Global history records an astonishing variety of forms of social organization. Yet almost universally, males subordinate females. How does the relationship between men and women shape the wider political order? The First Political Order is a groundbreaking demonstration that the persistent and systematic subordination of women underlies all other institutions, with wide-ranging implications for global security and development.

Incorporating research findings spanning a variety of social science disciplines and comprehensive empirical data detailing the status of women around the globe, the book shows that female subordination functions almost as a curse upon nations. A society’s choice to subjugate women has significant negative consequences: worse governance, worse conflict, worse stability, worse economic performance, worse food security, worse health, worse demographic problems, worse environmental protection, and worse social progress. Yet despite the pervasive power of social and political structures that subordinate women, history—and the data—reveal possibilities for progress. The First Political Order shows that when steps are taken to reduce the hold of inequitable laws, customs, and practices, outcomes for all improve. It offers a new paradigm for understanding insecurity, instability, autocracy, and violence, explaining what the international community can do now to promote more equitable relations between men and women and, thereby, security and peace. With comprehensive empirical evidence of the wide-ranging harm of subjugating women, it is an important book for security scholars, social scientists, policy makers, historians, and advocates for women worldwide.

"Convincingly argue[s] that the fate of a nation is tied to the status of its women. . . . The great achievement of this book is the extensive data underpinning its argument that the subordination of women anywhere undermines national security and stability everywhere." - Ethics and International Affairs

"By exposing the shortcomings of political regimes across the globe and bringing into sharp focus how longstanding sexual inequalities work to exacerbate tensions and instability worldwide, The First Political Order makes a significant contribution to gender, development and security discourse. . . . Essential reading for scholars, policy makers, and students alike." - RUSI Journal

"An in-depth exploration of the interplay between the socially constructed relationship between women and men, characterized by women’s subordination, and wider political systems...few existing works provide the depth and breadth of analysis in this book." - International Affairs

"The importance of this decade-long research project in developing understandings of state security cannot be understated and Hudson and her co-authors offer a timely intervention in the field of International Relations." - Hague Journal of Diplomacy