A brilliant short history of the Balkans from the Romans to the present day, providing essential historical and cultural context for contemporary Balkan politics. While the end of the twentieth century described the Balkans as a region that had always troubled Europe, two centuries earlier, the Balkans did not exist. Not the Balkans, but 'Rumelia' was what the Ottomans held, the former Roman lands they had seized from the Byzantine Empire, along with their Christian inhabitants. In this authentic account of the region, Mark Mazower deconstructs today's Western clichés and replaces stereotypes with a vivid description of how mountains, empires, and religions have shaped the lives of its inhabitants. As a bridge between Europe and Asia, it has been exposed to the continuous raids of nomadic peoples through the ages. Mazower's narrative spans widely in both time and space, viewing the former Turkish territories in Europe as part of a common yet complex historical heritage.