History and Archaeology Books

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 SynopsisText in Arabic. This book is one of the most important Orientalist works that explores Ottoman history written by the English historian Sir Edward Shepherd Creasy in the middle of the 19th century. The book is divided into twenty-five chapters, most of which follow the chronological order of events, except for some chapters which shed light on certain details concerning the administrative or military systems of the state and its development. Sir Edward Creasy relied mainly on Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall, or, in other words, he followed his path in the writing of Ottoman history until 1774, but on the other hand, as he himself noted, his book is not a shortcut to von Hammers work. At the time, von Hammers work was not translated into English but relied on many contemporary European sources of events, memoirs and reports of leaders, diplomats and travelers who were sometimes subject to bias. Additionally, von Hammer included partial studies that dealt with political, economic and social dimensions and analyses, comparisons and causalities of events. Sir Edward Creasy provides an English perspective on the circumstances and the events during the period after 1774 and until the period after the Crimean War (1853-1856), where this book ends, which is undoubtedly one of the most important times in contemporary history.

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Book SynopsisThomas Howard became the third duke of Norfolk during the reign of Henry VIII and was intimately involved in many of the most controversial episodes of that era. This biography of Norfolk confronts the central paradox of Norfolk's career - one that lies in his unpleasant personality, marked by vain and tyrannical behavior.

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Book SynopsisA colorfully illustrated celebration of the classic era of cruising on the Nile, new in paperbackSince Antony and Cleopatra honeymooned on the Nile on a gilded barge, visitors to Egypt have taken to the river as the best way to experience the country’s wonders. Early travelers took a dahabiya, an elegant triangular-sailed houseboat, and leisurely meandered from riverside site to site, for three months or more. Then from the late nineteenth century, Thomas Cook of Leicester, England, revolutionized the journey with a fleet of specially built paddle steamers. For the next sixty years these ‘floating palaces,’ with their private cabins, and dining, smoking, and viewing salons, red-uniformed dragoman guides, and organized donkey excursions, carried the aristocratic, moneyed, and adventurous of international society of the time.Using period photography, and colorful vintage posters and advertising material, this book tells the story of the people, the places, and the boats, from pioneering Nile travelers like Amelia Edwards and Lucie Duff Gordon, through to famed later passengers, such as Rudyard Kipling, Arthur Conan Doyle, and, of course, Agatha Christie, whose staging of a death on the Nile only added to the allure.Trade Review"A sense of romance positively oozes from every page of this delightful book."—Country Life"Fascinating"—Daily Mail"This is a nostalgic look at the beginnings of tourism on one of the world’s most romantic rivers … Meticulously researched and beautifully illustrated with publicity posters, menus, photos and maps, this brilliantly evokes the golden age of steam travel on the Nile."—Good Book Guide"Profusely illustrated throughout, On the Nile in the Golden Age of Travel is an extraordinary and unique history that will prove to be and enduringly popular and welcome addition to personal reading lists and community library Travel History & Guide collections."—Midwest Book ReviewPraise for Grand Hotels Egypt:"Humphreys has a great talent for taking contemporary writing and using it to portray a coherent and fully visual impression of each town, hotel and its occupants, bringing the life of Westerners in Egypt to life."—Egyptological"We must thank Andrew Humphreys for providing a real treat for his readers."—ASTENE"A remarkable and entertaining book."—Cairo 360

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Book SynopsisThroughout history, great speeches have produced great change. From inciting violence and asserting control to restoring peace and securing freedom, nothing has the raw emotional power of a speech delivered at the right moment, in the right place, with the right content, and the right delivery. 50 Speeches That Made The Modern World is a celebration of the most influential and thought-provoking speeches that have shaped the world we live in. With comprehensive, chronological coverage of speeches from the 20th and 21st centuries, taken from all corners of the globe, it covers Emmeline Pankhurst''s patiently reasoned condemnation of men''s failure to improve ordinary women''s lives in 1908 through speeches by Vladimir Lenin, Mahatma Gandhi, David Ben-Gurion, Albert Einstein, Fidel Castro, Nikita Khrushchev, Ernesto ''Che'' Guevara, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela, Benazir Bhutto, Osama Bin Laden and Aung San Suu Kyi, right up to the most compelling orato

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Trade Reviewconcise and engaging * Eric Naiman, The Times Literary Supplement *This amasingly well-written book allows the reader a rare glimpse behind the curtain and see the crystal-clear clarity that it offers on essential questions of Russian philosophy. * Zsofia Kata Vincze, Journal of Contemporary Religion *Table of ContentsPreface ; Chapter 1: The Spiritual Geography of Russian Cosmism ; Chapter 2: Forerunners of Russian Cosmism ; Chapter 3: The Russian Philosophical Context ; Chapter 4: The Religious and Spiritual Context ; Chapter 5: The Russian Esoteric Context ; Chapter 6: Nikolai Fedorovich Fedorov (1829-1903), the Philosopher of the Common Task ; Chapter 7: The "Common Task" ; Chapter 8: The Religious Cosmists ; Chapter 9: The Scientific Cosmists ; Chapter 10: Promethean Theurgy ; Chapter 11: Fedorov's Twentieth-Century Followers ; Chapter 12: Cosmism Today ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisThe European Witch-Hunt seeks to explain why thousands of people, mostly lower-class women, were deliberately tortured and killed in the name of religion and morality during three centuries of intermittent witch-hunting throughout Europe and North America. Combining perspectives from history, sociology, psychology and other disciplines, this book provides a comprehensive account of witch-hunting in early modern Europe. Julian Goodare sets out an original interpretation of witch-hunting as an episode of ideologically-driven persecution by the godly state' in the era of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. Full weight is also given to the context of village social relationships, and there is a detailed analysis of gender issues. Witch-hunting was a legal operation, and the courts' rationale for interrogation under torture is explained. Panicking local elites, rather than central governments, were at the forefront of witch-hunting. Further chapters explore folk beliTrade Review"This is a wonderful work, with real pace, clarity and sparkle which combines excellent scholarship with a full recognition of the emotive quality of the material. It will exactly suit the intelligent, enquiring and thoughtful among students and general readers, and be of real interest and value to scholars."Ronald E. Hutton, University of Bristol, UK "This book excellently presents the different layers of meaning of witchcraft and witch trials all over Europe. Julian Goodare combines a sublime understanding of the topic with a personal interpretation in writing about one of the greatest enigmas in history: What was a witch and why were witches persecuted by their neighbors as well as by the state? The book provides a most fruitful resource for students and scholars in presenting new research and new perspectives on the history of witchcraft."Rita Voltmer, University of Trier, Germany"Julian Goodare's The European Witch-Hunt is a valuable addition to the study of early modern witchcraft and witch-hunting. Goodare devotes extra attention to explaining the mentalities, both illiterate and erudite, that converged to create the stereotype of the witch. His explanations of recurrent themes in ideas about witchcraft will be particularly helpful to students and prepares them for a better understanding of primary texts and more specialized secondary studies." Walter Stephens, John Hopkins University, USA“In this illuminating book, Goodare (Univ. of Edinburgh, Scotland) explores the subjects of witches and witch-hunts in early modern Europe, 1400–1750, maintaining that these years rather than the Middle Ages were the "witch years." He makes it clear that "although everyone feared witches, they did not all fear them in the same way" and offers readers a linked, fourfold concept of witchcraft to support this view … An excellent bibliography, a map, charts, and a helpful appendix accompany the book, which complements studies by Brian Levack, The Witch-Hunt in Early Modern Europe (CH, Sep'87; 4th ed. 2016); Robin Briggs, Witches & Neighbors (1996); and Lyndal Roper, Witch Craze (CH, Nov'05, 43-1819)."L. B. Gimelli, Eastern Michigan University"This is a wonderful work, with real pace, clarity and sparkle which combines excellent scholarship with a full recognition of the emotive quality of the material. It will exactly suit the intelligent, enquiring and thoughtful among students and general readers, and be of real interest and value to scholars."Ronald E. Hutton, University of Bristol, UK "This book excellently presents the different layers of meaning of witchcraft and witch trials all over Europe. Julian Goodare combines a sublime understanding of the topic with a personal interpretation in writing about one of the greatest enigmas in history: What was a witch and why were witches persecuted by their neighbors as well as by the state? The book provides a most fruitful resource for students and scholars in presenting new research and new perspectives on the history of witchcraft."Rita Voltmer, University of Trier, GermanyTable of ContentsIntroduction: THE WITCH-HUNT AND YOU Chapter 1: WITCHCRAFT! Chapter 2: TOWARDS WITCH-HUNTING Chapter 3: WITCHCRAFT AND THE INTELLECTUALS Chapter 4: WITCHES IN THE COMMUNITY Chapter 5: WITCHCRAFT AND FOLK BELIEFChapter 6: WITCHES AND THE GODLY STATE Chapter 7: WITCHES IN COURT Chapter 8: THE DYNAMICS OF WITCH-HUNTING Chapter 9: WOMEN, MEN AND WITCHCRAFT Chapter 10: THE END OF WITCH-HUNTINGChapter 11: PERSPECTIVES ON THE WITCH-HUNT FURTHER READING APPENDIX: INTENSITY OF WITCH-HUNTING IN EUROPE INDEX

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Book SynopsisProgymnasmata, exercises in the study of declamation, were the cornerstone of elite education from Hellenistic through Byzantine times. The Rhetorical Exercises of Nikephoros Basilakes, translated here into English for the first time, illuminate teaching and literary culture in one of the most important epochs of the Byzantine Empire.Trade Review[This translation] brilliantly captures Basilakes’s individual style as well as the intricacies of his rhetorical skills…The volume’s presentation is meticulous. -- Sophia Xenophontos * Speculum *

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Book SynopsisCertain Sainthood draws on the insights of a new generation of scholarship that integrates both lived religion and intellectual history into the study of theology and canon law.Trade ReviewCertain Sainthood focuses on the expansion of papal authority in the Middle Ages during the Gregorian reform. Well-written and persuasively argued, Donald S. Prudlo asserts that papal infallibility developed organically during this period in tandem with papal canonizations. * READING RELIGION *Prudlo argues that from the modern perspective, Catholics concentrate on canonical or theological history, with little appreciation for the social or cultural meaning of saints and canonization, especially during the medieval period.... But [he] integrates it with cultural history and lived religion during the period when papal centralization led to claims of infallibility in canonization. * American Historical Review *Table of ContentsIntroduction1. "By the authority of Blessed Peter" Making Saint-Making2. "They trust not in the suffrages of the saints": Saintly Skirmishes3. "That the Perversity of Heretics Might Be Confounded": From Practice to Theory4. "Hark, Hark, the Dogs Do Bark...": The Assault on Mendicant Holiness(1234–60)5. "That God Might Not Permit Us to Err": The Articulation of Infallibility in Canonization6. Sancti per fi dem vicerunt regna: "The Saints, by Faith, Conquered ;Kingdoms"Conclusion

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Book SynopsisHorse racing was the first and longest-lasting of Britain's national sports. Horse racing was the first and longest-lasting of Britain's national sports. This book explores the cultural world of racing and its relationship with British society in the long eighteenth century. It examines how and why race meetings changed from a marginal and informal interest for some of the elite to become the most significant leisure event of the summer season. Going beyond sports history, the book firmly places racing in its cultural, social, political and economic context. Racing's development was linked to the growth of commercialized leisure in the eighteenth century, a product of rising wealth amongst the middling group; changes in transport; the expansion of the newspaper press; and the new democratic and individualistic spirit of the age, especially the more flexible social codes of the late Georgian and Regency eras. In this book, horse racing emerges as the first 'proto-modern'sport, with links with the widespread popularity of gaming and betting which forced ever-increasing codification, regulation and event organization. Racing also gave expression to highly nuanced concepts of local, regional, national, class, gender (primarily male) and political identities. Drawing on the fields of social, cultural and sports history and utilizing many hitherto ignored or under-exploited sources, the book revises current histories of eighteenth-century leisure and sport, showing how horse racing links to debates about commercialization, consumer behaviour, the 'urban renaissance' and human-horse relationships. It also sheds new light not only on racehorse ownership,but also on the hitherto hidden world of racing's key professionals: jockeys, trainers, bloodstock breeders, stud grooms and stable hands. MIKE HUGGINS is Emeritus Professor of Cultural History at the University of Cumbria.Trade ReviewLays fascinating, thought-provoking and enjoyably readable groundwork for further research on the history of horse racing and pre-modern sport history at large. * LUDICA *Readers seeking insight into the history of British horce racing will find a 'sure thing' when they open the newest historical treatise on racing from Mike Huggins. . . . Huggins's latest book successfully combines developments affecting the sport over a period of more than one hundred years, while still providing meticulous details of both famous and forgotten racecourses, gentrified owners, clever trainers, brave jockeys, and legendary horses. * JOURNAL OF SPORT HISTORY *No scholar could be better placed to write the book about how thoroughbred racing began, both as an institution and as a culture. . . . Written in clear, polished language, blessedly free of jargon, and displaying great breadth and depth of research, Horse Racing and British Society delivers. * H-NET *Mike Huggins is a well-established authority on aspects of British popular culture, and sporting history in particular . . . [This book] offers a great deal of food for thought in terms of further research into his subject. * HISTOIRE SOCIALE/SOCIAL HISTORY *An authoritative tome full of information and insight into racing's rich history. * RACING POST *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Setting the Scene The 'race week' in British Social Life The Secret World of Wagering Horse Racing and British Politics Racing and its Rules Running the Race Meeting The Racehorse, its Ownership and Breeding Vital Professionals: Jockeys, Grooms and Trainers Conclusion Bibliography

