The question is not why Europe would end, but why it would continue. Empire is not the natural default state of nations; it occurs when something very large and very powerful forces different peoples to cleave together in groups of nations, subordinating their national interests and identities to supra-national ones.
There are few things powerful enough to accomplish that, but one of them is a powerful army. This is the most common form of imperial adhesion. Some twisted soul comes to believe that the only way he can be happy is to be not just a king, but a king of kings. Most of those souls die young, but a few have the gift of military brilliance, and they conquer.
Read Full Article »