Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World

Peter the Great founded the Russian empire in 1721; he also resisted the Swedish military threat from the west, improved the naval presence in the Black Sea to push back against the Muslim Ottoman Empire in the south, improved the military, and reformed the bureaucracy.

Russia’s leader in the early years of the twenty-first century, Vladimir Putin, has worked on similar projects. He, too, has pushed back against European and NATO adventurism, especially in Ukraine, where he responded to the overthrow of a Moscow-friendly regime by retaking the Crimean Peninsula and fomenting rebellion among ethnic Russians in Ukraine’s eastern provinces. He also has put pressure on the western border by encouraging Russians in Moldova to press for independence. Moreover, like Peter, Putin has made improvements to the navy and its seaports.

With the same understanding of border issues as Peter the Great, Putin has tried to build a more powerful Russia behind secure borders that can withstand the ever-present threats from Europe and the Islamic south.

Regardless of their differences on domestic policy, US chief executives tend to think alike when it comes to foreign affairs. President Obama continued this tradition by promoting American interests, especially the quest for economic ties and the desire to extend democratic values to other nations. He was critical of Chinese occupation of Tibet; as Russia tried to puff itself up, he put it down by calling it a “regional power”; he negotiated restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program; and he criticized corruption and human-rights violations in Africa.

One of the original disciples of Islam, Ali was set to inherit founder Muhammad’s leadership, but he and his sons were assassinated. Shia Muslims believe the genuine line of religious leaders should have passed through Ali as he was the successor appointed by Muhammad. Sunni Muslims, on the other hand, believe that there was no appointed successor, but rather that leadership was meant to be decided through an election. Shias and Sunnis often clash, which destabilizes the Middle East. 

Bolivar led South America away from colonial rule and toward self-government. To this day, his legacy is cited by anti-American, pro-socialist groups in the region, including in Venezuela, Bolivar’s homeland, where a failed socialist regime clings to power.

Ataturk was a reformer who, after World War I, wrested the dying Ottoman Empire’s rump state of Turkey away from European forces. He then reformed and modernized the new nation, democratizing it and restricting Islamic influence in governance to make it more European. Only lately, as Turkey’s institutions become more Islamic, have Ataturk’s reforms begun to unwind. 

Amundsen was the first explorer to sail into the Arctic Ocean near Greenland and emerge through the Bering Strait off Alaska. His achievement realized the age-old dream of a Northwest Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific. However, the reality of a Northwest Passage was postponed due to weather for nearly a century, until global warming had melted enough of the polar ice cap to make summer passage practical for shipping. 

In the early 1900s, President Roosevelt changed the world’s perception of the US. He sent a fleet of 16 battleships on a world tour, and he insisted on America’s right to police the Western Hemisphere. The Roosevelt administration marks the moment when America emerged as a major player on the world stage. The US’s ability to project military and economic power helped shape recent world history.