故羅榮邦教授（1912-1981）在這本極具開創性的遺作中，探討 #明代 海權與海軍出現的地理、政治與商業因素。雖然 #鄭和 與他七次下西洋得到部分學者的關注，但少有人理解為這些出航提供航海與技術背景的漫長海洋投入史。此種對海洋發展的投入的演變，及其向印度洋的延伸，是羅教授這本仍具時效性與高度象徵意義的著作的焦點。 除詳述明代海軍的崛起與其不凡的成就外，羅榮邦亦檢視導致中國第一個大航海時代 結束的一些因素：為何中國突然間貌似遠離了海洋？在安南與北疆的軍事失利對此有影響嗎？抑或財政壓力才是關鍵？《跨越西海的帝國：海上力量和明初海軍》（Empire in the Western Ocean Sea: Power and the Early Ming Navy, 1355–1449）是迄今對早期明代海軍的活動與進化，提出最全面且最有洞見觀點的英文專書。此外...(展开全部)

One of the most famous rulers in Chinese history, the Yongle emperor (r. 1402–24) gained renown for constructing Beijing’s magnificent Forbidden City, directing ambitious naval expeditions, and creating the world’s largest encyclopedia. What the Emperor Built is the first book-length study devoted to the architectural projects of a single Chinese emperor. Focusing on the imperi...(展开全部)

卜正民（Timothy Brook），1951年生，享誉世界汉学界的史学大家，师从孔飞力教授，毕业于美国哈佛大学，历任多伦多大学、斯坦福大学等校教授，英国牛津大学邵氏汉学教授，美国亚洲学会前任会长。现为加拿大英属哥伦比亚大学圣约翰学院历史系教授，兼圣约翰神学院院长。学术视野广阔，主要从事亚洲历史和文化的研究，研究领域涉及明代社会和文化史、“二战”时期日本在中国的占领等。 主编六卷本“哈佛中国史”丛书，并撰写其中第5卷《挣扎的帝国：元与明》，首次从气候这一环境史的新视角解读元明两大帝国的兴衰，呈现出第一个连贯的生态历史。 已翻译为中文的作品多达十几种，在海峡两岸拥有庞大的读者群。其他主要代表作品有：《秩序的沦陷》、《杀千刀》、《纵乐的困惑》、《明代的国家与社会》、《维梅尔的帽子》等。其中，《纵乐的困惑》获得2000年美国“列文森中国研究最佳著作奖”，《...(展开全部)

The eminent historian Patrick J. Geary has written a provocative book, based on lectures delivered at the Historical Society of Israel about the role of language and ideology in the study and history of the early Middle Ages. He includes a fascinating discussion of the rush by nationalist philologists to rediscover the medieval roots of their respective vernaculars, the rivalry...(展开全部)

The eminent historian Patrick J. Geary has written a provocative book, based on lectures delivered at the Historical Society of Israel about the role of language and ideology in the study and history of the early Middle Ages. He includes a fascinating discussion of the rush by nationalist philologists to rediscover the medieval roots of their respective vernaculars, the rivalry...(展开全部)

肯尼斯·麦克弗森（Kenneth McPherson）是澳大利亚科廷大学（Curtin University of Technology）历史系教授，保修期从事海洋史的研究与教学，主要著作有`How Best Do We Survive?': A Modern Political History of the Tamil Muslims，The Indian Ocean: A History of People and the Sea，Four Decades of Courage: Development of United States Air Power and The 7th Bombardment Group等。

In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, a handful of powerful European states controlled more than a third of the land surface of the planet. These sprawling empires encompassed not only rainforests, deserts, and savannahs but also some of the world’s most magnificent rivers, lakes, marshes, and seas. Liquid Empire tells the story of how the waters of the colonial world shap...(展开全部)

In this revisionist history of the eighteenth-century Qing Empire from a maritime perspective, Ronald C. Po argues that it is reductive to view China over this period exclusively as a continental power with little interest in the sea. With a coastline of almost 14,500 kilometers, the Qing was not a landlocked state. Although it came to be known as an inward-looking empire, Po ...(展开全部)

In this revisionist history of the eighteenth-century Qing Empire from a maritime perspective, Ronald C. Po argues that it is reductive to view China over this period exclusively as a continental power with little interest in the sea. With a coastline of almost 14,500 kilometers, the Qing was not a landlocked state. Although it came to be known as an inward-looking empire, Po s...(展开全部)

In this revisionist history of the eighteenth-century Qing Empire from a maritime perspective, Ronald C. Po argues that it is reductive to view China over this period exclusively as a continental power with little interest in the sea. With a coastline of almost 14,500 kilometers, the Qing was not a landlocked state. Although it came to be known as an inward-looking empire, Po s...(展开全部)