Bernard Schutz is a Professor in the School of Physics and Astronomy at Cardiff University, Wales, and Director (ret.) at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute), Germany. In 2019 he was elected a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, and in 2021, he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society, in recognition of his seminal contributions to relativistic astrophysics.

Praise for the second edition: 'Bernard Schutz's textbook A First Course in General Relativity quickly became a classic, notable for its use of the geometrical approach to the subject, combined with a refreshing succinctness. Since its first publication in 1985, the field of general relativity has exploded … Schutz has done a masterful job of incorporating these new developments into a revised edition, which is sure to become a new 'classic'.' Clifford M. Will, McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis

• Preface to the third edition page; Preface to the second edition; Preface to the first edition; 1. Special relativity; 2. Vector analysis in special relativity; 3. Tensor analysis in special relativity; 4. Perfect fluids in special relativity; 5. Preface to curvature; 6. Curved manifolds; 7. Physics in a curved spacetime; 8. The Einstein field equations; 9. Fundamentals of Gravitational Radiation; 10. Spherical solutions for stars; 11. Schwarzschild geometry and black holes; 12. Gravitational wave astronomy; 13. Cosmology; Appendix A. Summary of linear algebra; References; Index.

Bernard Schutz is a Professor in the School of Physics and Astronomy at Cardiff University, Wales, and Director (ret.) at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute), Germany. In 2019 he was elected a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, and in 2021, he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society, in recognition of his seminal contributions to relativistic astrophysics.

Praise for the second edition: 'Bernard Schutz's textbook A First Course in General Relativity quickly became a classic, notable for its use of the geometrical approach to the subject, combined with a refreshing succinctness. Since its first publication in 1985, the field of general relativity has exploded … Schutz has done a masterful job of incorporating these new developments into a revised edition, which is sure to become a new 'classic'.' Clifford M. Will, McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis

• Preface to the third edition page; Preface to the second edition; Preface to the first edition; 1. Special relativity; 2. Vector analysis in special relativity; 3. Tensor analysis in special relativity; 4. Perfect fluids in special relativity; 5. Preface to curvature; 6. Curved manifolds; 7. Physics in a curved spacetime; 8. The Einstein field equations; 9. Fundamentals of Gravitational Radiation; 10. Spherical solutions for stars; 11. Schwarzschild geometry and black holes; 12. Gravitational wave astronomy; 13. Cosmology; Appendix A. Summary of linear algebra; References; Index.

Bernard Schutz is a Professor in the School of Physics and Astronomy at Cardiff University, Wales, and Director (ret.) at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute), Germany. In 2019 he was elected a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, and in 2021, he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society, in recognition of his seminal contributions to relativistic astrophysics.

Praise for the second edition: 'Bernard Schutz's textbook A First Course in General Relativity quickly became a classic, notable for its use of the geometrical approach to the subject, combined with a refreshing succinctness. Since its first publication in 1985, the field of general relativity has exploded … Schutz has done a masterful job of incorporating these new developments into a revised edition, which is sure to become a new 'classic'.' Clifford M. Will, McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis

• Preface to the third edition page; Preface to the second edition; Preface to the first edition; 1. Special relativity; 2. Vector analysis in special relativity; 3. Tensor analysis in special relativity; 4. Perfect fluids in special relativity; 5. Preface to curvature; 6. Curved manifolds; 7. Physics in a curved spacetime; 8. The Einstein field equations; 9. Fundamentals of Gravitational Radiation; 10. Spherical solutions for stars; 11. Schwarzschild geometry and black holes; 12. Gravitational wave astronomy; 13. Cosmology; Appendix A. Summary of linear algebra; References; Index.