A fundamental question for IR is whether the value system of liberalism can be universalized, or if, in fact, the illiberal reality of international politics systematically rules out such a universalisation. The book addresses this issue by focusing on the rise and fall of a specific liberal project supported by influential German intellectuals.

ROBBIE SHILLIAM is Lecturer in International Relations at the Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. Prior to this he was the Hedley Bull Junior Research Fellow at the University of Oxford, UK.

PART I Introduction 1789: The Revolution of Backwardness PART II Kant's Corporate Enlightenment Hegel's Revolution of Philosophy Interlude: Vormärz Weber's Realpolitik PART III Epilogue: Weimar Morgenthau's Existential Crisis Conclusion