The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers was written by Paul Kennedy and published in 1987. Born in the United Kingdom in 1945, Kennedy grew up as the once-great British empire disintegrated. Kennedy's book argues that economic power is the foundation for a nation's military power. In the long run, a nation's dominance depends on its economic prowess.

Kennedy analyzes the relationship between economic production and military might, but he also understands the importance of other factors such as geography and technology. His view is Eurocentric, because the post-1500 world was dominated by Europe and its view of empire. Although the book is a work of history, it is also of interest to political scientists and followers of current events. Kennedy seeks to explain why history unfolded the way it did.

Great powers have always faced a conundrum, according to Kennedy. If they intervene too frequently in too many places, they risk economic exhaustion. Failure to intervene, on the other hand, brings a risk of irrelevance.

Kennedy's chronology—covering five hundred years—is vast. The year 1500 is his start date, as this period marked the beginning of European expansion, colonialism, and domination. Other states, such as Ming China, were not able to keep up with Europe over the next few centuries.

He covers the Habsburgs' attempts to dominate Europe from 1519 to 1659. The Eighty Years' War and an overextended empire ultimately doomed the Habsburgs. The Habsburgs had made too many economic mistakes. They expelled productive Jews and erected trade barriers, and these moves badly damaged their productivity. Despite the gallantry of the Spanish infantry, the Habsburgs could not sustain their preeminence.

Five new great powers emerged by 1700: Austria, France, Britain, Prussia, and Russia. In their competition, Britain and Russia had geographical advantages because there were fewer ways to invade them.

His analysis of the world wars of the twentieth century is convincing. Kennedy argues that Allied victory in World War I was ensured by the entry of the United States because it gave them a decisive economic edge. World War II marked the end of many great powers that wore themselves out economically during the long conflict.

The demise of older powers like Great Britain meant that the post-1945 world would be a bipolar one. The Cold War was an ideological competition between the United Sates and the USSR. Interestingly, Kennedy believed that Moscow's military spending was weakening it, but he did not foresee its collapse a mere four years after the book was published.

The last few chapters, which cover the 1980s, have been the most-discussed and controversial section of the book. In these pages, Kennedy writes that the US is in decline.

Today, many analysts believe Kennedy was right about America. They believe the US has overspent on unnecessary wars and weakened itself by having too many international commitments. In addition, the economic collapse of 2008 showed that the American economy was not as robust as many had thought.