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Book SynopsisThe scale and depth of Nazi brutality seem to defy understanding. What could drive people to fight, kill, and destroy with such ruthless ambition? Johann Chapoutot says we need to understand better how the Nazis explained it themselves, and in particular how steeped they were in the idea that history gave them no choice: it was either kill or die.Trade ReviewThe Law of Blood does invigorating work in attempting to explain how such a wildly repulsive ideology could take hold in the hearts and minds of shopkeepers, artisans, soldiers, and housewives—how a solid percentage of a modern nation could have aligned itself with such obvious, ham-handed, manipulative cruelty. The book has many strengths, but its greatest is a kind of stern empathy, a cold understanding of the complexities of the exchange that was taking place in Germany in the 1930s…Those conditions—crowds of glassy-eyed young men and women chanting ‘blood and soil’ in organized marches, civilized, compassionate people averting the gaze while government agencies carry out brutalities in their name, statesmen remaining mute while their government leaders pitch them into new antagonisms around the world—have seldom had an examination as detailed and ambitious as they get in these pages. The Belknap Press is to be praised for bringing the book to an English-speaking audience. -- Steve Donoghue * Open Letters Review *The Law of Blood is a useful addition to the literature on Nazi ideology…Readers will find much here to further their understanding of what Nazis thought and why they behaved the way they did. -- Dan Stone * Times Higher Education *The author’s consistent refrain is a warning that scholars must take seriously what the Nazis said and wrote…Chapoutot adds to our understanding of Nazi ideas and their results by excavating the ‘moral universe’ from which myriad atrocities emerged. -- Chad S. A. Gibbs * Religious Studies Review *Chapoutot [is] one of the most brilliant historians of his generation… The Law of Blood…is not only absorbing and informative but important—an event. -- Pierre Assouline * La République des Livres *A vertiginous reflection on the dialectic of culture and barbarism. -- Grégoire Kauffmann * L’Express *In this ambitious study, Johann Chapoutot contributes an extremely innovative, in-depth, and comprehensive picture of the mental world created by Nazism. He goes beyond the abstract notion of Weltanschauung and masterfully shows what Nazi thinkers affirmed about the origins of the world, about all life as a constant battle, and about their goal to reign over the world in an achievable eschatological time as a pure race. This mode of thinking, which pervaded all spheres of life, allowed for killing in general and the killing of the Jews—the ultimate Weltpest—in particular. The war against the Jews was a culmination of the essential features of National Socialism. This book is pathbreaking, and a must for anyone interested in National Socialism, the Shoah, or the collective behavior of genocidal societies in general. -- Dan Michman, Head of the International Institute for Holocaust Research and Professor Emeritus of Modern Jewish History, Bar Ilan UniversityChapoutot, one of the most gifted European historians of his generation, has enriched the French historiography of the Second World War, Nazi Germany, and the Holocaust. He has personally altered the European discussions of Nazi ecology, Nazi law, and the Nazi view of the past. At a time when Nazi self-understanding should be of interest to us all, this book is very welcome indeed. -- Timothy Snyder, Yale UniversityChapoutot offer[s] many illuminating discussions of the ways in which Nazi intellectuals reinterpreted Germany’s history…Scholars of the Holocaust and modern European intellectual history will find much of value in this rich analysis of a diverse and perverse Nazi intellectualism. -- Alice Weinreb * Holocaust and Genocide Studies *Chapoutot’s analysis casts important new light on the ideological texts the Nazis produced and their relation to the fearful crimes they committed…A compelling, deeply researched, and morally astute contribution to our understanding of Nazism. -- Casper Tybjerg * European Legacy *

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Book SynopsisDisruptive Power examines a surprising revival of faith in Catholic miracles in Germany from the 1920s to the 1960s. The book follows the dramatic stigmata of Therese Neumann of Konnersreuth and her powerful circle of followers that included theologians, Cardinals, politicians, journalists, monarchists, anti-fascists, and everyday pilgrims. Disruptive Power explores how this and other similar groups negotiated the precariousness of the Weimar Republic, the repression of the Third Reich, and the dynamic early years of the Federal Republic. Analyzing a network of rebellious traditionalists, O’Sullivan illustrates the divisions that characterized the German Catholic minority as they endured the tumultuous era of the world wars. Analyzing material from archives in Germany and the United States, Michael E. O’Sullivan investigates the unsanctioned but very popular visions in several rural towns after World War II, providing micro-histories that illuminTrade Review"Disruptive Powers deals with a myriad of themes in a complex, ambitious narrative based to a great degree on primary sources from numerous state and church archives…O’Sullivan gives us much to ponder in his thought-provoking, challenging work." -- Kevin P. Spicer, Stonehill College * Contemporary Church History *"O’Sullivan’s wonderful study of early-twentieth-century German Catholic miracles, Disruptive Power, keeps social structures, clerical and lay leadership and institutions in view while also illuminating forms of popular piety and their political impact both within the Catholid community and at regional and national levels…Michael O’Sullivan has written a richly descriptive and carefully argued book that makes a serious and important contribution to a vibrant and expanding field." -- Monica Black, University of Tennessee * German History *"O’Sullivan aptly demonstrates the ways in which power from below – grassroots movements as well as localized individual efforts – can influence and shape figures and events at regional and national levels. While his book will be of most interest to German studies scholars, his subject also has broad appeal to social and cultural historians of modern Europe." -- Lauren Faulkner Rossi * German Studies Review *"O’Sullivan offers a compelling argument for reconfiguring the conventional narrative about piety and secularization in modern Germany." -- Lauren N. Faulkner Rossi * Journal of Modern History, Vol.92, No. 4 *"O’Sullivan’s book is fascinating reading, meticulously researched, and well written." -- Stephen Bevans, SVD, Catholic Theological Union, Chicago * University of Toronto Quarterly: Letters in Canada 2018 *"Michael E. O’Sullivan’s deeply researched, equally imaginative and provocative book Disruptive Power tells the fascinating story of Therese Neumann (1898–1962)." -- Benjamin Ziemann, University of Sheffield * American Historical Review *"This beautifully written monograph deserves wide readership, especially by students and scholars of Europe and sexuality. Employing the case of Catholic mystic Therese Neumann, Michael O’Sullivan challenges conventional narratives about German history to argue for ‘the central place of Catholic miracles to the politics of modern Germany.’" -- Maria Mitchell, Franklin & Marshall College * EuropeNow *Table of ContentsList of illustrations Acknowledgements Introduction 1. Germany between Apocalypse and Salvation: Bloody Images and Miraculous Cures 2. The Rise of Therese Neumann of Konnersreuth during the Weimar Republic 3. Saving Souls and Making Enemies: The Struggle over Konnersreuth and the Downfall of Political Catholicism 4. Between Feminine Agency and Moral Utopia: Gender and Sex in Konnersreuth 5. Disruptive Potential: Catholic Miracles under the Third Reich 6. Miraculous Times in West Germany: Marian Apparitions during the Early Federal Republic 7. Therese Neumann between Catholic Traditionalism, Cold War, and Economic Miracle Conclusion Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Pamela Long's wonderful book brings the reader into the streets and squares of late Renaissance Rome, and recreates the lost cultures of knowledge and practice that took shape there. She shows in vivid detail how scholars and engineers, artists and prelates struggled to recreate ancient Rome and rebuild the infrastructure of the modern city."--Anthony T. Grafton, Princeton University "In Engineering the Eternal City, Pamela Long recaptures the energy and efflorescence of the Eternal City in the late sixteenth century, when Rome appeared to many visitors to be a vast and never-ending construction site. During these crucial decades after the Sack of Rome popes, architects, engineers, physicians, antiquarians, humanists, and city officials devised numerous solutions to the problems of repairing an ancient city as part of making an early modern city a magnificent expression of Rome's unique legacy as the heart of an ancient empire renewed by faith. Readers who love this city and want to learn more about it will enjoy this book."--Paula Findlen, Stanford University

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Book SynopsisThis early thirteenth-century West Midlands guide for women recluses is not only one of the major works of early Middle English prose, but is also a key document for the development of medieval spirituality.Trade ReviewIt is a text that all students of English Literature should read but which few could in its original language, making a good modern translation an essential to the work’s modern dissemination. Bella Millett’s new translation is extremely valuable for this reason alone, but it is an additional boon in being the fruit of many years’ research on the original Middle English manuscripts by the current leading scholar in the field of Ancrene Wisse studies. Such helpful tools, coupled with the very readable lucid prose in which the entire translation and commentary have been rendered will no doubt be greeted with thanks from the students and non-specialists whom this translation is meant to serve, as well as from the specialists who now have an exceptionally well done translation to use in their classrooms. * English Studies Vol.92, No. 4, pp.464-475 *Table of ContentsPreface to this edition Introduction 1. Ancrene Wisse and its Contexts 2. Sources and Analogues 3. The Form of the Work 4. The Textual History of Ancrene Wisse 5. This Translation Guide for Anchoresses Preface Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Explanatory Notes Bibliography 1. A Note on Further Reading 2. Abbreviations and Short Titles 3. Editions and Secondary Works General Index Scriptural Quotations Index

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Book SynopsisGareth Jones (1905-1934), the young Welsh investigative journalist, is revered in Ukraine as a national hero and is now rightly recognised as the first reporter to reveal the horror of the Holodomor, the Soviet Government-induced famine of the early 1930s, which killed millions of Ukrainians. Gareth Jones - Eyewitness to the Holodomor is a meticulous study of the efforts made by the the Aberystwyth and Cambridge-educated journalist, a fluent Russian-speaker, to investigate the Soviet Government’s denials, that its Five Year Plan had led to mass starvation, by visiting Ukraine in 1933 and reporting what he saw and witnessed: `I walked along through villages and twelve collective farms. Everywhere was the cry, “There is no bread. We are dying”’. Determined to alert the world to the suffering in Ukraine and to expose Stalin’s policies and prejudices towards the Ukrainian people, Jones published numerous articles in the UK (The Times, Daily Express and Western Mail) and the USA (New York Evening News and Chicago Daily News) with headlines such as `Famine Grips Russia. Millions Dying’, but soon saw his credibility and integrity attacked and denigrated by Soviet sympathizers, most famously by Moscow-based Walter Duranty of the New York Times. Gareth Jones was killed by bandits the following year, on the eve of his 30th birthday, whilst travelling in Japanese-controlled China. There remain strong suspicions that Jones’ murder was arranged by the Soviets in revenge for his eyewitness reporting which brought global attention to the Holodomor.Trade Review'This excellent book serves as a warning to journalists not to be taken in by official sources and political ideology but to report what they actually learn through their own efforts. Gamache deserves commendation for his research and careful reconstruction of Jones' reportorial journeys.' Prof. Maurine H. Beasley, College of Journalism, Univ. of Maryland; '...meticulously researched book [that] returns Gareth Jones to his rightful status, as one of the most outstanding journalists of his generation, in a tumultuous era that depended upon honest journalism as its main source of news.' Nigel Linsan Colley, www.garethjones.org; 'Extraordinary...Jones' articles...caused a small sensation...Because [his] notebooks record immediate impressions and describe events as they were happening, they have an unusual freshness...in the past two decades, the fate of the two journalists has been slowly reversed. Duranty's work has become controversial; in 2003, the Pulitzer committee debated whether to retrospectively withdraw his prize...[whilst] Jones' reputation has revived thanks to the Ukrainian government's broader efforts to tell the history of the famine...the establishment of a Ukrainian state simply makes Jones seem less marginal, more central, more important. Anne Applebaum, The New York ReviewTable of Contents1. `Famine Rules Russia’ 2. `Alone in an Unknown Country’ 3. `The Two Russias’ 4. `We are starving’ 5. `The hunger year’ 6. `Philological Sophistries’ 7. `There is no bread’ (`Hleba Nietu’) 8. `All are swollen’ (`Vse Pukhli’) 9. `Facts are stubborn things’ 10. `Hero of the Ukraine’

