European history Books

Book SynopsisTrade Review"[A] beautifully constructed, lucid, and brief new life of the dictator. . . . Written with fluent sobriety and humour the book is a constant pleasure to read. No book of history is ever definitive: new facts trickle out, new writers bring new perspectives to bear. This is the charm of the genre. But some history books can become classics for later generations. Khlevniuk’s Stalin is likely to be one of them."—Rodric Braithwaite, Journal of Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies"Authoritative, fluently written. . . . The pinnacle of current scholarship on its subject."—Charlotte Hobson, Spectator"This brilliant, authoritative, opinionated biography ranks as the best on Stalin in any language. Khlevniuk’s research is prodigious and covers a plethora of primary and secondary sources."—Martin McCauley, East-West Review"A historiographical and literary masterpiece, which undoubtedly will remain the standard biography of Stalin for decades to come."—Mark Edele, Australian Book ReviewWon the 2016 PROSE Award in Biography & Autobiography. The Prose Awards recognize the very best in professional and scholarly publishing. Presented by the Professional Schoarly Publishing (PSP) Dision of the Associaton of American Publishers (AAP)Awarded second prize for the Pushkin House Russian Book Prize for the Best Russian book in translation"Oleg Khlevniuk is incontestably the best Russian student of Soviet history. In this biography, he uses his experience and talents to give us an innovative and convincing portrait of the Soviet 'micromanaging' despot. The chapters dealing with the Terror, war, victory and the tragic postwar years break new ground. Stalin’s political and private life, his relationships with his immediate circle, his family and the 'Soviet people,' his intellectual capacities and his way of leading the country, as well as his cruelty and the system of power he built, come vividly to life, and one leaves the book with a much more profound understanding of some of Europe’s darkest decades."—Andrea Graziosi, author of the Histoire de l'URSS"Oleg Khlevniuk, master of the Russian archives, provides a fresh and acute analysis of Stalin the destroyer to confound revisionists who portray him as a state builder and modernizer."—Alfred J. Rieber, author of Stalin and the Struggle for Eurasia"Khlevniuk is one of the most knowledgeable historians of Stalin and his era. This excellent biography of Stalin represents the current state of scholarship, and should be read widely."—Hiroaki Kuromiya, author of Stalin: Profiles in Power"A superb account by the eminent scholar who pioneered the opening of the Soviet archives. Oleg Khlevniuk summarizes a lifetime of research, eschewing unsubstantiated anecdotes and tales and sticking to the documentary record, to produce an authoritative narrative of Stalin’s life and times."—Paul Gregory, Hoover Institution"No one in the world knows the inner workings of Soviet power in Stalin’s time better than Oleg Khlevniuk. Beautifully and artfully composed, deeply moral, and supremely readable, Stalin: New Biography of a Dictator will become the benchmark against which all future biographies of Stalin will be measured. A masterpiece."—Jan Plamper, author of The Stalin Cult: A Study in the Alchemy of Power

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Book SynopsisBorn Lev Davidovich Bronstein in southern Ukraine, Trotsky was an effective military strategist and an adept diplomat, who staked the fate of the Bolshevik revolution on the meagre foundation of a Europe-wide Communist upheaval. In this book, Trotsky emerges as a brilliant yet flawed man.Trade Review"An accessible scholarly account of a man whose life spanned continents, whose charisma was legendary and whose ideas sparked a revolution and its backlash."—Kirkus Reviews * Kirkus Reviews *"This trim book . . . pulls together all the essentials of the life of Leon Trotsky and the revolution he so significantly shaped into a seamless, intelligent, and wonderfully accessible synopsis."—Robert Legvold, Foreign Affairs -- Robert Legvold * Foreign Affairs * “. . . this is both a good read and a balanced, plausible interpretation of the man in his times. Rubenstein sees things to admire and deplore, and achieves the mix of empathy and critical distance a good biographer needs.”—Sheila Fitzpatrick, The Guardian -- Sheila Fitzpatrick * The Guardian *"In this new, concise biography, Rubenstein offers a more balanced view of Trotsky. . . . There are many reasons to commend this work — among them, Rubenstein’s depoliticization of its subject and the book’s succinctness and readability."—Peter Ephross, The Forward -- Peter Ephross * The Forward *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Jeremy Black is a superlative guide to modern British history. He combines a wonderful narrative style with unimpeachable intellectual authority. if anyone wants to understand how our country has developed over the last seventy years there is no better volume than this." -Michael Gove, Member of Parliament of the United Kingdom "Throughout this volume, Professor Black demonstrates an enviable ability to communicate the most complex events incisively and economically-whether analyzing the Northern Irish 'Troubles' in a few pages, or the Miners' Strike in a few paragraphs. With masterly command of detail, he builds a picture of change and continuity which makes the outcome of Britain's Brexit referendum much easier to comprehend." -Julian Lewis, Member of Parliament of the United Kingdom, Chairman, House of Commons Defense CommitteeTable of ContentsPreface: From Empire to Where?Prime Ministers from 1945Abbreviations1. Environment under Strain2. Economy under Strain3. Changing Society4. Changing Culture5. The After-Echoes of War, 1945-606. The Politics of Crisis, 1961-797. Thatcherism, 1979-908. Changing Directions, 1990-20169. British Issues, 1945-201610. European and World Questions11. Into the Future12. ConclusionsSelected Further ReadingIndex

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Speiser's work is both insightful and accessible."--H-Net Review "[Speiser] offers a new insight into the unique situation of the two former enemies now practicing cohabitation in a European context."--Journal of Contemporary History "Speiser's monograph is valuable because he thoroughly covers a subject that has received little treatment."--Journal of Modern History "Speiser breaks entirely new ground. The assessment of the impact of British public opinion on servicemen's attitudes toward Germany is particularly well done. The extensive use of the German archives is commendable."--Ian F. W. Beckett, editor of Citizen Soldiers and the British Empire, 1837–1902"Speiser provides a well-researched, lively account of how, not always successfully, after 1945 the British attempted to use their Rhine Army to win German hearts and minds. In addition to its value as a historical narrative, Speiser's work throws out issues of direct contemporary relevance."--Clive Emsley, author of Soldier, Sailor, Beggarman, Thief: Crime and the British Armed Services since 1914

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA significant book that clearly shows the importance and vastness of the clandestine intelligence-counterintelligence war on the Eastern Front. . . . Stephan's thorough and imaginative research, and his patient analysis and interpretation of the documents and memoirs he has unearthed, set a standard that other historians working on intelligence should emulate."" - American Historical Review;""An indispensable account of this dimension of the war on the Eastern Front, and a valuable primer for all those who wish to understand how to conduct intelligence and counterintelligence operations. Needless to say this topic is of immense relevance to American forces and intelligence agencies today.""- Parameters;""Likely to remain the standard book on the subject for years to come. Professional historians, intelligence officers, and the public will find it a rewarding and informative read.""- Journal of Intelligence History;""A reasoned argument backed by extensive research that raises intelligence-counterintelligence studies to a more scholarly level. . . . A powerful view of Soviet counterintelligence efforts--the best we are likely to see for some time to come.""- Journal of Military History;""Stephan's thorough, accurate, and objective study provides unprecedented detail and keen insights on one of history's most illusive subjects. It is destined to become the standard work in this field.""- David M. Glantz, author of The Battle for Leningrad;""Stephan's book demonstrates how the Soviets adroitly manipulated both German intelligence and counter-intelligence in masterfully staged strategic deception operations. It chronicles timely lessons for contemporary intelligence professionals and should grace the libraries of today's intelligence services.""- John J. Dziak, author of Chekisty: A History of the KGB;""Should be read by anyone interested in the history of intelligence or of World War II.""--John Ferris, author of Intelligence in the Second World War""Stephan's thorough, accurate, and objective study provides unprecedented detail and keen insights on one of history's most illusive subjects. It is destined to become the standard work in this field.""- David M. Glantz, author of The Battle for Leningrad;""Stephan's book demonstrates how the Soviets adroitly manipulated both German intelligence and counter-intelligence in masterfully staged strategic deception operations. It chronicles timely lessons for contemporary intelligence professionals and should grace the libraries of today's intelligence services.""- John J. Dziak, author of Chekisty: A History of the KGB;""Should be read by anyone interested in the history of intelligence or of World War II.""- John Ferris, author of Intelligence in the Second World War

