The World-Struggle for Oil

In the early 1920s, the world stood on the brink of a new kind of empire—one built not on armies or gold, but on the flow of oil. This book opens by laying out how the discovery and rapid consumption of petroleum reshaped every major power’s foreign and domestic policies, turning the quest for fuel into a decisive factor in international relations. It shows how governments and corporations alike began to treat oil as a strategic asset, influencing everything from naval strength to economic growth.

The narrative then turns to the titans of the industry—Standard Oil, Royal Dutch‑Shell, and the Dutch‑German petroleum trusts—and examines how their ambitions intertwined with national agendas. Readers are guided through the rivalries between the United States, Britain, France, and emerging European blocs, each scrambling for concessions, concessions, and influence over fields from the Middle East to Russia. By the end of the first part, the stage is set for a complex, high‑stakes struggle that would shape the geopolitical landscape for decades to come.