| Ludwig Dehio advances a theory of the historical dynamic of the modern European state system (1494--1945) and the frustration of bids for hegemony within it. The dissertation's analysis of the Hellenic, Hellenistic, Roman, Italian, modern European, and western hemispheric state systems considers certain claims of the theory. The theory is useful for our understanding of the dynamics of a state system and its plural or hegemonic structure. Whether a state system's structure is plural or hegemonic is often linked to whether a related state system's structure is plural or hegemonic. Dehio's historical theory illuminates certain aspects of contemporary American grand strategy and global order. A pragmatic interpretation of the theory suggests particular grand strategies will partially determine the global system's movement towards destructive bids for hegemony, or a viable plural order. |