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Book SynopsisThe extraordinary array of images included in this volume reveals the full and rich history of the Middle Ages. Exploring material objects from the European, Byzantine and Islamic worlds, the book casts a new light on the cultures that formed them, each culture illuminated by its treasures. The objects are divided among four topics: The Holy and the Faithful; The Sinful and the Spectral; Daily Life and Its Fictions, and Death and Its Aftermath. Each section is organized chronologically, and every object is accompanied by a penetrating essay that focuses on its visual and cultural significance within the wider context in which the object was made and used. Spot maps add yet another way to visualize and consider the significance of the objects and the history that they reveal. Lavishly illustrated, this is an appealing and original guide to the cultural history of the Middle Ages.Trade Review'A splendid visual feast, this compelling account of the Middle Ages will fascinate and engage students, specialists and general readers alike. This is Medieval History with a difference - of approach, scope, and content - that is as stimulating as it is enjoyable.' Julia M. H. Smith, University of Oxford'The Middle Ages in 50 Objects will appeal to anyone with a passion for history and delight in things. Evocatively bringing the medieval world alive, it unearths buried weapons, de-codes enigmatic images, and rewards the curious with details of materials and makers, myths and movements. An outstanding resource for instructors and visual learners, this volume satisfies both the intellect and the senses.' Maureen C. Miller, University of California, Berkeley'The recent turn to 'materiality' among medievalists has paid off handsomely in this informative and beautifully presented study. The book testifies to the added value of collaboration in scholarship and of the utility of integrating different scholarly approaches to the study of objects. The authors obviously experienced great joy in executing the project, and I experienced the same emotion in reading it.' William Chester Jordan, Princeton University, New Jersey'The luxury items and ordinary medieval artefacts this volume showcases range across the full chronological and geographical scope of the capacious Middle Ages. They comprise a splendid cabinet of curiosities, a wondrous collection of images and stories, wrapped in rich contextualizations, that allows the reader to assemble a complex, multifaceted image of the Middle Ages.' Asa Simon Mittman, California State University, Chico'With its focus on carefully selected objects and its attention to material culture, this book is both a masterpiece of methodology and a must-read volume for scholars, students and interested public alike. Using the objects to address broad interdisciplinary questions concerning Islamic, Byzantine and European societies, it brings the Middle Ages back to life in a sophisticated and intelligent way.' Claudia Bolgia, University of Edinburgh'The Middle Ages in 50 Objects, as its name suggests, places objects front and center in the telling of history. Using select works from the rich collections of the Cleveland Museum of art, the authors present an admirably broad and diverse picture of the medieval era. Written in an engaging, approachable style, and with an authoritative erudition, this work will offer students an excellent introduction to the field.' Christina Maranci, Tufts University, Massachusetts'An appealing and original guide to the cultural history of the Middle Ages.' Antiques and Auction News'This handsome publication represents the collaborative effort of two well-regarded medievalists, an art historian (Gertsman, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland) and a scholar known primarily for her studies of the history of the emotions (Rosenwein, Loyola University, Chicago). They selected 50 objects they deemed illustrated salient aspects of the Middle Ages, and each object is the subject of informative yet accessible commentary. The objects appear under four headings: 'The Holy and the Faithful', 'The Sinful and the Spectral', 'Daily Life and Its fictions', 'Death and Its Aftermath'. … Recommended.' W. Cahn, Choice'… the book is a wonderful introduction to the objects of the museum's collection, and Gertsman and Rosenwein are to be congratulated for distilling these objects' complexity and historical context for a broader readership, and for painting a picture of the field that showcases the richness of both its objects and methodologies.' Karl Whittington, Speculum'These extraordinary objects remind us of the sheer strangeness of this world, and the volume is beautifully illustrated.' Hannah Skoda, BBC History MagazineTable of ContentsPart I: The Holy and the Faithful: 1. Jonah Cast Up, c.280–290, marble; 2. Altar Front, c.540–600, marble; 3. Pilgrim's Flask with Saint Menas, 6th–7th century, terracotta; 4. Calyx (Chalice), 900s–1000s, blood jasper (heliotrope) with gilt-copper mounts; 5. Christ's Mission to the Apostles, c.970–980, ivory; 6. Feline Incense Burner, 1100s, copper alloy, cast and chased; 7. Leaf from a Qur'an, 1100s, opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper; 8. Arm Reliquary of the Apostles, c. 1190, gilt silver, champlevé enamel, oak; 9. Virgin and Child, late 13th century; wood (oak) with polychromy and gilding; 10. Christ and Saint John the Evangelist, early 14th century, polychromed and gilded oak; 11. The Coronation of the Virgin with the Trinity, c.1400, oil on panel; 12. Christ Carrying the Cross, 1400s, painted and gilded alabaster; 13. Leaf from an Antiphonary: Initial H with the Nativity, c.1480, ink, tempera and gold on vellum; Part II. The Sinful and the Spectral: 14. Adam and Eve, late 400s-early 500s, marble and stone tesserae; 15. Curtain Panel with Scenes of Merrymaking, 6th Century, undyed linen and dyed wool; 16. Plaque from a Portable Altar Showing the Crucifixion, 1050–1100, walrus ivory; 17. Dragon's Head, 1100–1150, walrus ivory; 18. Bowl with Engraved Figures of Vices, 1150–1200, bronze; 19. Engaged Capital with a Lion and a Basilisk, 1175–1200, marble; 20. Leaf from a Cocharelli Treatise on the Vices: Acedia and Her Court, c.1330, ink, tempera, and gold on vellum; 21. Miniature from a Mariegola: The Flagellation, 1359–1360, tempera and gold on parchment; 22. The Madonna of Humility with the Temptation of Eve, c.1400, tempera and gold on wood panel; 23. Grotesques from the Hours of Charles the Noble, c.1404, ink, tempera, and gold on vellum; 24. The Virgin Mary Overcoming a Devil, ca.1473, hand-colored woodcut; 25. Demon in Chains, c.1453, opaque watercolor and gold on paper; Part III. Daily Life and Its Fictions: 26. S-Shaped Fibula, 500s, silver with garnets; 27. Button, 500s, rock crystal, garnet, granulated gold; 28. Solidus with Busts of Constans II and Constantine IV (obverse), 659–661, gold; 29. Bifolium Excised from a Carolingian Gradual, c.830–860, gold and silver ink on purple parchment; 30. Jug, 900s, gold with repoussé and chased and engraved decoration; 31. Lion Aquamanile, 1200-1250, copper alloy; 32. Luster Wall Tile with a Couple, 1266, fritware with luster-painted design; 33. Leaf Excised from Henry of Segusio's 'Summa Aurea': Table of Consanguinity, c. 1280, ink, tempera, and gold on parchment; 34. Albarello with Two Hares, 14th century, tin-glazed earthenware (maiolica); 35. Mirror Case with a Couple Playing Chess, 1325–1350, ivory; 36. Table Fountain, c.1320–1340, gilt-silver and translucent enamels; 37. Barbute, 1350–1420, iron; 38. Time, from Chateau de Chaumont Set, 1512–1515, silk and wool; Part IV. Death and Its Aftermath: 39. Columbarium Tomb Plaque with the Monogram of Christ, 500–800, terracotta; 40. Single-Edged Knife (Scramasax), 600s, iron, copper, and gold foil; 41. Inscribed Tombstone of Shaikh al-Husain ibn Abdallah ibn al-Hasan, 1110, limestone; 42. Condemnation and Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence, c.1180, gilded copper, champlevé enamel; 43. Leaf from a Psalter: The Crucifixion, c.1300–1330, ink, tempera and gold on vellum; 44. Diptych with Scenes from the Life of Christ, c. 1350–1375, ivory; 45. Death of the Virgin, c.1400, tempera and oil with gold on panel; 46. Mourner from the Tomb of Philip the Bold, 1404–1410, alabaster; 47. The Last Judgment: Leaf from a Book of Hours, 1430s, ink, tempera and gold on vellum; 48. Initial T from a Choral Book with Isaac and Esau, c.1460–1470, ink, tempera, and gold on parchment; 49. A Bridal Couple, c.1470, oil on panel; 50. Dance of Death: The Pope, cut c.1526–27, woodcut.

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Book SynopsisArthur McKeown examines newly revealed Tibetan and Chinese biographies of Sariputra and a collection of historical documents in Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Chinese. These sources point to a fundamental reconsideration of later Indian Buddhism, its relationship with Brahmanism and Islam, and its enduring importance throughout Asia.

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Book SynopsisJonas of Bobbio was an Italian monk, author, and abbot, active in Lombard Italy and Merovingian Gaul during the seventh century. He is best known as the author of the Life of Columbanus and His Disciples, one of the most important works of hagiography from the early medieval period, that charts the remarkable journey of the Irish exile and monastic founder, Columbanus (d. 615), through Western Europe, as well as the monastic movement initiated by him and his Frankish successors in the Merovingian kingdoms. In the years following Columbanus’s death numerous new monasteries were built by his successors and their elite patrons in Francia that decisively transformed the inter-relationship between monasteries and secular authorities in the Early Middle Ages. Jonas also wrote two other, occasional works set in the late fifth and sixth centuries: the Life of John, the abbot and founder of the monastery of Réomé in Burgundy, and the Life of Vedast, the first bishop of Arras and a contemporary of Clovis. Both works provide perspectives on how the past Gallic monastic tradition, the role of bishops, and the Christianization of the Franks were perceived in Jonas’s time. Jonas’s hagiography also provides important evidence for the reception of classical and late antique texts as well as the works of Gregory the Great and Gregory of Tours.This volume presents the first complete English translation of all of Jonas of Bobbio’s saints’ Lives with detailed notes and scholarly introduction that will be of value to all those interested in this period.Trade ReviewReviews 'There is a richness to the material which O'Hara and Wood have done us a great service in making more accessible.' Jamie Kreiner, The Medieval Review'This book is a timely and meaningful contribution to the scholarship on Merovingian Gaul. It is important not only for its accessible translation of a large and difficult corpus of works set against a complicated historical and textual background, but also for its clear synthesis of current scholarship. Finally, it elegantly succeeds in navigating the “Irish” vs. “Frankish” controversy, which seems to have reawakened of late.' Yaniv Fox, Speculum'This very welcome new translation is also a highly sophisticated scholarly edition. It is particularly rich in bibliography, with an extensive listing of virtually all the secondary literature on Columban and his times.' Terrence Kardong, American Benedictine Review 'This very welcome addition to Liverpool University Press’s Translated Texts for Historians more than lives up to expectations for this esteemed book series [...] Alexander O’Hara and Ian Wood’s volume will be an essential companion for its valuable introduction, detailed footnotes, half-dozen appendices, up-to-date bibliography, and, not least of all, high-quality translation of Jonas’s often challenging Latin. [...] In sum, this is an important book, not only for the early medieval texts it makes available to a much wider potential readership but also for the exceptional scholarship that went into the presentation and translation of those texts.'Westley Follett, Eolas: The Journal of the American Society of Irish Medieval Studies‘Whatever the final outcome of contemporary debates about Columbanus, ‘Columbanian Monasticism’, and the influence of the Irish in continental Europe in the early Middle Ages, this volume will provide invaluable evidence (for both sides!) for many years to come.’ Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, Early Medieval Europe'The publication of an erudite, readable, and heavily annotated translation of Jonas of Bobbio’s hagiographical corpus is a cause for celebration. Although one of the recognized classics of seventh-century hagiography, Jonas’s Vita Columbani until now has not been available in an unabridged English translation, while the comparatively brief lives of John of Réomé and Vedast appear for the very first time in English. [...] O’Hara and Wood thus have produced not only an invaluable teaching resource, but a significant contribution to the new wave of Columbanian studies.' Gregory I. Halfond, The Mediæval JournalTable of ContentsPrefaceAbbreviationsIntroduction1. The works of Jonas of Bobbio.2. Francia in the Days of Columbanus.3. The Gallic Church of the Late Sixth Century.4. Columbanus and his ascetic exile to the continent.5. Columbanus’s legacy.6. Jonas of Bobbio: an Italian monk in Merovingian Gaul.7. The manuscripts of the Life of Columbanus and the structure of the text.8. Jonas the hagiographer and his Christian sources.9. The Second Book of the Life of Columbanus and his Disciples.10. Language and Style.11. Jonas’s Life of John.12. The Life of Vedast of Arras. Author and text.13. Conclusion - the influence of Jonas’s hagiography.14. A note on the text and translations of the Life of Columbanus.Jonas, The Life of Columbanus. Book I. Verses and Hymn. Book II.Jonas, The Life of John.Jonas (?), The Life of Vedast.Appendices1. Textual Variants.2. Distribution of Biblical Quotations.3. Parallels between Regula cuiusdam ad virgines and Jonas’s hagiographical works.4. Three diplomas associated with Bobbio and Faremoutiers in the time of Jonas.BibliographyMaps1. Ireland in the Days of Columbanus,2. Francia, c. 590.3. Burgundy c. 590-610.4. Luxeuil and its environs.5. Francia, c.610.6. Early Columbanian foundations.7. The World of Jonas.8. The World of the Life of Vedast.9. Arras in the Merovingian period.