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Book SynopsisContinuing his magisterial account of the Eastern Front campaigns, David M. Glantz focuses here on the Red Army's operations from the fall of 1943 to April 1944. Glantz chronicles the Soviet Army's efforts to further exploit their post-Kursk gains and accelerate a counteroffensive that would eventually take them all the way to Berlin.Trade ReviewA revisionist history of the highest order. No serious student of the history of the Eastern Front during the Battle for Belorussia can afford to ignore it.""- Michigan War Studies Review;""This book is a must-read for those interested in the operational details of Eastern Front battles and understand military history jargon.""- Slavic Review;""This book is an especially important contribution to David Glantz’s many books on the Red Army in World War II. The in-depth level of analysis of military operations in Belorussia as the Red Army gathered its strength authoritatively fills [a] gap in our knowledge.""- Russian Review;""For a ‘forgotten’ series of offensives, Glantz leaves readers with few unknowns and an overwhelming number of knowns, making The Battle for Belorussia one of the most important books of the year.""- Stone & Stone World War II Books;Praise for the work of David Glantz:""A superb historian and a brilliant detective.""- New York Review of Books;""Glantz is the world’s top scholar of the Soviet-German War.""- Journal of Military History;""Indisputably the West’s foremost expert on the subject.""- The Atlantic;""Glantz’s unrivalled command of Soviet sources has produced a body of work that has fundamentally revised our knowledge of the Eastern Front in World War II. By providing a comprehensive, accurate perspective on the war the Soviet Union fought, he has almost single-handedly corrected a one-sided German focus that distorted western understanding.""- Slavic Review;""The appearance of any book by David Glantz is an event of the first magnitude.""- World War II;

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Book Synopsis“I’d rather go to France with Ina Caro than with Henry Adams or Henry James.”—NewsweekTrade Review"[Caro] is an unabashedly enthusiastic guide. Her love for the places she visits is contagious." "A keen, if sometimes breathless guide to monarchical France and its architecture." "Ina Caro ... has spent her life studying and writing about France, and she has crammed all of her knowledge into this delightful travel guide."

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Book SynopsisBorn in 1852 in the last years of serfdom, Vera Figner came of age as Imperial Russian society was being rocked by the massive upheaval that culminated in the Bolshevik revolution of 1917. At first champion of populist causes and champion of women's higher education, Figner later became a leader of the terrorist party The People's Will.Trade ReviewHartnett clearly depicts her subject's gradual transformation from a severe ideologue into a revered martyr whose 'suffering became enshrined,' and the book revivifies a legendary socialist whose violent extremism evolved into humanitarianism on behalf of political prisoners and exiles sentenced to hard labor. * Publishers Weekly *Hartnett is an able storyteller, and the chapters portraying Figner's involvement in the People's Will, her prolonged ordeal in Schlisselburg, and her harrowing experiences during the 1917 revolution and Civil War make riveting reading. Scholars will benefit from this more expansive and thorough treatment of Figner's astonishing career in Soviet Russia, when her youthful defiance had mellowed to carefully calibrated accommodation with and resistance to a regime that was in part her legacy. * The Soviet and Post-Soviet Review *Although Figner was a famous and politically active figure throughout her life, historians have overlooked her part in the events of 1917 and after. Hartnett's biography is an excellent and comprehensive effort to correct this situation, but there is always the danger that once one book has been written about a prominent woman, no further works are published. . . . The greatest achievement of Hartnett's impressive work would be that it encourages further study of a woman who did not simply survive the Revolution, but lived it. * Slavonic & East European Review *This interesting and well-written biography . . . should be recommended for courses on nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Russian history. It is a valuable addition to what remains quite a limited selection of accessible English-language monographs on the nineteenth-century revolutionary movement in Russia. * Slavic Review *The Defiant Life of Vera Figner is a valuable contribution to our understanding of an important Russian political figure and of broader political developments. * Journal of Modern History *Table of ContentsTable of Contents1. In the Twilight of a Fading Age 2. Age of Consciousness 3. Pioneers Diverted 4. Town and Country 5. The Tsar's Death Sentence 6. Revolutionary Iconography 7. Transformation 8. Life and Death 9. Resurrection in Exile 10. An Old Revolutionary in a New Revolution 11. Revolutionary Survivor

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Captivating…Hanley’s work vividly depicts the texture of the times with an enthralling, novelistic narrative.”—Publishers Weekly * Publishers Weekly *“I have been waiting for a biography of Louis for a long time, and few are better qualified to write it than Hanley. She has a command of the sources and skilfully deploys her expertise in medieval arms and warfare… this is serious history, as well as a gripping – and poignant – story.”—Sophie Ambler, BBC History -- Sophie Ambler * BBC History Magazine *“Hanley breaks new ground with this engaging and readable first biography in English of Louis VIII.”—Choice * Choice *“This is a volume aimed at a wide audience, with an appealing, fast-paced prose style… will open up new perspectives and debates on the era of Louis”—Sean L. Field, Royal Studies -- Sean L. Field * Royal Studies *

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Book SynopsisThe poet and critic Edmund Blunden was born in Yalding, Kent in 1896. He studied at Oxford, was professor of English literature at Tokyo from 1924-7 and fellow of Merton College, Oxford from 1931. He joined the staff of 'The Times Literary Supplement' in 1943, and from 1953 lectured at the University of Hong Kong. From1966-8 he was professor of poetry at Oxford.Trade ReviewAn established classic ... accurate and detailed in observation of the war scene and its human figures -- D. J. Enright

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Book SynopsisThis is a study of the structure of the Soviet Communist Party in the 1930s. Based upon archival and published sources, the work describes the events in the Bolshevik Party leading up to the Great Purges of 1937â1938. Professor Getty concludes that the party bureaucracy was chaotic rather than totalitarian, and that local officials had relative autonomy within a considerably fragmented political system. The Moscow leadership, of which Stalin was the most authoritarian actor, reacted to social and political processes as much as instigating them. Because of disputes, confusion, and inefficiency, they often promoted contradictory policies. Avoiding the usual concentration on Stalin's personality, the author puts forward the controversial hypothesis that the Great Purges occurred not as the end product of a careful Stalin plan, but rather as the bloody but ad hoc result of Moscow's incremental attempts to centralise political power.Trade Review'With the aid of these little used materials, Dr. Getty has greatly enhanced our understanding of the Great Purges.' The Times Higher Education Supplement 'He has cleared the ground of many influential myths and has advanced many challenging hypotheses. His book is a landmark in the writing of Soviet political history.' London Review of Books 'Arch Getty has produced an exciting and timely book, devoted to a reappraisal of the Soviet Communist Party in the thirties. Using archival and newspaper sources, he queries the image of a tightly-organized party, controlled from the centre by its omnipotent leader, Stalin. Instead we see a badly-organized, inefficient and faction-ridden institution, marked by indecision at the top and confusion at the bottom. Against this backgroun, Getty offers us a new and original explanation for the explosion of political violence and terror in the Yezhovshchina. Origins of the Great Purges is the most stimulating book on the Soviet period to have appeared in several years. No one who works on Soviet politics and history can afford to ignore it.' Dr. Mary McAuley, University of EssexTable of ContentsList of tables; Preface; Introduction: the Great Purges as history; 1. The Communist Party in the thirties; 2. What was a purge?; 3. The Verification of Party Documents of 1935: a case study in bureaucratic ineptitude; 4. Radicalism and party revival; 5. Radicalism and enemies of the people; 6. The crisis matures: 1937; 7. Epilogue: the Ezhovshchina; Conclusion: some observations on politics in the thirties; Appendix: the Kirov assassination; Bibliographic essay; Notes; Index.

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Book SynopsisThis book tells the story of the invasion of France at the twilight of Napoleon''s empire. With more than a million men under arms throughout central Europe, Coalition forces poured over the Rhine River to invade France between late November 1813 and early January 1814. Three principal army groups drove across the great German landmark, smashing the exhausted French forces that attempted to defend the eastern frontier. In less than a month, French forces ingloriously retreated from the Rhine to the Marne; Allied forces were within one week of reaching Paris. This book provides the first complete English-language study of the invasion of France along a front that extended from Holland to Switzerland.Trade Review'Leggiere has made a significant contribution to Cambridge's Military Histories series. His book belongs in every military history collection, especially those that concentrate on the Napoleonic era.' Library Journal'The Fall of Napoleon is already a major work on the subject, and there's every reason to believe Volume 2 will be just as good.' www.europeanhistory.about.com'… Leggiere has set the bar quite high.' Ralph Ashby, H-France'In writing this book, Michael Leggiere not only updates the standard French and German military accounts written a century ago … but also builds on more recent diplomatic and political studies, for instance those by Henry Kissinger and Paul Schroeder. The text is detailed, but clearly written, and is supported by twenty-five excellent maps, and by fifteen portraits of military and political leaders.' Journal of the Society for Army Historical ResearchTable of Contents1. The new Charlemagne; 2. Barbarians at the gate; 3. The Frankfurt proposals; 4. Napoleon and the French; 5. The left bank; 6. The right bank; 7. The lower Rhine; 8. The upper Rhine; 9. The middle Rhine; 10. Alsace and Franche-Comté; 11. The Vosges and the Saône; 12. Lorraine; 13. The Saar and the Moselle; 14. Belgium; 15. The Marne; 16. The Aube, Bourgogne, and the Rhône; 17. The protocols of Langres.

