I began writing this book with a number of objectives. I wanted to offer a comprehensive survey of the development and impact of modern multinational enterprise, from its origins to contemporary times. I hope that the story that emerges will appeal to any reader with an interest in history or world affairs, as well as offering insights for the specialist. I decided on a largely chronological account. There was the solid reason that such an account did not exist for a general history of multinational enterprise, and chronological narrative – describing the sequence of events, and connecting the context and the detail – is a fundamental part of an historian's toolkit. It was always apparent that it would be impossible for one book or one author to cover every aspect of multinational enterprise over the span of 200 years and more. I have focused on showing the major role of multinational enterprises in the events of world or international history. Empires, nation states, government policies, wars, and differences in economic development have been critical to the evolution of multinational enterprise, and to the ability of multinationals to exploit their competitive advantages and to fashion global networks. By the end of the book, I trust the reader will have a clearer notion of the when, where, why and how of multinational enterprises over their long history.

In so far as I have been able to achieve any of my aims, I should acknowledge a number of debts. I have to thank Cambridge University Press, Michael Watson, the History editor, for his many valuable insights and useful advice on everything, from content to structure and language, and my excellent copy-editor, Pat Harper. I received a great deal of help from companies, archives and libraries that answered my enquiries. I am grateful to several anonymous referees, who raised questions of the original proposal and the final manuscript. I owe special thanks, however, to Mira Wilkins for spending so much time reading my manuscript, and I benefited greatly from her analytical precision and acknowledged standards of scholarship.