant

Authors should not be encouraged to read their own books for audio, leave it to professionals. I've read the book previously and it's really informative and witty. Sadly the delivery of the audio is really poor and badly produced, the heavy breathing is distracting and jokes don't land right.