Jonathan Fenby

Journalist and author Jonathan Fenby explains 200 years of tumultuous events that make France both proud of its past and a prisoner of its history.

Fenby journeys from the first French revolution of 1789 through defeat at Waterloo in 1815, bloody civil disorder, and three invasions by Germany to today’s home-grown Islamic extremism that culminated in the attacks on the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine. Fenby’s account in The History of Modern France: From the Revolution to the Present Day comes out of half a century of close observation of the country. This included spells as Paris bureau chief for Reuters and The Economist and writing about France for many other publications. He explains how France is now confronted by deep economic and social challenges and faces an existential problem over Europe.

Fenby is a former editor of both The Observer and the South China Morning Post. He is author of 18 books including On the Brink: The Trouble with France and The General: Charles De Gaulle and the France He Saved. The French government awarded him its highest civil honour, the Légion d’Honneur, and the Ordre National de Mérite for his contribution to understanding between Britain and France.

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