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Book SynopsisEach of the three volumes of this magisterial work provides a comprehensive picture of the realities of Jewish life in the Polish lands in the period it covers, while also considering the contemporary political, economic, and social context. Volume I: 1350 to 1881 provides a wide-ranging overview down to the mid-eighteenth century, including social, economic, and religious history. The period from 1764 to 1881 is covered in more detail, with attention focused on developments in each country in turn, especially with regard to the politics of emancipation, acculturation, assimilation, and forced integration. Volume II: 1881 to 1914 explores the factors that had a negative impact on Jewish life as well as the political and cultural movements that developed in consequence: Zionism, socialism, autonomism, the emergence of modern Hebrew and Yiddish literature, Jewish urbanization, and the rise of popular Jewish culture. Galicia, Prussian Poland, the Kingdom of Poland, and the tsarist empire are all treated individually, as are the main cities. Volume III: 1914 to 2008 covers the interwar period, the Second World War, and the Holocaust, including Polish–Jewish relations and the Soviet record on the Holocaust. A survey of developments since 1945 concludes with an epilogue on the situation of the Jews since the collapse of communism.Trade Review'Polonsky's sweeping study offers an illuminating, accessible view of Jewish life in eastern Euope since the end of World War II. In elegant prose, the author engages major historiographical issues while analyzing important cultural, religious, social, and political trends among eastern European Jewry. He carefully frames each section with a chapter-long overview of the relevant historical context for the following chapters . . . Throughout, Polonsky masterfully navigates the different realms of a turbulent eastern European Jewish world, conveying both the richness of its history and the tragedy of its destruction. Highly recommended.'J. Haus, Choice'Succeeds admirably. Simply put, these volumes are required reading for anyone with a serious interest in East European history or for anyone looking for a scholarly assessment of a particular feature of Polish or Russian Jewish history. Handsomely produced, with extensive maps and tables, and a glossary . . . will remain a standard work in the field for some time . . . a body of work that, in summarizing the current state of our knowledge, effectively sets the agenda for future scholars. Polonsky is perhaps the scholar most responsible for the growth of Polish Jewish studies in the late twentieth century . . Very few historians could write a series of volumes like this . . . [he] has armed scholars with a formidable tool that will help them dispel stereotypes . . . Just as these volumes are destined to become the starting point for the work of many students, they will be the touchstone for scholars working in the field at all levels.' Sean Martin, European History Quarterly'Combines a masterful grasp of Jewish history with that of eastern Europe. While underlining the unique features and achievements of the Jewish communal experience he authoritatively integrates them into the history of the countries in which Jews lived . . . Incorporating current, ground-breaking scholarship from North America, Israel, and Europe these beautifully narrated volumes should not only be seen as a staple of university courses, but also as a must-read for anyone attempting to understand any aspect of modern Jewish history and religious tradition, wherever it may be playing out . . . With this extremely important book, Antony Polonsky not only writes history but, following the example of his illustrious predecessors, makes it.' Katarzyna Person, European Judaism'We can only commend Antony Polonsky for his massive effort to explain seven centuries of Jewish history in a mere 2,000 pages . . . Polonsky's strength lies in his ability to illuminate intellectual and cultural developments . . . Because of the excellent bibliographies, extensive annotation, and wonderful maps included in each volume, any reader wishing to read in greater detail about Polish and Russian Jewry will have plenty of resources to enable the search.' Alexandra S. Korros, Jewish Quarterly'Magisterial . . . all three volumes, but particularly Volume 3, should be of special interest to Polish Americans and all Americans interested in the history of the Jews in Poland, Lithuania, and Russia.' Anna M. Cienciala, Polish Review'Definitive . . . The scope is immense and the author does an impressive job of synthesizing a vast literature . . . This trilogy will no doubt serve as a standard history of east European Jewry for a long time.' - Shaul Stampfer, Religious Studies Review'Exemplary and formidable . . . Polonsky, as much as anyone else, has created the field of modern Jewish history as a subject to be considered and understood rather than simply a tragic past to be mourned. He is too good a historian to confuse the history of Jewish life with the German policies that brought Jewish death . . . The barely visible commitment in these three wonderful volumes is to rescue a world from polemic, for the sake of history.' - Timothy Snyder, Wall Street Journal‘The first serious, and most successful, effort thus far to summarize the history of the Jews of “Eastern Europe” . . . the first book to synthesize the vast research that has emerged since the seventies . . . comprehensive and multidisciplinary . . . there is no book today that can compare to its scope and to the vast and new materials that he brings forth and analyzes with a broad imagination, an intensive approach, and a moderate style.’ - Moshe Rosman, ZionTable of ContentsList of Maps List of Tables Note on Transliteration Note on Place Names Maps General Introduction I Jewish Life in Poland–Lithuanian to 1750 Introduction 1 Jews and Christians in Early Modern Poland–Lithuania 2 The Structure of Jewish Autonomous Institutions 3 Jewish Places: Royal Towns and Noble Towns 4 Jews in Economic Life 5 Religious and Spiritual Life Conclusion Appendix: The Polish-Lithuanian Background II Attempts to Transform and Integrate the Jews, and the Jewish Response, 1750–1880 Introduction 1 The Last Years of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth 2 The Jews in the Prussian Partition of Poland, 1772–1870 3 The Jews in Galicia to the mid-1870s 4 The Jews in the Duchy of Warsaw and the Kingdom of Poland, 1807–1881 5 The Jews in the Tsarist Empire, 1772–1825 6 Nicholas I and the Jews of Russia, 1825–1855 7 The Reign of Alexander II, 1855–1881 Glossary Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisEach of the three volumes of this magisterial work provides a comprehensive picture of the realities of Jewish life in the Polish lands in the period it covers, while also considering the contemporary political, economic, and social context. Volume I: 1350 to 1881 provides a wide-ranging overview down to the mid-eighteenth century, including social, economic, and religious history. The period from 1764 to 1881 is covered in more detail, with attention focused on developments in each country in turn, especially with regard to the politics of emancipation, acculturation, assimilation, and forced integration. Volume II: 1881 to 1914 explores the factors that had a negative impact on Jewish life as well as the political and cultural movements that developed in consequence: Zionism, socialism, autonomism, the emergence of modern Hebrew and Yiddish literature, Jewish urbanization, and the rise of popular Jewish culture. Galicia, Prussian Poland, the Kingdom of Poland, and the tsarist empire are all treated individually, as are the main cities. Volume III: 1914 to 2008 covers the interwar period, the Second World War, and the Holocaust, including Polish–Jewish relations and the Soviet record on the Holocaust. A survey of developments since 1945 concludes with an epilogue on the situation of the Jews since the collapse of communism.Trade Review'A truly landmark study of east European Jewish history for the mid-fourteenth century to the outbreak of World War I. This work is an invaluable synthetic exposition of Jewish civilization in Poland and Russia that pays close attention to the larger historical context in which Jewish history unfolded in these areas. While exhaustive in presenting historical detail and utilizing available sources and data of all types, Polonsky is also masterful in conveying the texture of Jewish life in different regions during each period. His study weaves together numerous aspects of that life—among others, the relationship of Jewish communities to the states in the region and their governance mechanisms; Jewish religious and political movements; the evolving role of the synagogue in communities; the wide variety of Jewish organizations over time and space; cultural changes, including the development of the mass press, modern literature, and theatre; the experiences of Jewish women; and descriptions of the towns and cities in which Jewish history played out. The contribution of Polonsky's study, however, is not only an impressive synthesis of a vast topic and vast amount of information. In integrating all of this material, the author also deftly crafts his own interpretations of trends in the area and the timing of shifts in them. His marshalling of evidence and his own insights add up to a compelling set of arguments about the course of Jewish history. Polonsky addresses Jewish, Polish, and Russian historical developments all with great nuance, and that depth of understanding allows him to present the complexities of these intertwined histories with a subtlety rarely achieved in projects of such ambitious temporal and spatial scope. This study will become a “go to” reference for scholars of east European Jewish history for a long time to come.'From the citation for the 2011 Kulczycki Book Prize for Polish Studies, awarded to Volumes I and II 'This second volume of Polonsky's well-reseached, eloquently written study provides a finely distinct portrait of Jewish life in eastern Europe in the years leading up to the Great War . . . Highly recommended.'- R. K. Byczkiewicz, Choice'Succeeds admirably. Simply put, these volumes are required reading for anyone with a serious interest in East European history or for anyone looking for a scholarly assessment of a particular feature of Polish or Russian Jewish history. Handsomely produced, with extensive maps and tables, and a glossary . . . will remain a standard work in the field for some time . . . a body of work that, in summarizing the current state of our knowledge, effectively sets the agenda for future scholars. Polonsky is perhaps the scholar most responsible for the growth of Polish Jewish studies in the late twentieth century . . Very few historians could write a series of volumes like this . . . [he] has armed scholars with a formidable tool that will help them dispel stereotypes . . . Just as these volumes are destined to become the starting point for the work of many students, they will be the touchstone for scholars working in the field at all levels.'- Sean Martin, European History Quarterly 'Combines a masterful grasp of Jewish history with that of eastern Europe. While underlining the unique features and achievements of the Jewish communal experience he authoritatively integrates them into the history of the countries in which Jews lived . . . Incorporating current, ground-breaking scholarship from North America, Israel, and Europe these beautifully narrated volumes should not only be seen as a staple of university courses, but also as a must-read for anyone attempting to understand any aspect of modern Jewish history and religious tradition, wherever it may be playing out . . . With this extremely important book, Antony Polonsky not only writes history but, following the example of his illustrious predecessors, makes it.'- Katarzyna Person, European Judaism'The first two volumes of Antony Polonsky's magisterial The Jews in Poland and Russia trilogy provide a much-needed addition to the landscape of Jewish historical studies . . . [a] significant achievement in presenting the most modern findings in a clear, readable, comprehensive survey . . . his narrative is grand and his analysis tight . . . an excellent synthesis of this community's history, incorporating much of the groundbreaking scholarship of the last few decades. Repeatedly, the volumes remind us of the many lost opportunities for real reform in the region. They help correct the nostalgic and romanticized portraits of what is sometimes considered a lost civilization, while simultaneously demonstrating the vibrancy and diversity of Jewish life in the region . . . essential reading for those seeking a thorough and balanced understanding of Jewish life in pre-twentieth century Eastern Europe.' - Jeffrey Veidlinger, H-Judaic'For several decades now, Antony Polonsky has been at the forefront of Polish–Jewish studies . . . It is thus fitting that Polosnky, who has nurtured young scholars, especially in Poland itself and North America, should bring together old and new work in this remarkable multi-volume synthesis of Jewish history and culture . . . These volumes will provide the first port of call for any student of east European Jewry.' - Tony Kushner, Jewish Chronicle'We can only commend Antony Polonsky for his massive effort to explain seven centuries of Jewish history in a mere 2,000 pages . . . Polonsky's strength lies in his ability to illuminate intellectual and cultural developments . . . Because of the excellent bibliographies, extensive annotation, and wonderful maps included in each volume, any reader wishing to read in greater detail about Polish and Russian Jewry will have plenty of resources to enable the search.' - Alexandra S. Korros, Jewish Quarterly'An excellent synthesis of recent research on east European Jewish culture and history. As such it fills a definite need for an accessible introduction to the current scholarship and thinking about the Jews of Poland and Russia . . . should be on the reading list of anyone interested in the history and folk cultures of eastern Europe, whether they work specifically with Jewish history and folk culture, or with other regional cultures.'- David Elton Gay, Journal of Folklore Research'Any reader who invests the time and money to read the book . . . will find it very rewarding—and not just because of the wealth of information it contains. What Polonsky's book brings home, in a way that a narrower study could not, is the sheer complexity and vitality of Jewish life in that time and place . . . this broader picture is needed to make sense of the social changes that were accelerating by the late nineteenth century—above all, in the situation of women, the subject of one of Polonsky's best chapters . . . Polonsky's panoramic book, which packs so much vivid detail and statistical information into its 500 pages, helps to show just how rich, and how difficult, that life really was.'- Adam Kirsch, The New Republic and Tablet Magazine'Polonsky's magisterial The Jews in Poland and Russia is one of those rare works that can hope to bridge the gap between specialist and “intelligent general reader”, providing a strong narrative and appealing prose for the latter as well as an up-to-date distilled knowledge of both primary and secondary sources for the former. No one interested in Jewish, Polish, or Russian history can afford to be without these volumes . . . will long remain the standard work on this crucial Jewish community . . . While a survey of this sort requires a goodly bit of politics . . . Polonsky has gone out of his way to include culture, religious life, gender, Jewish mass culture, and social history . . . The books' structure is entirely appropriate for its primary purpose: to provide a basic overview of this Jewish community's history . . . strikingly high level of scholarship . . . [The publisher] is particularly to be commended on its allowing Polonsky to cite at length from the Jewish literary sources he is considering and not begrudging space for a dozen pages of useful statistics (not a small thing in a publishing world where bibliographies are often considered superfluous!) . . . This history, written by a major scholar of both Polish and Jewish history and a person profoundly attached to both communities, is exemplary in its efforts to integrate Jews into Polish history, neither white-washing sources of friction nor painting an overly rosy picture. The most important thing one can say about Antony Polonsky's The Jews in Poland and Russia is: get it and read it!'- Theodore R. Weeks, The Polish Review'This superb and very up-to-date book is very well written, carefully documented, balanced, and will be a standard reference in the field. It has a glossary and a wide-ranging bibliography, very useful maps, and statistical tables, all of which make it a good starting point for any reading on east European Jewry.'- Shaul Stampfer, Religious Studies Review'Exemplary and formidable . . . Polonsky, as much as anyone else, has created the field of modern Jewish history as a subject to be considered and understood rather than simply a tragic past to be mourned. He is too good a historian to confuse the history of Jewish life with the German policies that brought Jewish death . . . The barely visible commitment in these three wonderful volumes is to rescue a world from polemic, for the sake of history.' - Timothy Snyder, Wall Street Journal‘The first serious, and most successful, effort thus far to summarize the history of the Jews of “Eastern Europe” . . . the first book to synthesize the vast research that has emerged since the seventies . . . comprehensive and multidisciplinary . . . there is no book today that can compare to its scope and to the vast and new materials that he brings forth and analyzes with a broad imagination, an intensive approach, and a moderate style.’- Moshe Rosman, ZionTable of ContentsList of MapsList of TablesNote on TransliterationMapsIntroduction1 The Position of the Jews in the Tsarist Empire, 1881-19052 Revolution and Reaction, 1904-19143 The Kingdom of Poland, 1881-19144 Galicia in the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century5 Prussian Poland, 1848-19146 Jewish Spaces: Shtetls and Towns in the Nineteenth CenturyStatistical Appendix7 Modern Jewish Literature in the Tsarist Empire and Galicia8 Jewish Religious Life from the Mid-Eightteenth Century to 19149 Women in Jewish Eastern Europe10 The Rise of Jewish Mass Culture: Literature, Press, TheatreConclusionGlossaryBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisGiuliana Chamedes offers the first comprehensive history of the Vatican’s efforts to defeat the forces of secular liberalism and communism through international law, cultural diplomacy, and a marriage of convenience with authoritarian and right-wing rulers.Trade ReviewFascinating…A work of tremendous ambitions and impressive panoramic scope. Beautifully written and thoroughly researched, it charts one of the 20th century’s most far-reaching cultural-political projects, which stretched over dozens of countries and unfolded over decades…What Chamedes has superbly charted is the world that [Pope] Francis has set to demolish. How his alternative will fare, and whether it will succeed where his predecessors had failed, is still to be seen. -- Udi Greenberg * Los Angeles Review of Books *Readers seeking backstories for the Vatican agreements that legitimated Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany will not be disappointed. Nor will students wrestling with how to place the Vatican within the global history of the twentieth century…Part intellectual history, part history of the international system, part collective biography. -- Piotr H. Kosicki * Times Literary Supplement *Eye-opening…Zealous hostility to communism and socialism led the church into legal alliance with right-wing reactionaries…This fascinating book highlights that the church’s present is always in dialogue with its past. -- Christopher Kissane * Irish Times *This study of what preceded Vatican II can help one to appreciate the Council even more. -- Michael Fitzgerald * The Tablet *Has the potential for very broad appeal…Chamedes’ work seems to provide the necessary framework for any future study of Catholic internationalism. -- Anastasiia Akulich * European Review of History *Superb…Chamedes’s book is a magisterial achievement. It will remain the standard work on Catholic internationalism for years. -- Peter McDonough * Journal of Church and State *Chamedes’s excellent new book is a welcome corrective to standard narratives about the papacy’s supposed irrelevance in modern international history…A fluidly written, engaging and ground-breaking work that deserves a wide audience. This book will benefit…anyone seeking to understand the role of ideology in modern international history. -- Patrick J. Houlihan * Journal of Ecclesiastical History *While much has been written about the Catholic anti-Communist crusade in the interwar period, [Chamedes] examines it more thoroughly and comprehensively than most historians have done hitherto…This is an important monograph on an important aspect of the history of the papacy in the twentieth century. -- John Pollard * Journal of Modern History *The picture that emerges of the Church’s political role in twentieth-century Europe is utterly damning…Will stand as a vital account of the uses to which [the Vatican’s] force has been put, shorn of apologetics and exhaustively documented. -- Daniel Finn * New Left Review *This important book reveals the unknown story of the Vatican’s efforts to reshape international relations in the twentieth century. Facing new competition from secularism, liberalism, and communism, the Church responded with an international program of its own: ‘concordat diplomacy.’ In recovering this lost history, Chamedes sheds new light on seemingly familiar terrain and enhances our understanding of a complicated past that continues to resonate today. -- Andrew Preston, author of Sword of the Spirit, Shield of Faith: Religion in American War and DiplomacyThis is transnational history at its best. In this impressively researched book, Giuliana Chamedes reaches into all corners of the European continent as she brings forth the crucial role of the Vatican and its particular brand of internationalism in Europe’s tumultuous twentieth century. It is essential reading for those interested in modern Europe and in religion. -- Elizabeth Foster, author of African CatholicChamedes offers a pathbreaking study of twentieth-century Catholic internationalism and papal diplomacy that illuminates a vast terrain of hitherto unknown transnational activity. Her book is not just an eye-opening addition to the literature on internationalism, it reframes our understanding of twentieth-century modernity. An essential contribution. -- Adam Tooze, author of CrashedThis comprehensive study provides a broad perspective on 20th-century papal diplomacy's crusade to sustain Catholic influence in European society. * Choice *

