In "The Square and the Tower", historian Niall Ferguson explores the interplay between hierarchical power structures (represented by the tower) and decentralized networks (represented by the square) throughout history. He argues that while hierarchies have often dominated, networks have played a crucial role in driving historical change and transforming societies. The book provides a sweeping overview of how networks have shaped major events from the Reformation to the Digital Age.
Ferguson contends that we are currently living through a "networked age" enabled by modern technology, which is challenging traditional hierarchies in ways reminiscent of past network-driven revolutions. By examining historical patterns, he aims to provide insight into our current era of rapid technological and social change.
The Rise of Networks in the Early Modern Period
Ferguson begins by looking at how new networks emerged to challenge established hierarchies in the 15th-16th centuries. Two key developments drove this shift:
- Global Exploration Networks
In the early 1500s, Spain and Portugal constructed elaborate global trading networks spanning from Africa to India to China. This was enabled by technological innovations like improved ships and more precise maps, as well as social networks of sailors sharing navigational knowledge. These far-reaching trade networks challenged traditional hierarchies wherever they encountered new societies.
- The Printing Press and Information Networks
The invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg in the mid-15th century revolutionized the spread of information. Before this, access to books and written material was largely restricted to elites at the top of the social hierarchy. The printing press made books much more affordable and widely available, leading to the emergence of new information networks across Europe.
By 1500, 20% of cities in countries like Switzerland, Denmark, and Germany had printing houses. The price of books fell dramatically - in England, there was a 90% decline between the late 15th and late 16th centuries. This democratization of information set the stage for major challenges to established power structures.
The Reformation as a Network Revolution
Ferguson argues that the Protestant Reformation, sparked by Martin Luther in 1517, was enabled by the new networks created by the printing press. Luther's ideas spread rapidly through printed materials:
- German printing houses published around 5,000 editions of Luther's works over the century
- 80% were in German rather than Latin, making them accessible to regular people
- Cities with multiple printing presses were most likely to convert to Protestantism
- Areas without presses remained largely Catholic
The Catholic Church attempted to suppress this "viral" spread of Protestant ideas, but the decentralized nature of the information networks made this difficult. Even when key Protestant leaders were eliminated, others quickly emerged to take their place. The resilience of the network allowed Protestantism to survive and flourish.
By undermining Catholic dogma and loosening the Church's control over intellectual life, the Reformation also paved the way for the scientific revolution of the 17th century. Figures like Isaac Newton were now free to pursue unorthodox ideas, and the printing press allowed their work to be widely disseminated.
Networks and Revolution in the Enlightenment Era
Ferguson examines how networks played a vital role in the Enlightenment and the American and French Revolutions of the late 18th century.
The American Revolution was enabled by associational networks, particularly in Boston. While the colony had a hierarchical structure, several key figures like Joseph Warren and Paul Revere acted as connectors between different revolutionary groups. Their high "betweenness centrality" allowed ideas to spread between networks.
In France, networks of letter-writing between Enlightenment thinkers like Voltaire (who had over 1,400 correspondents) helped spread republican ideas. Literary salons hosted by women also acted as important nodes connecting different groups.
However, Ferguson notes an important difference between the two revolutions. America had a strong culture of civic associations, while France was more rigidly hierarchical. This contributed to the French Revolution becoming more chaotic and violent, ultimately replacing one hierarchy (the monarchy) with another (the revolutionary dictatorship).
The 19th Century: Networks and Reformed Hierarchy
After the turmoil of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic period, a new European order emerged in the 19th century. Ferguson characterizes this as a "networked hierarchy" - a system of interconnected power structures.
The Congress of Vienna in 1815 established a "pentarchy" of five major powers (Britain, Prussia, Austria, Russia, and France) that would dominate European affairs. This network of great powers was able to maintain relative peace and stability:
- Regular meetings were held to address conflicts
- The number of wars decreased significantly compared to the 18th century
- A balance of power was maintained, with Britain acting as a diplomatic mediator
Within countries, royal families like the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha formed networks through marriage alliances across Europe. This created connections between different national hierarchies.
The British Empire as a Network
Ferguson examines how Britain was able to build a vast global empire in the 19th century by leveraging both hierarchical and network structures:
- "Indirect rule" incorporated existing local hierarchies into the imperial system
- Technological networks like railroads and telegraphs connected far-flung parts of the empire
- Capitalist networks of banks and companies provided funding for imperial expansion
This combination of hierarchy and networks enabled an unprecedented level of global connection and movement:
- Shipping costs fell dramatically, enabling mass migration
- 55-58 million Europeans migrated to the Americas
- 50 million Indians and Chinese migrated across Asia and to Africa and Australia
However, this also led to populist backlashes against immigrants in both Europe and the settler colonies, foreshadowing later anti-globalization movements.
