The History of Modern Europe is highly regarded by students and professors, as well as the wider reading public, as it successfully combines in-depth analysis and scientific documentation with the characteristically accessible and narratively vivid style of John Merriman, who enriches his study with humor and biographical sketches.

This fourth edition has been enhanced with recent research data that highlight, among other things, the historical development of the women's movement, slavery, and racial relations, as well as many other issues pertaining to social history. Merriman, covering a long historical journey of approximately seven centuries, particularly focuses on the way in which European social structure was shaped through violence and war, two fields that have attracted the keen interest of recent academic research.