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Book SynopsisAn investigation of two manuals of inquisition reveals much about the practice in action. The Inquisition played a central role in European history. It moulded societies by enforcing religious and intellectual unity; it helped develop the judicial and police techniques which are the basis of those used today; and it helped lay the foundations for the persecution of witches. An understanding of the Inquisition is therefore essential to the late medieval and early modern periods. This book looks at how the philosophy and practice of Inquisition developed in the fourteenth century. It saw the proliferation of heresies defined by the Church (notably the Spiritual Franciscans and Beguines) and the classifcation of many more magical practices as heresy.The consequentialwidening of the Inquisition's role in turn led to it being seen as an essential part of the Church and the guardian of all the Church's doctrinal boundaries; the inclusion of magic in particular also changed the Inquisition's attitude towards suspects, and the use of torture became systematised and regularised. These changes are charted here through close attention to the inquisitorial manuals of Bernard Gui and Nicholas Eymerich, using other sourceswhere available. Gui's and Eymerich's personalities were important factors. Gui was a successful insider, Eymerich a maverick, but Eymerich's work had the greater long-term influence. Through them we can see the Inquisition in action. DEREK HILL gained his PhD from the University of London.Trade Review[An] important contribution to our understanding of medieval inquisition practice and thought. -- JOURNAL OF RELIGIOUS HISTORYDespite the fame both Gui's Practica and Eymerich's Directorium have long enjoyed, neither has been the focus of as much careful and thoroughgoing inquiry as they merit. Hill's rich study helps correct that error, and [ . . . ] contributes significantly to our understanding of some major fourteenth-century developments, inquisitorial and otherwise. * JOURNAL OF CHURCH AND STATE *Table of ContentsIntroduction The Historical Context and Gui's, Eymerich's and Ugolini's Lives The Interpretation of Gui's Practica and Eymerich's Directorium Inquisitors' Companions and Relationships with the Secular Arm and with the Rest of the Church Detection, Interrogation, Abjuration and the Inquisitor's Relationship with his Suspects Sermones Generales - The Theatre of Inquisition Changes in Thinking on Inquisition and Heresy Conclusions and Consequences Cautelæ inquisitorum decem contra hæreticorum cavillationes et fraudes Super illius Specula Bibliography

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Book SynopsisIn January of 1649, after years of civil war, King Charles I stood trial in a specially convened English court on charges of treason, murder, and other high crimes against his people. Not only did the revolutionary tribunal fi nd him guilty and order his death, but its masters then abolished monarchy itself and embarked on a bold (though short-lived) republican experiment. The event was a landmark in legal history. The trial and execution of King Charles marked a watershed in English politics and political theory, and thus also affected subsequent developments in those parts of the world colonized by the British.This book presents a selection of contemporaries’ accounts of the king’s trial and their reactions to it, as well as a report of the trial of the king’s own judges once the wheel of fortune turned and monarchy was restored. It uses the words of people directly involved to offer insight into the causes and consequences of these momentous events.Trade Review“The trial of Charles I is one of the most important events in British history, and the documentary evidence surrounding it is thrilling and evocative. This wonderful new edition offers not just the colour but also the complexity of the surviving sources; it reveals the contested nature of the events themselves, as well as ongoing debates about their meaning and significance. In addition to the amazing record of the trial itself, we are presented with neglected evidence about how profoundly the king’s death affected even the most radical of contemporary commentators. As such, the book casts new and genuinely thought-provoking light on these momentous events.” — Jason Peacey, University College London“This compendium of primary sources provides an indispensable teaching resource for studying the trial of Charles I. Kesselring’s contextual introduction guides the reader through recent controversies among historians over how to interpret the trial, while providing a list of penetrating questions to stimulate enquiry and debate. The volume’s strength lies in the different perspectives offered by its selected texts; its inclusion of an account of the regicide Thomas Harrison’s trial invites readers to explore further comparative dimensions.” — Andrew Hopper, University of LeicesterTable of ContentsAcknowledgementsIntroductionChronologyQuestions to ConsiderPart 1: Trying the King Title page and Extracts from John Nalson, A True Copy of the Journal of the High Court of Justice for the Tryal of K. Charles I (London, 1684) Lord President Bradshaw’s Speech: Extract from Gilbert Mabbott, A Perfect Narrative of the Whole Proceedings of the High Court of Justice (London, 1649) The Death Warrant of Charles I Part 2: Reactions and Aftermath Acts Establishing a Republic Extracts from “An Act for the abolishing the Kingly Office in England and Ireland, and the Dominions thereunto belonging” (1649) Extracts from “An Act for the Abolishing the House of Peers” (1649) “An Act Declaring and Constituting the People of England to be a Commonwealth and Free State” (1649) A Contemporary Depiction of the King’s Execution A “Martyr” Speaks from the Grave: The King’s Eikon Basilike (London, 1649): Extracts and Frontispiece to the Eikon Basilike A Soldier’s Doubts: Extracts from Francis White, The copies of several letters contrary to the opinion of the present powers (London, 1649) Principles and Pragmatism: Extracts from John Lilburne, The legal fundamental liberties of the people of england revived, asserted, and vindicated (London, 1649) Overthrowing “Kingly Power” as well as Kings: Extracts from Gerrard Winstanley, A New Year’s Gift for the Parliament and Army (London, 1650) Part 3: Trying the King-Killers A Contemporary Depiction of the Executions of the King and of His Judges The Trial of Major General Harrison: Extracts from Heneage Finch, An Exact and most Impartial Accompt of the Indictment, Arraignment, Trial, and Judgment (according to Law) of Twenty Nine Regicides (London, 1660) Glossary of Key Figures and TermsSelect Bibliography

