Jack Dickens
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Jack Dickens
@jackfdickens.bsky.social
150 followers 170 following 59 posts
Historian & journalist exploring empires past and present. Commissioning Editor at Engelsberg Ideas | Email: jack@engelsbergideas.com
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Jack Dickens @jackfdickens.bsky.social · Nov 14
I am delighted to announce that my chapter on espionage in Central Asia and the Great Game has been published as part of this wonderful collection, ‘Spies in History’.

It will be up on @engelsbergideas.bsky.social soon. A big thank you to @paullay.bsky.social and Lars Molin for the opportunity.
Reposted by Jack Dickens
jackfdickens.bsky.social
Who is Xi Jinping and what motivates him?

I sat down with Rana Mitter to explore Xi’s worldview, and what it means for both China and the world.
February 5, 2026 at 2:06 PM
jackfdickens.bsky.social
Who is Xi Jinping and what motivates him?

I sat down with Rana Mitter to explore Xi’s worldview, and what it means for both China and the world.
February 5, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
🎧The EI Podcast: The making of Xi Jinping’s worldview

Rana Mitter explores Xi Jinping’s personal and ideological mindset in conversation with EI’s
@jackfdickens.bsky.social

audioboom.com/posts/885751...
The making of Xi Jinping's worldview
Rana Mitter (https://engelsbergideas.com/author/rana-mitter/) explores Xi Jinping’s personal and ideological mindset in conversation with EI’s Jack Dickens (https://engelsbergideas.com/author/jack-dic...
audioboom.com
February 5, 2026 at 2:00 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
alastairbenn.bsky.social
In a post-literate world, reading is treated more like an assumed good than a skill to be actively practised.

My latest for @engelsbergideas.bsky.social:

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...
The perils of hyper-literacy
In a post-literate world, reading is treated more like an assumed good than a skill to be actively practised.
engelsbergideas.com
February 3, 2026 at 10:30 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
A great read from @duncanweldon.bsky.social
February 1, 2026 at 11:08 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
Germany has long been a laboratory for political experiments, good and ill.

Germany, land of experiments | Daniel Johnson

engelsbergideas.com/essays/germa...
Germany, land of experiments
Germany has long been a laboratory for political experiments, good and ill.
engelsbergideas.com
February 3, 2026 at 12:07 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
csns-uk.bsky.social
📝 NEW | Last December, Dr Shiraz Maher spent a fortnight in Syria, observing celebrations to mark the first year since the country’s liberation

He's now written up his experience for @engelsbergideas.bsky.social

🔗 engelsbergideas.com/notebook/vis...
Visions of a new Syria
Efforts to craft a new identity for Syria will mean little if its government cannot get a grip on spiralling sectarian violence.
engelsbergideas.com
February 4, 2026 at 10:52 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
drchrisharding.bsky.social
Do go and see the British Museum's spellbinding new Samurai exhibition if you have a chance.

Meanwhile, my essay for Engelsberg Ideas on the origins and legacies of Japan's warrior class:
February 5, 2026 at 7:07 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
The Suez Crisis marked the moment when British statesmen realised that they could no longer rely on the American alliance to simulate being a great power.

Britain’s Suez catastrophe | Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri
(@chountisdefabbri.bsky.social)

engelsbergideas.com/essays/brita...
Britain's Suez catastrophe
The Suez Crisis, a severe geopolitical shock for all of Europe, marked the moment when British statesmen realised that they could no longer rely on the American alliance to simulate being a great powe...
engelsbergideas.com
February 5, 2026 at 10:48 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
Nearly 700 years after their political dominance ended, Japan’s warrior elite continue to shape global culture.

Why the samurai still matter | Chris Harding (@drchrisharding.bsky.social)

engelsbergideas.com/essays/why-t...
Why the samurai still matter
Nearly 700 years after their political dominance ended, Japan’s warrior elite continue to shape global culture.
engelsbergideas.com
February 4, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
The contemporary world order is poorly suited to today's dynamic, changing international system, a disparity that lies at the heart of our current sense of crisis.

The future of world order | Francis J. Gavin

engelsbergideas.com/essays/the-f...
The future of world order
The contemporary world order is poorly suited to today's dynamic, changing international system, a disparity that lies at the heart of our current sense of crisis.
engelsbergideas.com
February 4, 2026 at 1:10 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
China's drive to turn the Renminbi into a global currency may run into structural barriers.

Dollar v Renminbi | @quantumstrategy.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/dol...
Dollar v Renminbi
China's drive to turn the Renminbi into a global currency may run into structural barriers.
engelsbergideas.com
February 4, 2026 at 9:48 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
In a post-literate world, reading is treated more like an assumed good than a skill to be actively practised.

The perils of hyper-literacy | @alastairbenn.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...
The perils of hyper-literacy
In a post-literate world, reading is treated more like an assumed good than a skill to be actively practised.
engelsbergideas.com
February 3, 2026 at 9:47 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
Efforts to craft a new identity for Syria will mean little if its government cannot get a grip on spiralling sectarian violence.

