Jörg Fisch is Professor Emeritus of Modern History at the University of Zurich. Anita Mage is an academic translator and doctoral candidate in philosophy at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.

'Ranging authoritatively and easily over disciplines, periods and regions, combining deep historical and legal insights with detailed commentary and crisp and informed judgment, Professor Fisch's book provides us with a rich and original global history of self-determination. Self-determination will continue to be a subject of debate and ongoing controversy. But this masterful work will be an indispensable reference point for all such discussions.' Antony Anghie, University of Utah

• Prologue: national unity and secession in the symbolism of power; Introduction: a concept and ideal; Part I. Theory of Self-Determination: 1. Individual self-determination; 2. Collective self-determination; 3. The people; 4. Self-determination and the right of self-determination; Part II. Self-Determination in Practice: 5. The early modern period in Europe: precursors of a right of self-determination?; 6. The first decolonization and the right to independence: the Americas, 1776–1826; 7. The French Revolution and the invention of the plebiscite; 8. From the European Restoration to the First World War, 1815–1914; 9. The First World War and the peace treaties, 1918–23; 10. The interwar period, 1923–39; 11. The Second World War: the perversion of a great promise; 12. The Cold War and the second decolonization, 1945–89; 13. After 1989: the quest for a new equilibrium; Epilogue: the right of the weak.