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Book SynopsisFor the past 140 years, Germany has been the central power in continental europe. Twenty-five years ago a new German state came into being. How much do we really understand this new Germany, and how do its people understand themselves?Neil MacGregor argues that, uniquely for any European country, no coherent, overarching narrative of Germany's history can be constructed, for in Germany both geography and history have always been unstable. Its frontiers have constantly shifted. Königsberg, home to the greatest German philosopher, Immanuel Kant, is now Kaliningrad, Russia; Strasbourg, in whose cathedral Wolfgang von Geothe, Germany's greatest writer, discovered the distinctiveness of his country's art and history, now lies within the borders of France. For most of the five hundred years covered by this book Germany has been composed of many separate political units, each with a distinct history. And any comfortable national story Germans might have told themselves before

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Book SynopsisHow was the law used to control sex in Tudor England? What were the differences between secular and religious practice? This major study reveals that - contrary to what historians have often supposed - in pre-Reformation England both ecclesiastical and secular (especially urban) courts were already highly active in regulating sex. They not only enforced clerical celibacy and sought to combat prostitution but also restrained the pre- and extramarital sexual activities of laypeople more generally. Initially destabilising, the religious and institutional changes of 153060 eventually led to important new developments that tightened the regime further. There were striking innovations in the use of shaming punishments in provincial towns and experiments in the practice of public penance in the church courts, while Bridewell transformed the situation in London. Allowing the clergy to marry was a milestone of a different sort. Together these changes contributed to a marked shift in the moral cTrade Review'Masterly and definitive. Ingram's study, meticulously researched and powerfully argued, transforms our understanding of the evolution of sexual regulation before, during and after the Reformation.' Bernard Capp, Emeritus Professor of History, University of Warwick'Carnal Knowledge is a hugely important work of careful and stimulating scholarship that must be required reading for all late medieval and early modern scholars interested in sex, social and gender relations, and how they changed historically.' Garthine Walker, Cardiff University'In this deeply researched and highly illuminating book Martin Ingram makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the regulation of sexuality by both ecclesiastical and secular authorities in sixteenth-century England.' Adam Fox, University of Edinburgh'This eagerly anticipated book has many virtues … But by far the most important is the commitment to the long perspective … The result is a compelling and persuasive account of sex and its control that should be of interest to anyone interested in the social and cultural history of the period.' Phil Withington, University of Sheffield'Carnal Knowledge is the culmination of … two decades of endeavour, and is a publication of massive significance. It is a rich and multi-faceted book.' James Sharpe, The Times Literary Supplement'Focuses on the legal regulation of sexual behavior in England from the late 15th to the late 16th century. [Ingram] argues that the period spanning the Reformation brought changes to the regulation of sexual transgressions and provided a basis for the later Puritan reformation of manners.' J. Werner, CHOICE'Carnal Knowledge is a magisterial work based on deep immersion in archival sources of many kinds, harnessed in clear and cogent analysis. It will be required reading for scholars working in gender, sexuality, law, and politics in the premodern world.' Shannon McSheffrey, Journal of Social History'… a work of impressive range and depth, which can be read with profit by all students and scholars of late medieval and early modern English society. … to have raised so many large topics for further inquiry is itself testimony to the remarkable ambition of this project, the scrupulous precision of its author and the fruitfulness of the work that he has now triumphantly completed.' Faramerz Dabhoiwala, The English Historical Review'… this book [is] a major achievement. It substantially expands our understanding of late medieval and early modern sexual regulation and it challenges the most common assumptions about how this changed over the course of the sixteenth century. … an excellent example of an exhaustively researched and clearly articulated historical argument about an important subject. Anyone interested in how people's sexual behavior was monitored, judged, and punished in the past will want to read this book.' Brodie Waddell, H-Net'Ultimately, often superbly, it makes an important challenge to current understanding of the post- and pre- Reformation world of sexual regulation. In 1987 Ingram provided new inspiration and motivation. This new volume should do the same.' Martin Roberts, Nottingham Medieval StudiesTable of ContentsPrologue; 1. Contexts and perspectives; 2. Marriage, fame and shame; 3. 'Bawdy courts' in rural society before 1530; 4. Urban aspirations: pre-Reformation provincial towns; 5. Stews-side? Westminster, Southwark and the London suburbs; 6. London church courts before the Reformation; 7. Civic moralism in Yorkist and early Tudor London; 8. Sex and the celibate clergy; 9. Reform and Reformation, 1530–58; 10. Towards the new Jerusalem? Reformation of sexual manners in provincial society, 1558–80; 11. Brought into Bridewell: sex police in early Elizabethan London; 12. Regulating sex in late Elizabethan times: retrospect and prospect.

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Book SynopsisA major study of the Holland Park Circle, this is both a narrative of the lives, works and influence of the artists, architects and their patrons and a perceptive analysis of the subtle relationships between high Victorian taste and mercantile values. This was the period of art as great fashion.

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Book SynopsisFrom the Charge of the Light Brigade to Scott of the Antarctic and beyond, it seems as if glorious disaster and valiant defeat have been essential aspects of the British national character for the past two centuries. In this fascinating book, historian Stephanie Barczewski argues that Britain's embrace of heroic failure initially helped to gloss over the moral ambiguities of imperial expansion. Later, it became a strategy for coming to terms with diminishment and loss. Filled with compelling, moving, and often humorous stories from history, Barczewski's survey offers a fresh way of thinking about the continuing legacy of empire in British culture today.Trade Review“The author has hit on a rich and fascinating subject…Heroic Failure has some sharp truths to tell about Victorian Britain”—John Carey, Sunday Times -- Sunday Times * John Carey *“A psychological history. Barczewski maps out trends in British thought and intertwines conjecture about where they have come from... I enjoyed the quest of it; and something about Barczewski evident and fervent anglophilia almost left me feeling quite proud of being Britis.h”—Hugo Rifkind, Times -- Hugo Rifkind * The Times *“Stephanie Barczewski, with all the post-colonial detachment that comes naturally to an American academic, gives a long and stirring list… she retells the old heroic tales with a narrative touch and a delicate irony which avoids condescension.”—Ferdinand Mount, London Review of Books -- Ferdinand Mount * London Review of Books *“An entertaining and well-written book.”—Jad Adams, History Today -- Jad Adams * History Today *

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Book SynopsisExperts agree that Jack the Ripper murdered five London women, but how many others did he slaughter in Britain or across the seas?Trade Review"Experts Begg and Bennett. . . successfully tread new ground in this thought-provoking book. . . . Refreshingly, they don't try to advance a new suspect, on the basis of evidence that could only be circumstantial. Instead, they do a convincing job of debunking myths."—Publishers Weekly * Publishers Weekly *“[T]his is a punchy, passionate, forgivably inconclusive book about London’s tawdry past life, with a bit of murder thrown in for kicks."—Stefanie Marsh, The Times -- Stefanie Marsh * The Times *"Jack the Ripper: The Forgotten Victims provides much new and interesting detail. When it comes to the meticulous details of a murder, the minute-by-minute examination of a crime and its policing, Messrs. Begg and Bennett are the very best in the true-crime genre."—Judith Flanders, Wall Street Journal -- Judith Flanders * Wall Street Journal *

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Book SynopsisA new appreciation of the extraordinary life and legacy of Leon Blum, the first Jewish prime minister of FranceTrade Review“Twenty years ago, Pierre Birnbaum wrote a brilliant Political History of State Jews in France, and now he has written a beautiful biography of the greatest of the state Jews. Léon Blum has never gotten the recognition he deserves as a French statesman, a socialist leader, and a proud Jew. That will change with this book.”—Michael Walzer, author of The Paradox of Liberation: Secular Revolutions and Religious Counterrevolutions -- Michael Walzer“A succinct, interesting, and compelling overview of the life of French politician and former Prime Minister Léon Blum. Pierre Birnbaum draws on a rich series of primary sources that bring Blum and his adversaries to life.”—Maud S. Mandel, author of Muslims and Jews in France: History of a Conflict -- Maud S. Mandel“…a surprisingly human portrait of the Zionist socialist and three-time prime minister of France.”—Melody Amsel-Arieli, Segula -- Melody Amsel-Arieli * Segula *