Visions of a new Syria | Shiraz Maher

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/vis...
Visions of a new Syria
Efforts to craft a new identity for Syria will mean little if its government cannot get a grip on spiralling sectarian violence.
engelsbergideas.com
February 2, 2026 at 4:56 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
pmcghee.bsky.social
This is very good and balanced.
engelsbergideas.bsky.social Engelsberg Ideas @engelsbergideas.bsky.social · 10d
Iran’s last Shah presided over rapid economic growth and social transformation. Yet the unresolved political legacy of Pahlavi rule continues to haunt Iran’s opposition.

The stakes of a Pahlavi restoration | Roham Alvandi

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...
The stakes of a Pahlavi restoration
Iran’s last Shah presided over rapid economic growth, social transformation, and expanding opportunity, particularly for women. Yet the unresolved political legacy of Pahlavi rule continues to haunt I...
engelsbergideas.com
January 29, 2026 at 12:19 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
chountisdefabbri.bsky.social
Nietzsche believed in slow reading: attentive, effortful, and transformative. This was the essence of his philosophy of reading against the rush of modern life. @engelsbergideas.bsky.social
January 29, 2026 at 10:55 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
Treating culture as a battlefield is not the way to revitalise the world of opera.

How not to save opera | Alexandra Wilson (@amwilson.bsky.social)

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/how-...
How not to save opera
Treating culture as a battlefield is not the way to revitalise the world of opera.
engelsbergideas.com
February 2, 2026 at 11:11 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
From Oscar Wilde to Muriel Spark, many British writers, artists and thinkers were drawn to the Catholic Church in the 20th century.

The allure of Catholic conversion | Guy Stagg

engelsbergideas.com/reviews/the-...
The allure of Catholic conversion
From Oscar Wilde to Muriel Spark, many British writers, artists and thinkers were drawn to the Catholic Church in the 20th century.
engelsbergideas.com
January 29, 2026 at 1:46 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
Dan‑el Padilla Peralta, a prominent American classicist, has emerged as the face of radical critique in the academy – but his approach threatens to dismantle the field rather than rejuvenate it.

The Revolution within Classics | Jaspreet Singh Boparai

engelsbergideas.com/essays/the-r...
The Revolution within Classics
Dan‑el Padilla Peralta, a prominent American classicist, has emerged as the face of radical critique in the academy – but his approach threatens to dismantle the field rather than rejuvenate it.
engelsbergideas.com
January 30, 2026 at 9:04 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
The EI Podcast: Nietzsche’s manifesto for reading

Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri (@chountisdefabbri.bsky.social) on reading as an antidote to the restless spirit of the industrial age.

audioboom.com/posts/885293...
Nietzsche’s manifesto for reading
Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri (https://engelsbergideas.com/author/ioannes-chountis-de-fabbri/) on reading as an antidote to the restless spirit of the industrial age. Read by Leighton Pugh.
audioboom.com
January 29, 2026 at 10:40 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
Iran’s last Shah presided over rapid economic growth and social transformation. Yet the unresolved political legacy of Pahlavi rule continues to haunt Iran’s opposition.

The stakes of a Pahlavi restoration | Roham Alvandi

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/the...
The stakes of a Pahlavi restoration
Iran’s last Shah presided over rapid economic growth, social transformation, and expanding opportunity, particularly for women. Yet the unresolved political legacy of Pahlavi rule continues to haunt I...
engelsbergideas.com
January 29, 2026 at 10:17 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
Xi Jinping’s recent purges of senior PLA officers reveal a military stripped of independence, with obedience engineered by Leninist party structures.

China’s century of purges | Clark Aoqi Wu

engelsbergideas.com/essays/china...
China’s century of purges
Xi Jinping’s recent purges of senior PLA officers reveal a military stripped of independence, with obedience engineered over decades of Leninist structures.
engelsbergideas.com
January 30, 2026 at 9:00 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
European leaders must rebalance, rather than replace, the bonds that tie them to the United States. Even in the age of Trump, Washington remains an indispensable partner.

Why Europe and America need each other | Lawrence Freedman
(@ldfreedman.bsky.social)

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/why...
Why Europe and America need each other
European leaders must rebalance, rather than replace, the bonds that tie them to the United States. Even in the age of Trump, Washington remains an indispensable partner.
engelsbergideas.com
January 28, 2026 at 10:28 AM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
mpolymer1.bsky.social
My latest, in @engelsbergideas.bsky.social
engelsbergideas.bsky.social Engelsberg Ideas @engelsbergideas.bsky.social · 12d
For decades, American power was underpinned by ideals that inspired allies and adversaries alike. But the 'City on the Hill' now shines less brightly.

After American exceptionalism | Marc Polymeropoulos (@mpolymer1.bsky.social)

engelsbergideas.com/notebook/aft...
After American exceptionalism
For decades, American power was underpinned by ideals that inspired allies and adversaries alike. But the 'City on the Hill' now shines less brightly.
engelsbergideas.com
January 27, 2026 at 3:39 PM
Reposted by Jack Dickens
engelsbergideas.bsky.social
Britain’s interwar rearmament shows that military strength depends as much on industrial and economic strategy as on sheer spending.

The fourth arm of defence | @duncanweldon.bsky.social

engelsbergideas.com/essays/the-f...
The fourth arm of defence
Britain’s interwar rearmament shows that military strength depends as much on industrial and economic strategy as on sheer spending.
engelsbergideas.com
January 28, 2026 at 11:52 AM