A Pipeline Runs Through It

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Petroleum has served various purposes throughout history, from being an adhesive for Neanderthals to a waterproofing agent in Noah's Ark and a weapon during the Crusades. Its extraction transformed light, heat, and power, marking the transition to the modern oil age. This book offers a comprehensive exploration of the social, economic, political, and geopolitical forces that shaped this transition, tracing the journey from pre-industrial petroleum use to the establishment of a dominant oil industry by the early twentieth century. The narrative reveals a history marked by imperialist violence, political disenfranchisement, economic exploitation, and environmental destruction. The near-total eradication of Native Americans in regions like New York and Pennsylvania is highlighted as a precursor to the first industrialized oil region in the U.S. The British invasion of Upper Burma in 1885 is noted as a war partly fought for oil access, while the rise of Royal Dutch-Shell involved the genocidal subjugation of the Dutch East Indies' people. Furthermore, the book presents a new analysis of how the British navy's dependence on foreign oil sources may have contributed to the outbreak of the First World War. This exploration reveals how the rise of oil has profoundly shaped the modern world.