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Book SynopsisMarina Frolova-Walker's fascinating history takes a new look at musical life in Stalin's Soviet Union. The author focuses on the musicians and composers who received Stalin Prizes, awarded annually to artists whose work was thought to represent the best in Soviet culture. This revealing study sheds new light on the Communist leader's personal tastes, the lives and careers of those honored, including multiple-recipients Prokofiev and Shostakovich, and the elusive artistic concept of Socialist Realism, offering the most comprehensive examination to date of the relationship between music and the Soviet state from 1940 through 1954.Trade Review“A great attraction of the book is the wit and enthusiasm that suffuse its tone. . . A thoroughly engaging style as well as a consummate mastery in handling archival materials makes this book as enjoyable a read for a wide audience as it is indispensable for specialists.”—Michelle Assay, SEER 'Frolova-Walker’s study of the Stalin Prize is permeated with the joy of discovery. Although the subject is tremendous, since it deals with the machinations of power under a dictatorial regime, the author delights in what she calls time travelling and eavesdropping. The amount of sources in which actual conversation had been preserved verbatim enables the historian a fly-on-the-wall perspective that leads her up to Stalin's writing desk.' - Francis Maes, European History Quarterly'Stalin’s Music Prize represents a milestone in the literature on Soviet music and cultural politics.' - Leah Godman, Journal of the American Musicological Society “These books give fuller, finer-grained and better-shaded accounts of Soviet policy ups and downs and their impact on musicians than any previous study.”—Richard Taruskin, TLS“Thanks to Frolova-Walker’s engaging and readable written style, such material is brought to life, providing a rich and engrossing narrative of Soviet cultural history during this turbulent period.”—Erik Levi, BBC Music -- Erik Levi * BBC Music Magazine *'Frolova-Walker’s study of the Stalin Prize is permeated with the joy of discovery. Although the subject is tremendous, since it deals with the machinations of power under a dictatorial regime, the author delights in what she calls time travelling and eavesdropping. The amount of sources in which actual conversation had been preserved verbatim enables the historian a fly-on-the-wall perspective that leads her up to Stalin's writing desk.' - Francis Maes, European History Quarterly -- Francis Maes * European History Quarterly *'Stalin’s Music Prize represents a milestone in the literature on Soviet music and cultural politics.' - Leah Godman, Journal of the American Musicological Society -- Leah Godman * Journal of the American Musicological Society *“These books give fuller, finer-grained and better-shaded accounts of Soviet policy ups and downs and their impact on musicians than any previous study.”—Richard Taruskin, TLS -- Richard Taruskin * TLS *

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Book SynopsisHow much does the Thomas Cromwell of popular novels and television series resemble the real Cromwell? This meticulous study of Cromwell's early political career expands and revises what has been understood concerning the life and talents of Henry VIII's chief minister. Michael Everett provides a new and enlightening account of Cromwell's rise to power, his influence on the king, his role in the Reformation, and his impact on the future of the nation. Controversially, Everett depicts Cromwell not as the fervent evangelical, Machiavellian politician, or the revolutionary administrator that earlier historians have perceived. Instead he reveals Cromwell as a highly capable and efficient servant of the Crown, rising to power not by masterminding Henry VIII's split with Rome but rather by dint of exceptional skills as an administrator.

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Book SynopsisOffers a picture of the politics, society and religion of medieval Europe. This work examines tribal wars, the Crusades, the growth of trade and the shifting patterns of community life as villages grew into towns and towns into cities. It explores how Papal victories, eventually undermined the spiritual authority of the Church.Table of ContentsPreface1. The Middle Ages and Their Heritage: The Idea of the Unity of ChristendomSection One (c. 800-c. 1046)2. The Revival of Empire: Charlemagne to Henry III3. Serfdom and Feudalism4. Religious and Political IdealsSection Two (c. 1046-c. 1216)5. Empire and Papacy: The Beginning of the Struggle6. The Expansion of Europe7. New Movements in Thought and Letters8. The Twelfth-Century Revolution in Government9. The Crusades10. Innocent III: The Papacy TriumphantSection III (c. 1216-c. 1330)11. The Universities and the Friars: St. Thomas, St. Francis, and Abbot Joachim12. The Struggle of the Popes and the Hohenstaufen13. The Crusade in the Thirteenth Century14. France and England: The Growth of National Communities15. Boniface VIII and the Onset of Crisis in the ChurchSection Four (c. 1330-c. 1460)16. Economic and Social Development in the Later Middle Ages17. The Hundred Years War18. Politics and Political Society in an Age of Wars19. Upheaval in the Church: Avignon, the Great Schism and the Councils20. Europe and the Infidel After the Crusades21. Epilogue: The Break with Traditional AttitudesAppendix: Tables of the Royal Houses and PopesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisThe life of the complex, ruthless adversary of General Franco, whose life spanned much of Spain’s turbulence in the 20th century.Trade Review‘Enormously engaging … authoritative … fascinating … ‘The Last Stalinist’ is yet another reminder that Paul Preston remains the most reliable historian in the English speaking world for anyone wishing to understand the complicated power struggles between left and right in Spanish politics over the course of the 20th century’ Spectator Praise for ‘The Spanish Holocaust’: ‘A book of extraordinary moral and emotional power, a classic of historical scholarship and a deeply affecting record of man’s inhumanity to man.’ Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times 'A harrowing and moving account of the immense terror and enormous atrocities, especially perpetrated by General Franco's followers, during and after the Spanish Civil War, meticulously researched and superbly written by an outstanding historian.' Ian Kershaw ‘Essential reading for anyone wishing to understand Spain and its recent history…. Preston’s excellent, spine-chilling narrative explains just how deep Franco’s early investment in terror was….this is an invaluable book that does not shrink from even the harshest of truths’ Guardian ‘Preston’s staggeringly detailed powerful and affecting chronicle of the savagery unleashed during the Spanish civil war….is a history of rare moral and emotional power, which alters forever our view of one of the most symbolic conflicts of the last century’ Sunday Times, History Book of the Year

