Preface -- From the Assyrian Captivity to the Arab Conquest (731 bc-ad 641) -- Roots -- The Lure of Exile -- The Scribes and the Birth of the Synagogue -- The Way They Lived -- Greeks, Romans, Seleucids, Sassanians -- Family, Home and Education -- A Neat Division of Labour: Exilarch and Gaon -- From Mishnah to Talmud -- The Talmud in Action -- Babylonia Assumes Leadership -- The Encounter with Islam (641-1850) -- A Deep Sigh of Relief -- Islam and the Jews: Theory and Practice -- Baghdad's Jewish Population -- Messianism and Karaism: Rabbinic Judaism Challenged -- Saadia's Legacy -- The Last of the Geonim -- The Dark Ages of Iraqi Jewry -- Lasting Imprint -- 100 Years of Turmoil -- Recovery and Reassertion -- A Century of Radical Change (1850-1951) -- The Road to Equality -- Exilarch to Nasi to Hakham Bashi -- The Impact of Modern Education -- World War I -- Rumours of a Brave New World -- Mandate and Independence -- The Farhud and its Consequences -- Youth in Revolt -- The Politics of Extortion -- The Exodus -- Appendix