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Book SynopsisShakespeare and London: A Dictionary is a topographical reference book of all the London locations, allusions and colloquial terms mentioned in Shakespeare's complete works. For many years critics have argued that Shakespeare did not engage with the city in which he lived, however London''s topography and life is present in all his work, in its language, its locations and its characters. This dictionary offers a concise and fascinating insight into the city''s impact on the Shakespearean imagination and provides readers with a wide-ranging guide to early modern London, its contemporary meanings and the ways in which Shakespeare employs these throughout the canon.Table of ContentsList of Figures Acknowledgements Series Editor's Preface List of Abbreviations List of Headwords Introduction A-Z Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"The Capital Order uses the historical record in Europe to argue that austerity—tightening the belt, cutting government programs—is less about budgets and debt and more about deliberately making the labor force feel insecure." * APM's Marketplace Morning Report *"Mattei reminds us that . . . austerity is a one-sided class war, conducted in numbers and defended by economists’ jargon.” -- Aditya Chakrabortty * The Guardian *“Illuminating . . . Any reader of The Capital Order will be struck by the contemporary resonances.” * The New Statesman *"In our current moment, as policymakers are once again entertaining monetary tightening as a means to impose necessary hardship & discipline on working people, The Capital Order is a potent reminder of the cruel rationality of austerity." * Dissent Magazine *“[With The Capital Order], we can begin to see method in the madness: austerity is a vital bulwark in defense of the capitalist system.” * Business Recorder *“It’s often been pointed out that austerity just doesn’t achieve its stated aims of balancing the books and paying down public debt. [In Mattei’s] analysis the actual aim is not the stated one, it is to discipline the working population. Over the last century it would seem to have achieved that quite successfully.” * The National *“Shocking disparities underlie economist Clara Mattei’s topical study of austerity measures promoted over the past century. Focusing on 1920s liberal-democracy Britain and fascist Italy, she argues that the profitable application of austerity to these dissimilar nations licensed its use as a capitalist ‘tool of class control.” * Nature *“A serious economic history of the 1920s and its fiscal and credit policies, and you should not dismiss it.” -- Tyler Cowen * Marginal Revolution *“Brilliantly provocative . . . powerfully argued. . . . With her history of the relationship between liberal economists and fascism, Mattei puts the skids under complacent champions of liberal democracy who today summon the fascist figure as a reassuring boogyman. . . . A round house critique of the role of liberal economics in general.” -- Adam Tooze * Chartbook *"Mattei shows how austerity emerged as the response of international capital to the risks to its power and wealth. Its aim was to rescue capitalism from ‘its enemies’ by taming an increasingly politicized and restive class and restoring the prewar order." * History Today *"There are few books that once read manage to leave a clear idea and a full-fledged thesis imprinted on the reader’s mind: Chiara E. Mattei’s book is one of them." * The Journal of European Economic History *"She [Mattei] has done an impressive amount of archival research and has skillfully mined the published literature of the interwar period. The fruit of these labors is a rich and insightful account of a pivotal moment in capitalism’s history." -- Gary Mongiovi * Catalyst *"Through meticulously compiled archival material, Mattei explores austerity by studying economists in the 1920s from the birthplace of liberalism (Britain) and the birthplace of fascism (Italy) to draw a provocative conclusion about its nature: 'an anti-democratic reaction to threats from bottom-up social change.'” * Politics Today *“A powerful critique.” * Asiana Times *“She argues that forcing a recession or cutting social welfare is not really about budgets and debt. This so-called “economic pain” is inflicted deliberately to make the labour force feel insecure and to stop demanding better conditions.” * Irish Examiner *"Austerity’s defenders claim that any adverse impact on employment will quickly end and will be justified by eventual success. Such is the theory. Clara Mattei will have none of it. Her vigorously written and well-researched new study, The Capital Order, insists that austerity is a class strategy, not just a policy to restore economic equilibrium." * European Review of Books *“A work with remarkable resonance for the moment we are living through. I found it impossible to put down.” -- James K. Galbraith“Clara Mattei shows how the supposedly apolitical science of economics has served, and continues to serve, as an ideology of class oppression. The chapters exploring the birth, in Britain and Italy in the 1920s, of what the author calls ‘the technocratic project’ of austerity, and its political and economic consequences, are particularly illuminating.” -- Robert Skidelsky“A decade after austerity tore British society apart, the UK government stands ready to do so again. Given that it didn’t work the first time around, one wonders why they want to try it again. This is where Mattei’s explanation illuminates brightly: if we think of austerity not as an economic policy, but as a form of capitalist crisis management for moments when the lower orders start to question the governing classes’ preferences, then its repeated dosage—despite its damages—makes much more sense.” -- Mark Blyth“Clara Mattei’s work is an important contribution to building a new economic narrative. At a time when inflation is up and governments feel inclined to once again ‘tighten their belts,’ this book is as relevant as ever.” -- Mariana Mazzucato“There is a long history of efforts to separate the political from the economic domain. . . . One very impressive recent study, by Clara Mattei, argues persuasively that this dichotomy, typically taking the form of austerity programs, has been a major instrument of class war for a century, paving the way to fascism, which was indeed welcomed by Western elite opinion.”—Noam Chomsky * Truth Out *A 2022 Best Book in Economics * Financial Times *“Austerity is not an innocent policy error, but a fallacy functional to dark interests. Mattei’s admirable new book exposes austerity’s hidden agenda.” -- Yanis Varoufakis“A fascinating history of the rise of austerity policies in post–World War I Europe and how it paved the way for fascism—along with many of the economic policies of today. A must-read, with key lessons for the future. Historical political economy at its best.” -- Thomas PikettyFall 2022 Book Recommendation (General Interest) -- Sean Guynes“[A] message for our time.” * Brazzil Magazine *"The capital order asserts the primacy of capital over labor in the hierarchy of social relations within the capitalist production process. That primacy was threatened after World War I in what Mattei claims was the greatest crisis in the history of capitalism. . . . To counter these trends, Mattei argues, unelected technocratic elites 'invented' austerity as a means of re-naturalizing the capital order. . . . What Britain’s technocrats accomplished through the market, Italy’s fascists accomplished through Mussolini’s edicts. . . Recommended." * Choice *"In her book The Capital Order, economist Clara Mattei shows that austerity was thought of as a counter-offensive against experiments in economic democracy." * Alternatives Economiques *"A wonderful book [and a] compelling story." * Rethinking Economics *“A very readable and historically profound work.” -- translated from German * H/Soz/Kult *"Austerity is premeditated policy. It’s a blunt instrument that preempts resistance by weakening and dividing the working class while unifying different wings of the ruling class. . . . Mattei documents austerity’s essential role in the rise of fascism." * Counterpunch *"Meticulously researched. . . Mattei’s analysis is an exemplary work of historical political economy that seeks to steer the conversation on capitalist crisis from Keynesianism back toward Marx." * Phenomenal World *Table of ContentsIntroduction Part I: War and Crisis 1 The Great War and the Economy 2 “A Wholly New School of Thought” 3 The Struggle for Economic Democracy 4 The New Order Part II: The Meaning of Austerity 5 International Technocrats and the Making of Austerity 6 Austerity, a British Story 7 Austerity, an Italian Story 8 Italian Austerity and Fascism through British Eyes 9 Austerity and Its “Successes” 10 Austerity Forever Afterword Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisAn examination of how farming expertise could be shared and extended, over four centuries. All kinds of knowledge, from traditional know-how to modern science, are socially contingent and the product of an age-long and permanent social struggle. This book unravels the creation and the exchange of agronomic knowledge in rural Europe, from the early eighteenth century up until the end of the twentieth. It explores the spreading of knowing through the lens of "knowledge networks": where did agricultural knowledge come from and how did one learn to run a farm? Who was involved in this process of knowledge exchange? Which strategies and communicative methods were employed and what kind of networks were active? The answers to these questions mirror, as the book illustrates, the inventiveness of the actors on the scene: the creativity of a French naturalist in establishing links with local farmers to stop the circulation of a devastating grain moth, the power of the agricultural press to instill "proper values" into Hungarian farming practices or to shape the identity of the Galician agrarian movement, and the agency of post-war British farmers in selecting their own information, from sources such as lectures to the Young Farmers' Club, visits by public advisors and representatives of commercial firms, and radio programs. From the start of the agricultural Enlightenment, increasingly farmers have been besieged by a growing army of experts, telling them what to do, when and how. In a sense farming has become one of the most patronised professions. But farmers can resist and carve their own path. The chapters here reveal the continuous tensions between science-based agriculture and practice-based farming, between the expert image of an ideal agriculture and the (less known) self-image of being a good farmer. The dominant process, as this book shows, is that of an instrumental top-down transmission of knowledge from "the lab to the field". But between these two poles, complex and flourishing networks developed, functioning as trading zones in which knowledge and experience could be circulated, put to the test, forgotten, altered, rejected - and sometimes imposed.Trade Review[G]ive[s] us much food for thought and points the way to further studies and collaborations in rural Europe, an interesting time to be doing so as the United Kingdom leaves the Common Agricultural Policy. -- LANDSCAPES[...] readers will find value in every chapter, which all offer clear, thoughtful and well-researched histories of farming knowledge. * AGRICULTURAL HISTORY REVIEW *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Knowledge and its Networks in Rural Europe: From the Early Eighteenth to the Late Twentieth Century - Yves Segers and Leen Van Molle Agricultural Literature in Scandinavia and the Anglo-Saxon Countries as an Indicator of a Deep-Rooted Economic Enlightenment, c.1700-1800 - Janken Myrdal Peasant Eyes: A Critique of the Agricultural Enlightenment - Verena Lehmbrock Fighting the Angoumois Grain Moth: Henri-Louis Duhamel du Monceau and his Network of Entomological Observers - Pierre-Etienne Stockland 'Promoting and Accelerating the Progress of Agriculture': A Case Study of Agricultural Societies in the Doncaster District, South Yorkshire, England - Sarah Holland 'Proper Values' in Agriculture: The Role of Agricultural Associations in Knowledge Dissemination in Hungary, 1830-1880 - Zsuzsanna Kiss 'The Eye of the Master'. Livestock Improvement and Knowledge Networks in Belgium, 1900-1940 - Dries Claeys and Yves Segers Bridging Rural Culture and Expert Culture: The Agrarian Press in Galicia, c.1900-c.1950 - Miguel Cabo and Lourenzo Fernández Prieto Farmers Facing a Body of Expertise: the Activities and Methods of the Departmental Services for Agriculture in Oise (France), 1945-1955 - Laurent Herment Technical Change and Knowledge Networks in England, 1945-1980s - Paul Brassley Communicating an Innovation: Building Dutch Progeny Testing Stations for Pigs - Steven van der Laan

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Book SynopsisFirst full-length study of the notion and concept of old age in early medieval England. How did Anglo-Saxons reflect on the experience of growing old? Was it really a golden age for the elderly, as has been suggested? This first full survey of the Anglo-Saxon cultural conceptualisation of old age, as manifested and reflected in the texts and artwork of the inhabitants of early medieval England, presents a more nuanced and complicated picture. The author argues that although senescence was associated with the potential for wisdom and pious living, the Anglo-Saxons also anticipated various social, psychological and physical repercussions of growing old. Their attitude towards elderly men and women - whether they were saints, warriors or kings - was equally ambivalent. Multidisciplinary in approach, this book makes use of a wide variety of sources, ranging from the visual arts to hagiography, homiletic literature and heroic poetry. Individual chapters deal with early medieval definitions ofthe life cycle; the merits and drawbacks of old age as represented in Anglo-Saxon homilies and wisdom poetry; the hagiographic topos of elderly saints; the portrayal of grey-haired warriors in heroic literature; Beowulf asa mirror for elderly kings; and the cultural roles attributed to old women.Trade ReviewA detailed and interesting cultural study, which provides a useful model for studies of later periods. * FACHRS NEWSLETTER *Combining good judgment with ample learning in both Germanic philology and intellectual history, Porck has produced a valuable contribution to knowledge that is as stimulating as it is rigorous. * MODERN PHILOLOGY *A pleasure to read. Highly recommended. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsIntroduction Definitions of Old Age Merits of Old Age Drawbacks of Old Age frode fyrnwitan: Old Saints in Anglo-Saxon Hagiography hare hilderincas: Old Warriors in Anglo-Saxon England ealde eðelweardas: Beowulf as a Mirror of Elderly Kings gamole geomeowlan: Old Women in Anglo-Saxon England Conclusion Bibliography