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Book SynopsisThis volume explores the experience of everyday life in Scotland during a period of immense political, social and economic change.Trade ReviewBook review: A History of Everyday Life in Scotland 1600-1800Premium Article 05 April 2010 By TC SMOUT A History of Everyday Life in Scotland 1600-1800 Edited by Elizabeth Foyster and Christopher A Whatley Edinburgh University Press, 352pp, GBP24.99 NOTHING in history is more difficult to uncover than everyday life. The epics of kings and politicians rest on sources ranging from the registers of the state to the memoirs of sycophantic courtiers. The records of the church are voluminous and formaADVERTISEMENTl. The records of trade and industry are left in ledgers. Great events that are not everyday, especially wars and disasters, have their chroniclers. But the routines of ordinary life are elusive, often unrecorded, and the historian often has to approach the task obliquely and persistently, aware there will be lacunae and difficult judgments to make. This book is the first of a series of four that will try to uncover the routines of our pasts, and it chooses to do so in the 17th and 18th centuries when Scotland was first wracked with civil and ecclesiastical war, then bolted into union with a powerful neighbour, then wracked again with rebellion and rapid economic and social change. We know a lot about all those themes. What we know less about are everyday things like food and clothes, smells and noises, travelling, rejoicing and courting, working and relaxing, believing and doubting. In 11 chapters, this book tries to explore some of this territory, aware that there will be gaps that cannot be filled, yet using a variety of sources and approaches to illuminate the routines and peculiarities of our pasts. Because it is an edited volume, it lacks a single tone and some chapters are more satisfying than others. But you cannot read it without learning a lot; it is entertaining, surprising and instructive. Take, for example, the all-male Highland funeral of the 1720s, where an English observer found "pyramids of plum cake, sweetmeats and several dishes, with pipes and tobacco". When it was over the men took the remaining sweetmeats away in their hats and pockets, "which enables you to make a great compliment to the women of your acquaintance". Flirting with funeral leftovers is probably a lost art. Or the advertisement for the Saracen's Head in Glasgow in 1754, which commends the 36 bedchambers "none of them entering through another, so there is no need of going out of doors to get to them" and all the beds "very good, clean and free from Bugs". This speaks volumes about expectations. The essence of history, of course, is change. How different did everyday life become in Scotland over these two centuries? Up to around 1750, the answer seems to be that it was not so different from what it had been in 1600; food was still based on oatmeal (up to 37 ounces a day) and clothing was mainly woollen and of dark colours. White was for the wealthy, because it showed you could afford to have your clothes washed by someone else. By 1800, things had improved marginally for the poorer classes and more so for the middle classes and the rich: more meat was eaten by most people, potatoes had arrived, more linen and cotton were worn and soap was more available. In terms of belief, Sabbath observance still reigned supreme though there was a shortage of places in kirk for the urban poor. Witches and fairies had been relegated from being the living imps of Satan to becoming mere superstitions in remote country places. Work was more controlled and onerous, but also more regular and better remunerated: the industrial workforce at this stage of factory development depended heavily on women and children, but so did rising household earnings. This is a book with ambitious coverage, with chapters on rural life, architecture, birth, death and marriage, illness, food and clothing, literacy and education, keeping order, belief, travel and work. One chapter by Elizabeth Foyster deals with smells, sound and touch. It is particularly full of unexpected insights, like the way in which a traveller could have been led blindfolded round a town and still known where he was by the smells and sounds of different quarters harbouring the tanners, dyers, butchers, bakers, brewers and hammermen, all concentrated in different quarters. Edinburgh, as a city, smelt vile, but Glasgow by contrast was commended, in 1669 famous for "sweetness of air" and a century later for the way its markets for fish and meat were "constantly kept sweet and neat" by channels of water. What was it like being ill in the past? Helen Dingwall has a particularly illuminating account of the impact and practice of medicine (both official and folk), covering most aspects except dentistry, at least sparing us that vicarious agony. Pain and illness were a social leveller, equally inflicted on rich and poor, without much relief that money could buy. Medicine in towns was more likely to attract professional doctors and pharmacists than in the country -- there was said to be only one "medical man" for 50 miles north of Aberdeen at the start of the 18th century. Remedies were mainly herbal everywhere, and directed at relieving symptoms rather than curing disease. There is much here that is fascinating. Some things irritate. It is sad to see the dreary modern use of "the 1600s" and "the 1700s" in place of the 17th and 18th centuries. If one is told that witch persecution flourished in the early 1660s, one knows it was between 1660 and 1665. If one is told, as here, of struggles between church and crown "during the 1600s" one has to know in advance if it means between 1600 and 1609 or in the wider 17th century. There are inevitably omissions as well. Little is said, in dealing with education, about school routines. How long were school days, what were the routines of learning, how and how frequently were children punished? It would have been interesting to learn about external horizons, too; was not Aberdeen, for example, closer culturally and commercially to the Netherlands than to Glasgow? But this is a book full of insights and genuinely pioneering. We can look forward to the following volumes. -- T.C. Smout The Scotsman This is a book with ambitious coverage, with chapters on rural life, architecture, birth, death and marriage, illness, food and clothing, literacy and education, keeping order, belief, travel and work... There is much here that is fascinating... This is a book full of insights and genuinely pioneering. We can look forward to the following volumes -- T.C. Smout The Scotsman The essays will be of interest to both casual and expert readers, and taken together they add up to an impressive and stimulating snapshot of early-modern Scottish society. Moreover, the reading experience is enhanced by the high quality of the production, the wide range of engaging and unusual illustrations, and the provision for each chapter of brief but useful guides to further reading... There can be no doubt about the importance of this publication. It offers a stimulating and authoritative overview of Scottish social history in the early-modern period, written by a group of historians whose expertise and formidable familiarity with the sources are obvious. As a synthesis of past and current research it provides a resource that will be especially cherished by historians and students. But equally importantly, its determination to look beyond the obvious, to interrogate the sources in innovative and imaginative ways, and to give a voice to the almost silent masses of history, is a welcome reminder of the richness of the historian's craft, not to mention a stirring battle-cry to expand horizons ever further. -- Allan Kennedy, University of Stirling History Scotland A vauluable addition to a growing historiography of ordinary, everyday life. -- Alexandra Logue, University of Guelph International Review of Scottish Studies Book review: A History of Everyday Life in Scotland 1600-1800Premium Article 05 April 2010 By TC SMOUT A History of Everyday Life in Scotland 1600-1800 Edited by Elizabeth Foyster and Christopher A Whatley Edinburgh University Press, 352pp, GBP24.99 NOTHING in history is more difficult to uncover than everyday life. The epics of kings and politicians rest on sources ranging from the registers of the state to the memoirs of sycophantic courtiers. The records of the church are voluminous and formaADVERTISEMENTl. The records of trade and industry are left in ledgers. Great events that are not everyday, especially wars and disasters, have their chroniclers. But the routines of ordinary life are elusive, often unrecorded, and the historian often has to approach the task obliquely and persistently, aware there will be lacunae and difficult judgments to make. This book is the first of a series of four that will try to uncover the routines of our pasts, and it chooses to do so in the 17th and 18th centuries when Scotland was first wracked with civil and ecclesiastical war, then bolted into union with a powerful neighbour, then wracked again with rebellion and rapid economic and social change. We know a lot about all those themes. What we know less about are everyday things like food and clothes, smells and noises, travelling, rejoicing and courting, working and relaxing, believing and doubting. In 11 chapters, this book tries to explore some of this territory, aware that there will be gaps that cannot be filled, yet using a variety of sources and approaches to illuminate the routines and peculiarities of our pasts. Because it is an edited volume, it lacks a single tone and some chapters are more satisfying than others. But you cannot read it without learning a lot; it is entertaining, surprising and instructive. Take, for example, the all-male Highland funeral of the 1720s, where an English observer found "pyramids of plum cake, sweetmeats and several dishes, with pipes and tobacco". When it was over the men took the remaining sweetmeats away in their hats and pockets, "which enables you to make a great compliment to the women of your acquaintance". Flirting with funeral leftovers is probably a lost art. Or the advertisement for the Saracen's Head in Glasgow in 1754, which commends the 36 bedchambers "none of them entering through another, so there is no need of going out of doors to get to them" and all the beds "very good, clean and free from Bugs". This speaks volumes about expectations. The essence of history, of course, is change. How different did everyday life become in Scotland over these two centuries? Up to around 1750, the answer seems to be that it was not so different from what it had been in 1600; food was still based on oatmeal (up to 37 ounces a day) and clothing was mainly woollen and of dark colours. White was for the wealthy, because it showed you could afford to have your clothes washed by someone else. By 1800, things had improved marginally for the poorer classes and more so for the middle classes and the rich: more meat was eaten by most people, potatoes had arrived, more linen and cotton were worn and soap was more available. In terms of belief, Sabbath observance still reigned supreme though there was a shortage of places in kirk for the urban poor. Witches and fairies had been relegated from being the living imps of Satan to becoming mere superstitions in remote country places. Work was more controlled and onerous, but also more regular and better remunerated: the industrial workforce at this stage of factory development depended heavily on women and children, but so did rising household earnings. This is a book with ambitious coverage, with chapters on rural life, architecture, birth, death and marriage, illness, food and clothing, literacy and education, keeping order, belief, travel and work. One chapter by Elizabeth Foyster deals with smells, sound and touch. It is particularly full of unexpected insights, like the way in which a traveller could have been led blindfolded round a town and still known where he was by the smells and sounds of different quarters harbouring the tanners, dyers, butchers, bakers, brewers and hammermen, all concentrated in different quarters. Edinburgh, as a city, smelt vile, but Glasgow by contrast was commended, in 1669 famous for "sweetness of air" and a century later for the way its markets for fish and meat were "constantly kept sweet and neat" by channels of water. What was it like being ill in the past? Helen Dingwall has a particularly illuminating account of the impact and practice of medicine (both official and folk), covering most aspects except dentistry, at least sparing us that vicarious agony. Pain and illness were a social leveller, equally inflicted on rich and poor, without much relief that money could buy. Medicine in towns was more likely to attract professional doctors and pharmacists than in the country -- there was said to be only one "medical man" for 50 miles north of Aberdeen at the start of the 18th century. Remedies were mainly herbal everywhere, and directed at relieving symptoms rather than curing disease. There is much here that is fascinating. Some things irritate. It is sad to see the dreary modern use of "the 1600s" and "the 1700s" in place of the 17th and 18th centuries. If one is told that witch persecution flourished in the early 1660s, one knows it was between 1660 and 1665. If one is told, as here, of struggles between church and crown "during the 1600s" one has to know in advance if it means between 1600 and 1609 or in the wider 17th century. There are inevitably omissions as well. Little is said, in dealing with education, about school routines. How long were school days, what were the routines of learning, how and how frequently were children punished? It would have been interesting to learn about external horizons, too; was not Aberdeen, for example, closer culturally and commercially to the Netherlands than to Glasgow? But this is a book full of insights and genuinely pioneering. We can look forward to the following volumes. This is a book with ambitious coverage, with chapters on rural life, architecture, birth, death and marriage, illness, food and clothing, literacy and education, keeping order, belief, travel and work... There is much here that is fascinating... This is a book full of insights and genuinely pioneering. We can look forward to the following volumes The essays will be of interest to both casual and expert readers, and taken together they add up to an impressive and stimulating snapshot of early-modern Scottish society. Moreover, the reading experience is enhanced by the high quality of the production, the wide range of engaging and unusual illustrations, and the provision for each chapter of brief but useful guides to further reading... There can be no doubt about the importance of this publication. It offers a stimulating and authoritative overview of Scottish social history in the early-modern period, written by a group of historians whose expertise and formidable familiarity with the sources are obvious. As a synthesis of past and current research it provides a resource that will be especially cherished by historians and students. But equally importantly, its determination to look beyond the obvious, to interrogate the sources in innovative and imaginative ways, and to give a voice to the almost silent masses of history, is a welcome reminder of the richness of the historian's craft, not to mention a stirring battle-cry to expand horizons ever further. A vauluable addition to a growing historiography of ordinary, everyday life.Table of ContentsForeword; Introduction; Chapter 1: Everyday Structures, Rhythms and Spaces of the Scottish Countryside, Robert A. Dodgshon; Chapter 2: Improvement and Modernisation in Everyday Enlightenment Scotland, Charles McKean; Chapter 3: Death, Birth and Marriage, Deborah A. Symonds; Chapter 4: Illness, Disease and Pain, Helen M. Dingwall; Chapter 5: Necessities: Food and Clothing in the Long Eighteenth Century, Stana Nenadic; Chapter 6: Communicating, Bob Harris; Chapter 7: Order and Disorder, Christopher A. Whatley; Chapter 8: Sensory Experiences: Smells, Sounds and Touch, Elizabeth Foyster; Chapter 9: Beliefs, Religions, Fears and Neuroses, Joyce Miller; Chapter 10: Movement, Transport and Travel, Alastair Durie; Chapter 11: Work, Time and Pastimes, Christopher A. Whatley.

