Essays Archive

A poster of Ali Khamenei and Ruhollah Khomeini in the Grand Bazaar in Tehran.

essays

The deep roots of Iran’s economic crisis

Iran is dominated by a mercantile political economy hostile to institutional development and long-term investment.

Ali Ansari January 7, 2026

essays

Best of Engelsberg Ideas in 2025

Here is a selection of pieces we have published over the last twelve months that highlight the biggest stories and themes of 2025 — a year in ideas.

Engelsberg Ideas December 31, 2025

A statue of an angel holding an imperial crown aloft in Germany's Niederwald Monument.

essays

Europe’s imperial awakening

The new US National Security Strategy exposes a fundamental contradiction between civilisational ambition and strategic retrenchment. In doing so, it sets the stage for Europe’s em..

Sumantra Maitra December 31, 2025

A storm rolls in over the Capitol Building in Washington, DC.

essays

America’s world turned upside down

2025 was defined by AI exuberance and America First, as technological advances gathered momentum while the Trump administration sought to radically reshape the international order...

Bill Emmott December 30, 2025

American tank crews keeping warm during the Ardennes-Alsace Campaign, Battle of the Bulge, 1945.

essays

A little history of winter warfare

Throughout human history, commanders and warriors have adapted to waging war in the depths of winter, providing strategic lessons and cautionary tales for the Russo-Ukrainian confl..

Peter Caddick-Adams December 29, 2025

Supporters of impeached former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol at a rally in Seoul. Credit: Associated Press

essays

The long tail of Seoul’s political crisis

A year on from the martial law disaster, South Korean democracy has recovered from its existential moment. Yet it would be premature to assume the country is back on a stable democ..

John Nilsson-Wright December 23, 2025

Zohran Mamdani addresses supporters at an election rally in November 2025 prior to his election as Mayor of New York City.

essays

The battle for New York

Zohran Mamdani's election as mayor of New York City is part of a decades-long clash between competing visions of America's greatest metropolis, and a historic contest between entre..

John Ketcham December 22, 2025

essays

Essaying Montaigne

In Montaigne’s French, essays are not yet 'essays' but assays – trials, tests, experiments. Remove belief, whether in philosophy or religion, and what remains?

David Wootton December 19, 2025

Hog Island Shipyard, Pennsylvania, 1918. Credit: akg-images

essays

Maritime allies are America’s superpower

The United States must collaborate successfully with its allies if it is to compete with China in the global shipping industry.

Marc Levinson December 17, 2025