during which Europe's supremacy in the world started waning. "This is one of the best books of its kind of integrated history. (...) Romein has successfully integrated the various branches of history - economic, cultural and political - without being stilted. (...) This work can be read with great profit by the highly educated general reader, the undergraduate history major, the advanced graduate student, and the professional historian." The book devotes chapters to all aspects of European history during this period: not only economic, social, cultural and political history, but also the developments in science, medicine, law and criminology, psychology, literature, art, women emancipation, religion and atheism, education etc. The American Historical Review concluded: "the book is a treasury of illuminating fact and perceptive commentary." Due to a chronic illness, which became manifest in 1959, he limited his professorship at the University of Amsterdam to solely Theoretical History. He died in Amsterdam in July 1962. Political views Romein held Marxist views and was active within the Communist Party of Holland (CPH) from 1917 onwards, initially as a secretary for the communist parliamentarian Willem van Ravesteyn, then as a high-ranking editor of the party's daily De Tribune. When internal struggles led to a Moscow-backed "palace revolution" in 1925, Romein sided with Van Ravesteyn and David Wijnkoop, and as a result was forced out of the Tribune'''s editorial board. Expulsion from the party for continued support of Wijnkoop followed in 1927, ending Romein's direct involvement in politics. Romein's Marxism made him a controversial figure and affected his career when in 1938 he was a candidate for a professorship at the Municipal University of Amsterdam, where professors were appointed by the municipal council. On the one hand, the liberals and right-wing factions disliked Romein for his continued support of the Soviet Union; on the other hand, the communist faction headed by Romein's old friend Wijnkoop were upset about his openly criticizing of Soviet show trials, two years earlier. This criticism, however, won him some sympathy within SDAP faction. A majority that included Wijnkoop's communists voted against Romein's appointment. A year later, when a different professorship was vacant, Romein was appointed professor of Dutch history, this time with support from Wijnkoop and despite a vehement campaign against his candidature. In the Cold War years of the early 1950s, Romein and his collaborators became relatively isolated. He condemned the Soviet crackdown on the 1956 Hungarian