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Book SynopsisEleftherios Venizelos, Prime Minister of Greece 1910-1920 and 1928-1932, is regarded by many as the creator of contemporary Greece and one of the main actors in European diplomacy during his time in office.This book draws on considerable new research and places the study of Venizelos'' leadership in the broad setting of twentieth-century politics and diplomacy. The complex and often dramatic trajectory of Venizelos'' career from Cretan rebel to an admired European statesman is charted in a sequence of chapters that survey his meteoric rise and great achievements in Greek and European politics amidst violent passions and tragic conflicts. Further chapters appraise in depth some critical aspects of his policies, while a conclusion offers a glimpse into a great statesman''s personal and intellectual world.Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Note on transliteration Introduction. Perspectives on a Leader I: SETTING THE STAGE 1. A Century of Revolutions. The Cretan Question between European and Near Eastern Politics 2. Venizelos' Early Life and Political Career in Crete (1864-1910) II: THE DRAMA OF HIGH POLITICS 3. Venizelos' Advent in Greek Politics, 1909-1912 4. Protagonist in Politics,1912-1920 5. Venizelos' Diplomacy 1910-1923: From Balkan Alliance to Greek-Turkish Settlement 6. Reconstructing Greece as a European State: Venizelos' Last Premiership, 1928-1932 7. I. S. Koliopoulos: The Last Years, 1933-1936 III: THE CONTENT OF POLITICAL ACTION 8. Eleftherios Venizelos and the Experiment of Inclusive Constitutionalism 9. Venizelos and Civil-Military Relations 10. Venizelos and Economic Policy 11. Modernisation and reaction in Greek education during the Venizelos era 12. Andreas Nanakis: Venizelos and Church-State Relations 351 IV: OFFSTAGE 13. Venizelos' Intellectual Projects and Cultural Interests Contributors

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Book SynopsisThis book is about the reinvention of the Roman Empire during the eighty years between the accession of Diocletian and the death of Julian. How had it changed? The emperors were still warriors and expected to take the field. Rome was still the capital, at least symbolically. There was still a Roman senate, though with new rules brought in by Constantine. There were still provincial governors, but more now and with fewer duties in smaller areas; and military command was increasingly separated from civil jurisdiction and administration. The neighbours in Persia, Germania and on the Danube were more assertive and better organised, which had a knock-on effect on Roman institutions. The achievement of Diocletian and his successors down to Julian was to create a viable apparatus of control which allowed a large and at times unstable area to be policed, defended and exploited. The book offers a different perspective on the development often taken to be the distinctive feature of these years, namely the rise of Christianity. Imperial endorsement and patronage of the Christian god and the expanded social role of the Church are a significant prelude to the Byzantine state. The author argues that the reigns of the Christian-supporting Constantine and his sons were a foretaste of what was to come, but not a complete or coherent statement of how Church and State were to react with each other.Trade ReviewThis elegant and exciting book offers a fresh approach to understanding "early" late Antiquity. The breadth of vision is impressive. Jill Harries' triumph is to place Constantine and his promotion of Christianity in the context of a fully-rounded history of the Roman Empire from Diocletian to Julian. -- Dr Christopher Kelly, University of CambridgeTable of ContentsMaps and illustrations; Preface; Abbreviations; Chapter 1, The Long Third Century; Chapter 2, Four lords of the world, AD 284-311; Chapter 3, The Empire renewed; Chapter 4, The Return of the Old Gods; Chapter 5, The victory of Constantine; Chapter 6, Towards the sunrise: Constantine Augustus; Chapter 7, Constructing the Christian emperor; Chapter 8, The sons of Constantine; Chapter 9, Warfare and Imperial Security AD 337-361; Chapter 10, Church and Empire; Chapter 11, Images of women; Chapter 12, Rome and Antioch; Chapter 13, Julian Augustus; Chapter 14, The funeral director; Chronology; Guide to Further Reading; Bibliography of Modern Works Cited; Index.

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Book SynopsisThis book is about the formative period of the Roman state.

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Book SynopsisAn army marches on its stomach and it fights on its stomach too – yet have you ever wondered how hundreds of men on the frontline are fed amidst hails of bullets and how kitchens are created in the desert or in the trench lines?

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Book SynopsisA new edition of the classic 1964 biography of Queen Victoria, reissued for the 200th anniversary of her birth.Trade ReviewIt is hard to imagine how Lady Longford's detailed and vivid volume could have been bettered . . . scholarly yet racily readable, witty yet wise * Sunday Times *Gives us more than the general reader has ever had, revealing the Queen as a character at once simple & complex, humble & authoritarian * Daily Telegraph *So sanely and attractively written with each episode blending so easily into the next that the reader is soon carried along in fascination * Financial Times *[Queen Victoria] has in Lady L. her fullest and best-informed, most sensible and sympathetic biographer * The Times *A full, authoritative study -- Jane Ridley * The Spectator *Dazzlingly readable, and very enjoyable -- Stella GibbonsVery few biographies which have reached the public in recent years can have as good a claim to be called "definitive" as has Elizabeth Longford's life of Queen Victoria * New York Books *Longford has brought Queen Victoria to life again, and presents to a new generation of readers one of the most truly remarkable personalities of history with scrupulous care, fidelity and wit * The Spectator *One of the best I have ever read -- Noel Coward