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Book SynopsisTraces the journey from ill health to miraculous cure through the lens of hagiographical texts from twelfth-century England. The cults of the saints were central to the medieval Church. These holy men and women acted as patrons and protectors to the religious communities who housed their relics and to the devotees who requested their assistance in petitioning God for a miracle. Among the collections of posthumous miracle stories, miracula, accounts of holy healing feature prominently and depict cure-seekers successfully securing their desired remedy for a range of ailments and afflictions. What can these miracle accounts tell us of the cure-seekers' experiences of their journey from ill health to recovery, and how was healthcare presented in these sources? This book aims to answer these questions via an in-depth study of the miraculous cure-seeking process, considering Latin miracle accounts produced in twelfth-century England, a time both when saints' cults flourished and there was an increasing transmission and dissemination of classical and Arabic medical works. Focused on seven shorter miracula (including Eadmer of Canterbury's Miracula S. Dunstani and Thomas of Monmouth's Vita et Passione S. Wilelmi Martyris Norwicensis) with a predominantly localised appeal, and thus on a select group of cure-seekers - including Abbot Osbert of Notley who suffered from an eye complaint, Leofmær the bedridden knight, and Gaufrid who experienced a bad tooth extraction - the volume brings together studies of healthcare and pilgrimage, looking at the alternative to secular medical intervention and the practicalities and processes of securing saintly assistance.Trade ReviewSalter's book will be valuable to medievalists for thoughtful close reading of texts, well-situated in relevant historiography. [...] the careful analysis in Salter's work will make it useful to medievalists, and its engagement with broader questions should enable scholarly comparison with the experiences of cure-seekers in other historical periods and today. -- BULLETIN OF THE HISTORY OF MEDICINE[A] masterclass in unpacking all that the rich genre of miracula has to offer. -- H-NET REVIEWS[Accessible] and appealing to informed non-specialists and subject experts, as well as to students of this period [...]. Through this extraordinary lens of the miraculous, we catch a glimpse of mundane. -- SOCIAL HISTORY OF MEDICINESalter should be commended for doing so much with sources that are, by their very nature, formulaic and not particularly forthcoming with narrative detail. [...] her book is packed with demographic data that historians of medieval English medicine will find useful. Armed with this data and a handful of compelling miracle stories, she constructs a comprehensive picture of the journey from suffering to health for cure-seekers in twelfth-century England. -- THE MEDIEVAL REVIEW (TMR)Salter's study is particularly commendable for offering thick description of the learned medical culture and spatial context in which the narratives were produced; indeed, chapters 2, 5, and 6 would make worthwhile introductions to their respective topics for use in undergraduate classrooms. * SPECULUM *Her [Ruth Salter's] book does provide a thoughtful commentary on her chosen miracle collections, perhaps especially welcome for those-from Burton and Coldingham-edited and translated in the past twenty years. -- James G. Clark * JOURNAL OF ENGLISH AND GERMANIC PHILOLOGY *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations Introduction 1 Miraculous Cures in Context: Twelfth-Century Medicine and the Saints 2 Holy Healing: An Analysis of the Ailments 3 The Great and the Good: Identifying the Cure-Seekers within the Miracles 4 From Near and Far: The Geography of the Cults and the Distance Travelled 5 The Road to Recovery: The Experience of Seeking Cure 6 Upon Arrival at the Shrine: Cure-Seekers and the Place of their Cure Conclusion Appendix 1: A List of the Named Cure-Seekers Within the Seven Miracula Appendix 2: A List of the Occupations Recorded for Laypersons Within the Seven Miracula Appendix 3: A List of the Place Names Recorded for Within Thomas of Monmouth's M. Willelmi Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisLeaps straight onto the roster of essential reading for anyone even vaguely interested in Grant and the Civil War.Ron Chernow, author of GrantProvides leadership lessons that can be obtained nowhere else Ulysses Grant in his Memoirs gives us a unique glimpse of someone who found that the habit of reflection could serve as a force multiplier for leadership.Thomas E. Ricks, Foreign PolicyUlysses S. Grant's memoirs, sold door-to-door by former Union soldiers, were once as ubiquitous in American households as the Bible. Mark Twain and Henry James hailed them as great literature, and countless presidents credit Grant with influencing their own writing. This is the first comprehensively annotated edition of Grant's memoirs, clarifying the great military leader's thoughts on his life and times through the end of the Civil War and offering his invaluable perspective on battlefield decision making. With annotations compiled by the editors of the Ulysses S. Grant Association's Presidential Library, this definitive edition enriches our understanding of the pre-war years, the war with Mexico, and the Civil War. Grant provides essential insight into how rigorously these events tested America's democratic institutions and the cohesion of its social order. What gives this peculiarly reticent book its power? Above all, authenticity Grant's style is strikingly modern in its economy.T. J. Stiles, New York TimesIt's been said that if you're going to pick up one memoir of the Civil War, Grant's is the one to read. Similarly, if you're going to purchase one of the several annotated editions of his memoirs, this is the collection to own, read, and reread.Library JournalTrade ReviewAs the first fully annotated edition of Ulysses S. Grant’s Personal Memoirs, this fine volume leaps straight onto the roster of essential reading for anyone even vaguely interested in Grant and the Civil War. The book is deeply researched, but it introduces its scholarship with a light touch that never interferes with the reader’s enjoyment of Grant’s fluent narrative. John F. Marszalek and the folks at the Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library are building a formidable array of books illuminating many aspects of the general’s life. -- Ron Chernow, author of GrantA richly annotated new edition… What gives this peculiarly reticent book its power? Above all, authenticity. If Grant’s voice is never confessional, it almost never rings false… Grant’s style is strikingly modern in its economy. -- T. J. Stiles * New York Times *[This] new edition, the most thoroughly annotated ever produced, provides the general reader and scholar alike with detailed access to the general’s early life and military career. -- David W. Blight * New York Review of Books *If Mark Twain called Grant’s Memoirs ‘a great, unique and unapproachable literary masterpiece,’ The Complete Annotated Edition is its ‘unique’ companion. Renowned Civil War historian John Marszalek and his team of editors are owed our gratitude. Their annotated edition will increase appreciation among both longtime admirers and a new generation discovering why Grant is winning his deserved place among American leaders. -- Ronald C. White, author of American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. GrantGrant’s style is direct and plain, but it has a kind of quiet music to it, the indescribable quality of an authentic voice. There is a level of intimacy that no amount of confessional writing could guarantee. Grant’s assessment of the Civil War and the decisions that went into its waging is mostly brisk and engaging, but what really compelled me through the book were the psychological insights on nearly every page—both of the prominent men whom Grant encountered and of the masses of people whose desires and fears he recognized, sympathized with, and often exploited. Grant’s ability to be empathetic and ruthless in the span of a few sentences—coolly calculating the costs of losing lives against the benefits of pushing on; testing what Southerners could bear and what would make them break—is consistently on display. Whatever Grant hides in his memoir is less than what he reveals. He was a man who could cringe at the cruelty of a bullfight but was willing to send men into certain slaughter to gain a riverbank, a man who understood both dignity and disgrace. -- Louisa Thomas * New Yorker *Of the many editions of the memoirs, I recommend the annotated edition published by Harvard University Press overseen by John F. Marszalek, director of the U. S. Grant Presidential Library at Mississippi State, for its invaluable notes identifying almost every personage mentioned by Grant, expanding on incidents and events Grant glosses over and even correcting his occasional misstatements. -- Michael Hiltzik * Los Angeles Times *[R]espect for Grant can only be reinforced by reading…The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant. This is the best presidential memoir written, once earning praise from no less than Mark Twain… Grant wrote in a clear and logical style, much as he issued orders, which brings the day-to-day challenges and tremors of war to his readership with never a suggestion of embellishment. -- Stephen Loosley * The Australian *A brilliant new annotated version. -- Steve Donoghue * Open Letters Monthly *The Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant provides leadership lessons that can be obtained nowhere else…Ulysses Grant in his Memoirs gives us a unique glimpse of someone who found that the habit of reflection could serve as a force multiplier for leadership. -- Thomas E. Ricks * Foreign Policy *Ron Chernow’s Grant has been a national bestseller, deservedly so, but we think that the new edition of The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant, edited and annotated [by] John F. Marszalek[,] should share that spotlight. Possibly the best presidential memoir written, annotations by Marszalek with David Nolen and Louis Gallo illuminate and contextualize the memoir for the modern reader. -- Lyn Roberts * Literary Hub *[Grant’s] memoirs, presented at last in an impressive scholarly edition by John F. Marszalek, were the fruit of a last triumphant battle…Grant’s own words restore him to the pantheon of great soldier-presidents. He stands alongside Washington, Andrew Jackson, Teddy Roosevelt and Eisenhower, a select company to which he has always rightfully belonged. -- Nigel Jones * History Today *A worthy capstone to compliment the now completed thirty-two volume The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant…Marszalek, et. al., have done a thorough job in annotating Grant’s text…Readers of this well-constructed and highly recommended edition of Grant’s Memoirs will not fail to appreciate the man’s modesty, but they should also keep in mind that under that modesty lay a cold-blooded willingness to keep right on. -- Larry A. Grant * Civil War Book Review *The most copious annotated edition of Grant’s indispensable memoirs to date… It’s been said that if you’re going to pick up one memoir of the Civil War, Grant’s is the one to read. Similarly, if you’re going to purchase one of the several annotated editions of his memoirs, this is the collection to own, read, and reread. * Library Journal *

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Book SynopsisOld St Peter''s Basilica in Rome stood for over eleven centuries until it was demolished to make room for today''s church on the same Vatican site. Its last eyewitness, Maffeo Vegio, explained to the Roman hierarchy how revival of the papacy, whose prestige after the exile to Avignon had been diminished, was inseparable from a renewed awareness of the primacy of Peter''s Church. To make his case, Vegio wrote a history founded on credible written and visual evidence. The text guides us through the building''s true story in its material reality, undistorted by medieval guides. This was its living memory and a visualization of the continuity of Roman history into modern times. This volume makes available the first complete English translation of Vegio''s text. Accompanied by full-color digital reconstructions of the Basilica as it appeared in Vegio''s day.Trade Review'… Learned and thoughtful book.' Maffeo Vegio, SpeculumTable of Contents1. The author; 2. The text; 3. The image.

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Book SynopsisAn example of microhistory at its best, this book offers a new perspective on the socal history of medieval and early modern Europe and on historiography more broadly.Trade Review"The merit of Honor, Vengeance, and Social Trouble: Pardon Letters in the Burgundian Low Countries lies in its attempt, wherever possible, to corroborate the cases it examines by unearthing supplementary archival data from a variety of sources, and to vividly and amusingly illuminate the social world in the towns and villages of the fifteenth-century Burgundian lands." -- Thierry Boucquey * Comitatus 47 *The novelty of this book lies in chapters 3 and 4, where the focus shifts from homicide to a set of pardon letters—statistically, a tiny minority—involving the abduction, real or alleged, of a woman. Here we get an illuminating glimpse of marriage law, interpersonal violence, the interaction between these two, and fifteenth-century life generally. -- Pieter Spierenburg * Renaissance Quarterly *Table of ContentsIntroduction. The Forgiving Prince: Pardons and Their Origins1. Social Discord: Disputes, Vendettas, and Political Clients2. Violence, Honor, and Sexuality3. Marital Conflict4. Actress, Wife, or Lover? Maria van der Hoeven Accused and DefendedConclusion. People and Their StoriesBibliographical Note Index