The Rise of Totalitarian Networks
Ferguson examines how two of the 20th century's most destructive ideologies - communism and fascism - began as networks before transforming into rigid hierarchies.
The socialist movement grew rapidly in the late 19th/early 20th centuries as an interconnected European network. The Bolsheviks were able to seize power in Russia in 1917 in part due to their strong network connections. However, under Stalin this was replaced by an extreme hierarchy that atomized citizens through fear and repression.
The Nazi party in Germany also started as a network, uniquely gaining power through elections rather than force. Ferguson attributes this to Germany's rich associational life, which allowed Nazi ideas to spread rapidly, especially in cities. But like the Soviet Union, Nazi rule created a climate of fear that broke down social connections.
The Cold War Era: Hierarchy Dominates
The post-WW2 period was defined by conflict between two massive hierarchical structures - the US-led NATO alliance and the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. While these were networks of countries, they were arranged hierarchically around the two superpowers.
This hierarchical organization extended to other spheres like the economy. Ferguson points to the "M-form" corporation pioneered by General Motors, with a clear top-down structure, as emblematic of the era.
However, networks began to reemerge towards the end of the Cold War, particularly in Communist countries:
- In Poland, connections formed between workers, intellectuals, and Catholics
- The Solidarity trade union became a key node in anti-Communist networks
- These networks helped pressure the government into allowing free elections in 1989
- This sparked a chain reaction across Eastern Europe, culminating in the fall of the Berlin Wall
The Reemergence of Networks in the Late 20th Century
Ferguson argues that by the 1970s, hierarchical structures were coming under pressure in the West as well. The civil rights movement had successfully challenged racial segregation, and the world was becoming more interconnected and complex.
Businesses began to realize they had become too hierarchical and rigid. Meanwhile, the decentralized network that would become the internet began to take shape:
- It grew organically rather than through centralized planning
- Protocols like TCP/IP allowed diverse computers to connect
- The World Wide Web enabled user-created content linked by hyperlinks
- There was no central controlling authority
Like the printing press before it, the internet became a vector for spreading ideas rapidly. And like books centuries earlier, the price of computers fell dramatically in a short time, democratizing access.
Networks in the 21st Century
Ferguson examines several ways networks have shaped major events in the 21st century:
Terrorism and the War on Terror
The 9/11 attacks were carried out by the al-Qaeda network, with Mohammed Atta as a key connecting node. The US response - invading Iraq and toppling Saddam Hussein's hierarchical dictatorship - created a power vacuum filled by new Islamist networks like ISIS.
Ferguson argues that ISIS's decentralized, swarm-like structure made traditional "decapitation" strategies ineffective. This demonstrated the resilience of networks against hierarchical opponents.
The Arab Spring
Social media networks, particularly Twitter and Facebook, played a vital role in coordinating protests against hierarchical dictatorships across the Middle East. As regimes fell, new networks emerged to fill the void.
Brexit and the 2016 US Election
In both cases, outsider campaigns leveraged social media networks to challenge political establishments:
- The pro-Brexit Vote Leave campaign used targeted ads to spread key messages on social media
- This reached far more voters than traditional campaigning methods
- Donald Trump's provocative tweets were more likely to be shared and discussed offline than Hillary Clinton's more conventional messaging
- Both capitalized on the fact that many people now get their news primarily through social media
Ferguson argues these examples show how networks can be used to polarize opinion and challenge hierarchies in democratic societies.
The Networked Future
Ferguson concludes by considering the implications of our increasingly networked world. He sees parallels with the disruption caused by the printing press, but notes some key differences:
- The internet has spread much more rapidly than printing/literacy did
- Unlike Gutenberg, the pioneers of the internet have become fabulously wealthy
- A few large companies dominate the online world, creating new hierarchies
He argues that reconciling networks and hierarchies will be crucial to addressing challenges like:
- Globalization vs. the nation-state
- Regulating cyberspace
- Preventing manipulation of networks by bad actors
While networks have often driven positive change historically, Ferguson cautions that uncontrolled networks can lead to chaos. He suggests that finding ways to productively combine hierarchical governance with network dynamism - as in the 19th century concert of Europe - may help navigate the turbulence of our networked age.
Key Themes and Insights
Throughout the book, Ferguson develops several key ideas about how networks function and interact with hierarchies:
The Structure of Networks
Ferguson explains that networks are made up of interconnected nodes, often linked by some commonality (shared status, values, interests, etc). He outlines several ways to measure the importance of nodes within a network:
- Degree centrality: The number of connections a node has
- Betweenness centrality: How much information passes through a node
- Closeness centrality: How easily a node can reach others in the network
Nodes with high centrality act as hubs in the network. However, "weak ties" between different networks are also crucial for spreading information and ideas more widely.