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Book SynopsisWorld War I sounded the death knell of empires. The forces of disintegration affected several empires simultaneously. To that extent they were impersonal. But prudent statesmen could delay the death of empires, rulers such as Emperor Franz Josef II of Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid II. Adventurous rulers Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany and Enver Pasha in the Ottoman Empire hastened it. Enver's decision to enter the war on the side of Germany destroyed the Ottoman state. It may have been doomed in any case, but he was the agent of its doom. The last Sultan Mehmet VI Vahdettin thought he could salvage the Ottoman state in something like its old form. But Vahdettin and his ministers could not succeed because the victorious Allies had decided on the final partition of the Ottoman state. The chief proponent of partition was Lloyd George, heir to the Turcophobe tradition of British liberals, who fell under the spell of the Greek irredentist politician Venizelos. With these two in the lead, the Allies sought to impose partition on the Sultan's state. When the Sultan sent his emissaries to the Paris peace conference they could not win a reprieve. The Treaty of Sevres which the Sultan's government signed put an end to Ottoman independence. The Treaty of Sevres was not ratified. Turkish nationalists, with military officers in the lead, defied the Allies, who promptly broke ranks, each one trying to win concessions for himself at the expense of the others. Mustafa Kemal emerged as the leader of the military resistance. Diplomacy allowed Mustafa Kemal to isolate his people's enemies: Greek and Armenian irredentists. Having done so, he defeated them by force of arms. In effect, the defeat of the Ottoman empire in the First World War was followed by the Turks' victory in two separate wars: a brief military campaign against the Armenians and a long one against the Greeks. Lausanne where General Ismet succeeded in securing peace on Turkey's terms was the founding charter of the modern Turkish nation state. But more than that it showed that empires could no longer rule people against their wishes. This need not be disastrous: Mustafa Kemal demonstrated that the interests of developed countries were compatible with those of developing ones. He fought the West in order to become like it. Where his domestic critics wanted to go on defying the West, Mustafa Kemal saw that his country could fare best in cooperation with the West.Trade Review'This one stands out for its combination of freshness, conciseness and scholarship.' '...those wishing to inform themselves on the origins of modern Turkey could do no better than to begin with this excellent short book, possibly the author's last, or so he says, but certainly one of his finest.' -- David Barchard Issue 43 2010 From the Sultan to Ataturk: Turkey describes the tortuous rise of the Turkish Republic from the ruins of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of the First World War. This book is full of rich details on the ethnic groups, political and economic interests, and migrations within the dying Empire. It also provides a detailed analysis of the key individuals who played a role in the emergence of the modern Turkish Republic. The Ottoman Empire, 'the sick man of Europe', officially died with the Mudros Armistice in October 1918. Under the terms of the armistice the rule of the lands of the Empire was placed in the hands of Britain and its allies. It was envisaged that various Allied-controlled enclaves would replace the defeated Empire and it seemed unlikely that there would be any resistance to this grand scheme. At the time of the Armistice, the former Ottoman colonies in Mesopotamia, Palestine, Syria and other Arab provinces had already been occupied by Allied troops and to this end their eventual separation from the Empire had already been conceived as a matter of fact. What was left of the former lands of the Ottoman Empire was more or less limited to those areas in Anatolia and Eastern Thrace. When the Ottoman Empire collapsed at the end of the First World War, it seemed to many that a regional system controlled by the British Empire would be successfully established. This regional system would comprise an enlarged Greek state extending to Western Anatolia, a Kurdish autonomous region in the east, and the independent states of Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan in the northeast. There had not been anticipated any serious resistance from the Turkish side to this grand design. Within this hopeless situation Mustafa Kemal and his followers utilised every possible opportunity presented by post-war circumstances. Andrew Mango clearly explains how with the help of other like-minded officers and an unlikely combination of local civilian and religious leaders, Mustafa Kemal turned Anatolia into a redoubt of resistance while pragmatically accommodating the decadent rule of the Ottoman sultan for the time being. Both in the military field and diplomatic circles, the Kemalist side followed a multi-dimensional set of policies for success: they used their ethnic and religious prestige among the Muslim populations of the Caucasus and Central Asia to increase their credibility in the eyes of the Bolsheviks. In this way they broke their isolation and acquired a material basis on which to organise military resistance in Asia Minor. On the diplomatic front, they exploited the divergence of policy within the Allied camp and the antagonism between the Soviet Union and Great Britain. In the end, the independence of Turkey was safeguarded as securely as possible between the Soviet controlled lands in the north and the British-influence zone in the south. By 1922, the region in no way resembled what had been predicted five years earlier. The Greek military campaign supported by the British had failed completely, the Greeks were driven into the sea at Izmir, and an independent Turkish state was established firmly in Anatolia and eastern Thrace. Mango describes in great detail how in 1923, a new Turkish state emerged from the ruins of the Ottoman Empire. This was due to a struggle that had extended Turkish involvement in the First World War by four years. Following the departure of the last Greek soldiers from Anatolian soil on 15 September, the ceasefire of 11 October and the evacuation of eastern Thrace by the Greek army, the Lausanne Peace Conference opened on 20 November 1922. While the Lausanne Conference maintained suspense over the conclusion of peace, the year 1923 was a time for the establishment of the basic institutions of the new Turkey. An economic conference was held in Izmir in February-March 1923. During the same months, Mustafa Kemal developed his critique of the economic backwardness of his country and its Islamic culture and the necessity to adopt a new Western identity and to achieve Western standards of political and economic management. The principal goal was to establish a new modern cultural and political economy framework necessary to reduce the economic gap between Turkey and the Western states. This was the period during which the new regime established itself firmly, and started to reform the social and political life in the country. Mango is honest about the 'enlightened despotism' of Mustafa Kemal in this period. The most important issue at this stage was the emergence of the one-party regime and the opposition to it. The creation of a single party possessing the near totality of the assembly seats did not solve the problem of opposition. The opposition began to manifest itself through two major events that took place soon after the proclamation of the republic: the abolition of the Caliphate followed by the expulsion of all members of the former imperial family on 3 March 1924. On 8 April, a National Law Court Organisation Regulation abolished the old Islamic Sharia courts and transferred their jurisdiction to the secular courts. These events were seen as marking the beginning of a series of reforms that would shake the foundations of the new state's social life. The old religious establishment found itself in opposition to the new secular measures. Other elements in Turkish politics opposed them from a non-religious position. For many members of the opposition, it was not worth passing from constitutional monarchy to absolutist republic. Most of the leading nationalists, who had played a decisive role in the War of Independence, were now in opposition to Mustafa Kemal. The most important resistance to the regime came from the Kurdish minority in this period. When the Turkish Republic was created, its citizens were faced with the problem of identity. The population was predominantly Muslim because most of the non-Muslim people of Anatolia had fled Turkey as a result of the conflicts between 1913 and 1923, and the transfer of populations agreed to at the Lausanne Conference largely completed this process. The population of the new Turkish state was, however, ethnically still mixed, with the Kurds being the largest minority group. The official identity of new Turkey had to be constructed through yet more ethnic conflict, this time with the Kurdish citizens of new Turkey. On 29 October 1924, the Grand National Assembly in Ankara accepted a new constitution and declared the new Turkish state a republic. The constitution forbade the use of Kurdish in public places. Law number 1505 made it possible for the land of large landowners to be expropriated and given to the new Turkish settlers in Kurdish areas. The geographical term 'Kurdistan' (land of Kurds) was omitted from all educational books and Turkish geographical names were gradually substituted for Kurdish names throughout the country. All of these measures contributed to the already existing dissatisfaction among the Kurdish population with the new regime in Turkey. The first Kurdish uprising since the proclamation of the republic, that of Sheikh Said, occurred in February 1925. It took a full-scale military operation to put it down. The consequences of the rebellion for Turkey, however, were far more important than the rebellion itself. The rebellion gave the leaders of the Turkish Republic an opportunity to silence the opposition. It created and provided a means whereby most serious subsequent opposition to government policies or comprehensive disagreement with its progress laid open the possibility that the disaffected groups would be labelled as traitors. In March 1925, the government made the parliament vote on the notorious Law for the Maintenance of Order. This marked the definitive establishment of the monoparty regime in Turkey. At the same time, itinerant extraordinary tribunals known as Courts of Independence were re-established. They had already raged during the war of independence. They operated for two years, sentencing 600 people to death. Andrew Mango knows this history well, and as the author of an admirable biography of Ataturk he is a veteran and sympathetic observer of the Turkish scene. His Ataturk: The Biography of the Founder of Modern Turkey (1999) still constitutes the definitive account among many other works and reveals a wide range of complicated aspects of its subject, showing us a far more complex, and interesting, personality than we had seen before. In From the Sultan to Ataturk: Turkey too, Mango's focus is very closely on Mustafa Kemal himself. Within its confines, this book is clearly and elegantly written, and comprehensive, and is based on an extensive array of printed Turkish sources. The picture Mango gives us of the emergence of modern Turkey is a compelling one. The result is a more textured and complex picture than has hitherto been available. -- Bulent Gokay H-Diplo Review 20110318

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Book SynopsisThe twelfth century was characterized by intense spirituality as well as rapid economic development. Drawing on unprecedented research, Constance Brittain Bouchard demonstrates that the Cistercian monks of Burgundy were exemplary in both spheres...Trade ReviewA signal strength of this book is the author's care to show that contemporaries understood and expressed in the charters the different transactions in which a monastery might engage. There was no confusion among pawns, leases, purchases, and gifts. In addition to being an important revisionist study of Burgundian Cistercian economic practices, this clear book is an excellent brief introduction for anyone wishing to understand twelfth-century charters and cartularies. * American Historical Review *

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Book SynopsisA provocative and wide-ranging entrée into the world of ancient Greek religion.Trade ReviewAlthough one might expect a mere survey from the title, Parker delivers far more than a beginners' summary. Rather, this book is a probing exploration of the methodological and interpretive difficulties associated with Greek religion from the eighth through the second centuries BCE.... This work provides a wealth of insights from one of the leading experts in the field. Summing Up: Highly recommended. * Choice *On Greek Religion has all the virtues we have come to appreciate in his writings: a fruitful blend of the factual and theoretical; a simultaneous inclination towards and distrust of categories, schemes, and generalities; scrupulous attention to detail; an awareness of what we do and do not and cannot know about Greek religion; precise and generous but not uncritical discussions of others' views; the integration of literary and epigraphical sources; common sense; and a lively style with touches of whimsy. -- Jon D. Mikalson * The Classical Journal *This book derives from the Townsend Lectures given by Parker at Cornell in 2008, but its style is not noticeably different from that of Parker's two previous books.... Its scope is wider than those two works, both chronologically, dealing with material from the eighth to the second century BC, and geographically, covering the entire Greek world. Its ambition is also greater, in that its seven chapters and five appendices aim to provide an interpretation of Greek religion as a whole.... This is a very important book that everyone working in the field of Greek religion will have to read. -- Hugh Bowden * The Journal of Hellenic Studies *This book is an important step in its author's scholarly journey in the field of ancient Greek religion.... This work is outstandingly well-informed, well-written, clever and also very cautious. -- Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *This work, derived from a series of lectures given by the author at Cornell University in 2008, offers a discussion on a series of central questions in the domain of Greek religion. R. Parker achieves his goal with much maestria in this work, which is proof of an excellent knowledge of Greek religion, both ancient evidence and equal historiography, to which he returns frequently. To enrich his reflections, the author systematically echoes various interpretations of the issues he tackles, thus giving breadth to his analysis. All of these qualities make On Greek Religion an indispensable text for specialists in Ancient Greek religion, who will find in it abundant material for reflection. -- Stéphanie Paul * L'Antiquité Classique *Table of Contents1. Why Believe without Revelation? The Evidences of Greek Religion 2. Religion without a Church: Religious Authority in Greece 3. Analyzing Greek Gods 4. The Power and Nature of Heroes 5. Killing, Dining, Communicating 6. The Experience of Festivals 7. The Varieties of Greek Religious ExperienceAppendices 1. Seeking the Advice of the God on Matters of Cult 2. Accepting New Gods 3. Worshipping Mortals, and the Nature of Gods 4. Types of Chthonian Sacrifice? 5. The Early History of Hero CultBibliography Index