The Resilience of Networks
A key advantage of networks over hierarchies is their resilience. Hierarchies rely on a few central nodes that can be easily disrupted. Networks are more evenly distributed, making them harder to destroy. Ferguson gives several historical examples:
- Early Protestants quickly replaced leaders eliminated by Catholic persecution
- Al-Qaeda and ISIS proved difficult to defeat through "decapitation" strategies
- Both continued to function after key leaders were killed
The Viral Spread of Ideas
Ferguson frequently uses epidemiological metaphors to describe how ideas spread through networks:
- The printing press acted as a vector for Protestant ideas to go "viral"
- Social media allows memes and conspiracy theories to spread contagiously
- ISIS used social networks to spread its ideology
This viral quality makes networks powerful drivers of social change, but can also enable the rapid spread of misinformation.
The Interplay of Hierarchy and Network
While much of the book focuses on how networks challenge hierarchies, Ferguson also explores how the two structures interact and sometimes combine:
- The 19th century "pentarchy" was a network of hierarchical states
- Empires like the British combined central authority with local networks
- Modern corporations try to balance hierarchical management with internal networks
He suggests that the most stable and effective systems often involve some synthesis of hierarchical and network elements.
Technological Drivers of Network Growth
Ferguson emphasizes how new communications technologies enable the growth of transformative networks:
- The printing press and Protestant Reformation
- Telegraph/telephone and 19th century globalization
- Radio/TV and 20th century mass movements
- The internet and social media in the 21st century
Each new technology expands the reach and power of networks relative to hierarchies.
The Dark Side of Networks
While often portraying networks as progressive forces, Ferguson also highlights their potential downsides:
- Networks can spread harmful ideologies (e.g. fascism)
- They can be manipulated to polarize societies
- Uncontrolled networks may lead to chaos and violence
He argues that some degree of hierarchical control or regulation of networks is necessary to harness their benefits while mitigating risks.
Networks and Inequality
An intriguing thread through the book is how networks relate to social and economic inequality:
- Early information networks (e.g. printing) helped democratize knowledge
- But modern tech networks have made their founders extremely wealthy
- Network effects tend to produce winner-take-all outcomes
This suggests the relationship between networks and equality/inequality is complex and context-dependent.
Implications for the Present and Future
In examining historical network revolutions, Ferguson aims to shed light on our current networked age and its possible trajectories. Some key takeaways:
We are likely at the beginning of a network-driven transformation comparable to that sparked by the printing press. The full ramifications may not be clear for decades.
Established hierarchies (governments, corporations, etc.) will face growing challenges from emergent networks. Those that adapt and incorporate network elements are most likely to survive.
The power of networks to rapidly spread ideas makes them potential vectors for both positive change and destructive ideologies. Critical thinking and media literacy are increasingly crucial.
As in past eras, those who best leverage new network technologies (e.g. social media) can gain outsize influence, potentially destabilizing existing power structures.
Some form of governance or regulation of networks (especially online) will likely be necessary to prevent manipulation and maintain social stability. But overly rigid control risks stifling innovation.
Finding ways to productively combine hierarchical and network structures - in government, business, and civil society - will be a key challenge in navigating our networked future.
Critiques and Limitations
While providing a sweeping and thought-provoking overview, Ferguson's argument has some potential weaknesses:
- The network/hierarchy dichotomy may oversimplify more complex social structures
- There is relatively little discussion of networks in non-Western contexts
- The book sometimes strains to fit disparate historical events into the network framework
- Ferguson's conservative political leanings may influence some of his interpretations
Additionally, as a broad historical survey, the book often sacrifices depth for breadth. Many of the topics covered could be entire books in themselves.
However, these limitations do not negate the overall value of Ferguson's analysis. By highlighting the crucial role of networks throughout history, he provides a fresh perspective on both past events and current trends.
Conclusion
"The Square and the Tower" offers a compelling reexamination of history through the lens of networks and hierarchies. Ferguson makes a persuasive case that networks have been decisive in driving many of the major social, political, and technological changes of the past 500 years.
By tracing the interplay between hierarchical and networked forms of organization from the Reformation to the Digital Age, he provides valuable context for understanding our current era of rapid, technology-driven change. The historical patterns he identifies offer both hope for networks as agents of positive transformation, and caution about their potential to spread harmful ideas or lead to chaos if left unchecked.
Ultimately, Ferguson argues that successfully navigating our networked future will require finding new ways to balance the dynamism of networks with the stability of hierarchies. While the specific solutions remain to be determined, this book provides a crucial foundation for thinking about the challenges and opportunities ahead.
For anyone seeking to understand the forces shaping our interconnected world, "The Square and the Tower" offers an illuminating and thought-provoking perspective on both where we've been and where we might be headed.