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Book SynopsisJean-Pierre Vernant's concise, brilliant essay on the origins of Greek thought relates the cultural achievement of the ancient Greeks to their physical and social environment and shows that what they believed in was inseparable from the way they...Trade Review"One of the most stimulating and thoughtful accounts of the invention of Greek philosophy by the Greeks. . . . A masterpiece of popular exposition, rich in information and insight."—Times Literary Supplement

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Book SynopsisThis is a comprehensive biography of Russia's leading statesman in the period following the Revolution of 1905. It is a balanced portrait of Stolypin that encompasses the complex, even divergent, impulses that motivated him.Trade Review"In a major speech last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin referred to Stolypin in laudatory terms, . . . presumably a signal of Mr. Putin's own intended balancing act between reformer and authoritarian tough-guy. With Mr. Ascher's highly readable biography, we're all better placed to understand the legacy that Mr. Putin inherits. . . . A book well worth waiting for. . . . P. A. Stolypin is carefully researched, well argued, and highly readable."—Wall Street Journal"The first major biography of Petr Arkadevich Stolypin, prime minister and minister of internal affairs of the Russian Empire from 1906 unitl his assassination in 1911. This is a major contribution to our understanding of these important years following the 1905 revolution and will be welcomed by all students of the period."—History"This book makes a significant contribution to our understanding of Stolypin . . . more than any previous work, it examines thoroughly and in detail the major episodes of Stolypin's political career. Ascher's treatment of these controversial issues is invariably careful, judicious, and illuminating. . . . Ascher has plumbed archives not just in Russia, but in Helsinkin, Bonn, and Vienna and in a wealth of documentation goes far beyond previous studies. . . . There will always be a place for thoroughly researched, carefully thought-through, and well written narrative history. Abraham Ascher's Stolypin is a fine example of this genre and is required reading for any serious study of Russian history."—Theodore R. Weeks, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale"[A] definitive account of Stolypin's achievements and shortcomings."—European History"His work may well set off a new trend in the scholarly investigation of prerevolutionary Russia."—American Historical Review"Ascher's masterful account gives the prime minister the credit that he deserves, but it also creates the sad image of a well-intentioned reformer who was the victim of his devotion to the monarchy (so inadequately embodied in Nicholas II), of his own uncompromising nature, and of his readiness to use illegal means to implement reforms."—The Journal of Interdisciplinary History"...this elegantly argued and well-written book throws new light on a controversial figure...and deserves the wider audience that a paperback edition would make possible."—David A.J. Macey, Middlebury College

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Book SynopsisA vivid exploration of the evolution of reading as an essential social and domestic activity during the eighteenth century Two centuries before the advent of radio, television, and motion pictures, books were a cherished form of popular entertainment and an integral component of domestic social life. In this fascinating and vivid history, Abigail Williams explores the ways in which shared reading shaped the lives and literary culture of the time, offering new perspectives on how books have been used by their readers, and the part they have played in middle-class homes and families. Drawing on marginalia, letters and diaries, library catalogues, elocution manuals, subscription lists, and more, Williams offers fresh and fascinating insights into reading, performance, and the history of middle-class home life.Trade Review“A lively survey. . . . Williams’s book is welcome because her research and insights make us conscious of how we, today, use books.”—John Sutherland, New York Times Book Review“Williams’s charming pageant of anecdotes, as revealed in diaries, letters and marginalia, conjures a world strikingly different from our own but surprisingly similar in many ways, a time when reading was on the rise and whole worlds sprang up around it.”—Washington Post“The inestimable value of Williams’s book is that it offers us, beyond the shrewd and apt commentary, new things to understand and to feel among the sheer diversity and number of its eloquent lives.”—Min Wild, Times Literary Supplement“This lively and original study, richly documented and happily free of jargon… has brought to life the story of how print worked on people in the past.”—Toby Barnard, Dublin Review of Books“The Social Life of Books ranges confidently and with fascinating detail over a great number of types of reading venues, reading materials, and readers.” —James Raven, American Historical Review“This book confidently explores a fascinating topic. Its strength lies in its sheer wealth of examples, especially the many cases recovered from provincial archives that freshly illustrate the habits and eccentricities of eighteenth-century readers. This is a book that any reader with an interest in the eighteenth century will enjoy and value.”—John Mullan, University College London"A comprehensive account, impressively documented and vividly illustrated, of the social history of reading, by an author whose own reading skills are matched by her brilliantly mastered erudition."—Claude Rawson, Maynard Mack Professor of English Emeritus, Yale University“The Social Life of Books is a magnificent, genuinely innovative achievement that will appeal not only to scholars of literature and book history, not only to historians, but to all lovers of books and reading.”—Markman Ellis, Queen Mary University of London “This is a magnificent achievement. Williams approaches the history of reading from a wide purview, offering research into the price of books, on literacy, and on circulating libraries, book shops, book clubs and other forms of book sharing, including book theft. It makes a very compelling case for the cultures of sociable reading in eighteenth-century Britain.”—Markman Ellis, Queen Mary University of London

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Book SynopsisChronicles the origins, and afterlife of late imperial ideology. This title challenges the idea that Victorian empire was legitimated by liberal notions of progress and civilization. It examines how the Victorian legal scholar Henry Maine's sociotheoretic model of 'traditional' society laid the groundwork for the culturalist logic of late empire.Trade ReviewOne of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2010 "Mantena carefully situates [Henry] Maine in political debates of the Britain of his time. Her study features excellent accounts of the luminaries of liberal imperialism and their critics before turning to the writings of Maine, particularly his analysis of 'traditional societies' and the implications of that analysis for the revision of imperial law codes and for a new treatment of property... [A] striking debut."--Choice "It is Mantena's earnest engagement with the question of a liberal empire's invariable ends that will appeal to a set of readers well beyond the circle of political theorists, intellectual historians, and students of the British empire who are the target audience for this book, and for whom this book is necessary reading."--Ishita Pande, Economic & Political Weekly "[H]er book is enormously rich... Mantena's wide-ranging erudition amply bolsters her thesis ... [which] serves as an invaluable corrective to flattened, univocal, and static accounts of the relationship between liberalism and imperialism... She has written an extraordinary book that cannot be ignored."--Daniel I. O'Neill, Perspectives on Politics "Mantena's main thesis serves as an invaluable corrective to flattened, univocal, and static accounts of the relationship between liberalism and imperialism... Mantena has broken new intellectual ground in (he study of empire. Hers is a bold and novel argument that should become required reading for anyone interested in modern imperialism. In this sense, whether subsequent scholarly treatments of the topic concur with Mantena's argument in all respects is immaterial. She has written an extraordinary book that cannot be ignored."--Daniel I. O'Neill, Political Theory "Alibis of Empire is a sophisticated work of intellectual history... [D]eep analysis of Maine's work is the heart of the book, and Mantena undertakes it with great skill and confidence."--Mark Doyle, Canadian Journal of History "This will add much weight to current critiques of a resurgent imperialism, in America not least. The breadth of scholarship and depth of insight in her work is commendable."--Julia Stapleton, History of Political ThoughtTable of ContentsAcknowledgments ix INTRODUCTION: The Ideological Origins of Indirect Rule 1 CHAPTER ONE: The Crisis of Liberal Imperialism 21 CHAPTER TWO: Inventing Traditional Society: Empire and the Origins of Social Theory 56 CHAPTER THREE: Codification in the East andWest 89 CHAPTER FOUR: The Nineteenth-Century Debate on Property 119 CHAPTER FIVE: Native Society in Crisis: Conceptual Foundations of Indirect Rule 148 CODA: Liberalism and Empire Reconsidered 179 Notes 189 Bibliography 227 Index 255

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