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Book SynopsisIran is home to the largest Jewish population in the Middle East, outside of Israel. At its peak in the twentieth century, the population numbered around 100,000; today about 25,000 Jews live in Iran. Between Iran and Zion offers the first history of this vibrant community over the course of the last century, from the 1905 Constitutional Revolution through the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Over this period, Iranian Jews grew from a peripheral community into a prominent one that has made clear impacts on daily life in Iran. Drawing on interviews, newspapers, family stories, autobiographies, and previously untapped archives, Lior B. Sternfeld analyzes how Iranian Jews contributed to Iranian nation-building projects, first under the Pahlavi monarchs and then in the post-revolutionary Islamic Republic. He considers the shifting reactions to Zionism over time, in particular to religious Zionism in the early 1900s and political Zionism after the creation of the state of Israel. And he investigates the various groups that constituted the Iranian Jewish community, notably the Jewish communists who became prominent activists in the left-wing circles in the 1950s and the revolutionary Jewish organization that participated in the 1979 Revolution. The result is a rich account of the vital role of Jews in the social and political fabric of twentieth-century Iran. Trade Review"Lior Sternfeld has given us a highly nuanced and perceptive study of not only the Jewish community in Iran but also the Jewish community's integral relationship with the larger Iranian nation. The book is especially insightful on the position of the Jewish community in the 1979 Islamic Revolution." -- Ervand Abrahamian * City University of New York *"Between Iran and Zion is an exciting reconstruction of modern Jewish life in Iran. Lior Sternfeld unearths mesmerizing and previously untold stories to ask important questions about Jewish identities and offer hope for a better future to the peoples of the region, Jews and Muslims alike." -- Orit Bashkin * University of Chicago *"Between Iran and Zion offers a compelling history of Iranian Jews in the twentieth century. Lior Sternfeld proves himself an honest and judicious storyteller with this sobering account of a people caught between their historic homeland and a symbolic call for 'return.'" -- Hamid Dabashi * Columbia University *"Sternfeld's strength lies in his ability to successfully situate Iran's Jews within the broader context of Iranian history...Between Iran and Zion is highly recommended not only for readers interested in an original and nuanced examination of Iranian Jewish life between the early 1940s and the early 1980s, but also for those seeking an understanding of the greater Iranian society during this time. It is an excellent demonstration that minority communities cannot be studied in a vacuum." -- Daniella Farah * H-Nationalism *"To the best of my knowledge,Between Iran and Zionis the first utterly successful attempt to liberate the historiography of twentieth-century Iranian Jews from its conceptual and institutional straitjackets. Hence, it provides exciting, novel and thought-provoking insights and findings regarding the modern history of Jews in Iran." -- Haggai Ram * The Tel Aviv Review of Books *"Between Iran and Zion is an important contribution to the current post-Zionist debate on the status and history of Middle Eastern Jews. More importantly, it brings forth the history of Iranian Jews outside of the context of Israeli society and tries to determine its legacy within the Iranian context. I would recommend the book to everyone interested in understanding the complexity and development of Iranian society as a whole between the early 1940s and the early 1980s." -- Alessandra Cecolin * International Journal of Middle East Studies *Table of ContentsContents and AbstractsIntroduction chapter abstractThe introduction sets the background for the situation of the Jews in Iran at the turn of the twentieth century. This initial chapter provides a brief history of Jews in Iran and in the Middle East and touches on the creation of transnational networks that became increasingly important in the twentieth century. It seeks to introduce and contextualize for the reader Iran's Jewish community and the manner in which it has been addressed in past works. It provides an overview of the political, social, and cultural changes the community experienced, including the implementation of a constitution, urbanization, and a different perception of the "nation" in terms of postimperial identity and structure. 1Shifting Demographics: The Arrival of Ashkenazi and Iraqi Jews chapter abstractChapter 1 explores ways that the Jewish community became more diverse following World War II. It examines the sociological and demographic transformations that the Jewish population experienced during the war. This chapter argues that the 1941 invasion of Iran by Allied forces and the subsequent collapse of the rigid state structure facilitated social mobility and redefinition. At the same time, a wave of Iraqi Jews arrived in Iran and added another layer of identity to the growing Jewish population. This chapter also debunks the traditional portrayal of Iran as passive in the war historiography, where it is usually examined in an insufficiently complex or nuanced way, and analyzes the ways in which the war and its aftermath shaped Iran. Contrary to the traditional historiography's stagnant or, rather, declining analysis of Iranian Jewry, the Jewish population in Iran witnessed a golden age in terms of becoming Iranian citizens. 2The Iranian Political Sphere: Shaping a National Identity chapter abstractChapter 2 examines the politicization of Jews in Iran during World War II and through the early 1950s. Traditional historiography distances Jews from politics in Iran. When mentioned at all, Jewish political activity usually references support of the Shah, especially in relation to his close alliance with Israel. However, this chapter argues that political activism became a means for Iranian Jews to impact their future role and sociopolitical position in Iran. Many Jews were adamant supporters and members of the Tudeh, the Iranian Communist Party, and later engaged in many other political initiatives (such as student movements and intellectual associations). The Tudeh was the most vocal opponent of fascism in the 1940s and arguably the most popular political force in Iran. The Tudeh's enduring defense of the Jewish community, combined with its message of equality, attracted many young Jews from the Iranian middle and lower middle classes. 3Iranian Jews and Israel: From Indigenous to State-Sponsored Zionism chapter abstractThis chapter examines the roots and effects of Zionism in Iran. It analyzes Zionism first as an indigenous movement that emerged in Iran as a response to the needs of Iranian Jews (with relation to the global movement of Zionism) and transformed itself as the needs of Iranian Jews changed in the course of the century. After 1948 and the establishment of Israel, Zionism could no longer be taken as a local movement alone. The contact with Israel and Israeli emissaries and the impact of state-sponsored Zionist activities ignited a new set of emotions and means of identification with or antagonism to Zionism, and a range of reactions in between. This chapter examines the way Israel dealt with the case of Iranian Jews, which was atypical compared with other Middle Eastern communities. In addition, this chapter examines the responses to Zionism among the non-Jewish intellectual elites in Iran. 4Unintended Consequences: The Lead-Up to the Iranian Revolution chapter abstractThe ultimate success of the nation-building project, led by the Shah, was evident in the decade leading up to the revolution—when the Jewish community in Iran finally achieved its release from traditional loyalties and viewed itself, first and foremost, as Iranian. This chapter explores the first manifestations of Jewish revolutionary discourse and actions and discusses postrevolutionary Iran and a new nation-building paradigm that Jews faced following the Islamic revolution. This chapter follows the Jewish response to the rapidly unfolding events: from the Shah's overthrow through the redefinition of the Iranian national identity, from the Iran-Iraq War to the post-Khomeini period. In the post-Khomeini era, Iranian Jews had to navigate between their religious ancestral homeland (Israel) and their national and political homeland (Iran). They had to deftly maneuver between the misinterpretations and deceptions that characterized the harsh rhetoric between Israel and Iran. Conclusion chapter abstractThis concluding chapter shows that the trajectory of the Jews of Iran from the early twentieth century led them ultimately to integration into each of the nation-building projects of that era.

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Book SynopsisOctober 1917, heralded as the culmination of the Russian Revolution, remains a defining moment in world history. Even a hundred years after the events that led to the emergence of the world''s first self-proclaimed socialist state, debate continues over whether, as historian E. H. Carr put it decades ago, these earth-shaking days were a landmark in the emancipation of mankind from past oppression or a crime and a disaster. Some things are clear. After the implosion of the three-hundred-year-old Romanov dynasty as a result of the First World War, Russia was in crisis--one interim government replaced another in the vacuum left by imperial collapse. In this monumental and sweeping new account, Laura Engelstein delves into the seven years of chaos surrounding 1917--the war, the revolutionary upheaval, and the civil strife it provoked. These were years of breakdown and brutal violence on all sides, punctuated by the decisive turning points of February and October. As Engelstein proves definitively, the struggle for power engaged not only civil society and party leaders, but the broad masses of the population and every corner of the far-reaching empire, well beyond Moscow and Petrograd. Yet in addition to the bloodshed they unleashed, the revolution and civil war revealed democratic yearnings, even if ideas of what constituted democracy differed dramatically. Into that vacuum left by the Romanov collapse rushed long-suppressed hopes and dreams about social justice and equality. But any possible experiment in self-rule was cut short by the October Revolution. Under the banner of true democracy, and against all odds, the Bolshevik triumph resulted in the ruthless repression of all opposition. The Bolsheviks managed to harness the social breakdown caused by the war and institutionalize violence as a method of state-building, creating a new society and a new form of power.Russia in Flames offers a compelling narrative of heroic effort and brutal disappointment, revealing that what happened during these seven years was both a landmark in the emancipation of Russia from past oppression and a world-shattering disaster. As regimes fall and rise, as civil wars erupt, as state violence targets civilian populations, it is a story that remains profoundly and enduringly relevant.Trade ReviewThe excellent Russia in Flames...covers not just the two revolutions and their prelude, but also the civil war that ensued... * Wall Street Journal *This is the first history of the Russian Revolution that takes seriously the fact that Russians were a minority in the multi-ethnic and multi-confessional Russian empire. With verve and ambition, Engelstein chronicles the history of war and revolution as they swept across this vast empire. In this centenary year there will be many books on 1917, but none will be as original in conception and as bold in argument as this. This is history written on an epic scale by a historian at the height of her powers. * S. A. Smith, All Souls College, Oxford, author of Russia in Revolution *A simultaneously sweeping and focused history of the Bolshevik Revolution . . . A comprehensive, ideologically detached, and enormously enlightening work of Russian history. * Kirkus, STARRED REVIEW *[Engelstein] succeeds in presenting a thorough history of these wars and revolutions in an understandable and engaging manner. In this full, richly detailed study, the author effectively argues the Bolsheviks were ultimately triumphant because they focused on power and were more willing to employ violence against their adversaries, and one another, with horrific results. * Library Journal *Engelstein delivers a clear-eyed . . . account of the difficulties confronting the population, now citizens of a country where "the dream of democracy had been abandoned," and everyone was subject to the "arbitrary swing of the sword." * Publishers Weekly *Destined to become the standard English language history of this period. * Mark Edele, Australian Book Review *Laura Engelstein's magnificent volume provides a fresh and comprehensive...vision of the Russian Revolution. Positives abound...most important is her powerful and metaphorical language. * Slavic Review *The past year has seen a considerable wave of books on revolutionary Russia, few as good as Russia in Flames, which is likely to become a standard work on the subject. * Los Angeles Review of Books *It is meticulously researched and brilliantly written. * Washington Book Reveiw *Magisterial . . . . Engelstein's monumental achievement is to have wrestled the sprawling ideological, ethnic and social conflicts, the shifting fronts, the coalescing and disintegrating armies and political fiefdoms, and the foreign entanglements into a compelling account of the disintegration of the old empire and the birth of the new. * Times Literary Supplement *Table of ContentsList of Maps Author's Note Introduction Part I: Last Years of the Old Empire, 1904-1914 Part II: The Great War: Imperial Self-Destruction 1: The Great War Begins 2: Germans, Jews, Armenians 3: Tearing Themselves Apart 4: Conflict and Collapse Part III: 1917: Contest for Control 1: Five Days that Shook the World 2: The War Continues 3: From Putsch to Coup 4: Bolshevik October 5: Death of the Constituent Assembly 6: Politics from Below Part IV: Sovereign Claims 1: The Peace that Wasn't 2: Treason and Terror 3: Finland's Civil War 4: Baltic Entanglements 5: Ukrainian Drama, Act I 6: Colonial Repercussions Part V: War Within 1: The Unquiet Don 2: Foreign Bodies 3: Trotsky Arms, Siberia Mobilizes 4: Kolchak-the Wild East 5: Ukraine, Act II 6: War Against the Cossacks 7: Miracle on the Vistula 8: War Against the Jews 9: The Last Page 10: War Against the Peasants Part VI: Victory and Retreat 1: The Proletariat in the Proletarian Dictatorship 2: The Revolution Turns Against Itself Conclusion: Revolution Against Itself Acknowledgements Bibliography

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Book SynopsisConcise historical introduction to Byzantine Christianity and its continuing influence on the world and how we see itTrade ReviewAveril Cameron’s work has transformed our understanding of Byzantium, and here she offers an authoritative survey of its history and legacy . . . This is a lucid, informative and impressively wide-ranging brief history. * Gillian Clark FBA, Emeritus Professor of Classics and Ancient History, University of Bristol *An excellent, lucid account of a complex topic * Professor Elizabeth M. Jeffreys, Exeter College *These books have been written by recognised scholars who combine academic rigour, a focus on specific questions, and clear explanation. They introduce us to the findings of modern scholarship and help us to understand more of the life and faith of the classical world. * Church Times *

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Book SynopsisA superb biography, which paints a vivid picture of the times and of her subject' Daily TelegraphFascinating, compelling, outrageous and ultimately tragic' Simon Sebag MontefioreIt is the best royal biography I have read in years' A.N. WilsonFrom the Duff Cooper Prize-winning author of The Restless Republic, a remarkable biography of one of the most intriguing figures of the Restoration era.James, Duke of Monmouth, the favoured illegitimate son of Charles II, was born in exile the year his grandfather Charles I was executed and the English monarchy abolished. Abducted from his mother on his father's orders, he emerged from a childhood in the backstreets of Rotterdam to command the ballrooms of Paris, the brothels of Covent Garden and the battlefields of Flanders.Such was his appeal that when the monarchy itself came under threat, the cry was for Monmouth to succeed Charles II as king. He inspired both delight and disgust, adulatioTrade ReviewIn Anna Keay’s fine biography, this tragic finale is rendered still more bitter by her unfolding of Monmouth’s past career, his ever-changing hopes and fears … Keay provides a fascinating portrait of the slippery, charismatic Charles II, and of his genuine love for his son … The brilliance of Keay’s account lies in her ability to convey the subtle intricacies of diplomacy and royal ambition … Yet, she also keeps a clear focus on Monmouth’s private story ... Keay tells the story with heart-breaking crispness -- Jenny Uglow * Guardian *Brilliant and revelatory ... Anna Keay has written a superb biography, which paints a vivid picture of the times and of her subject. She has an instinctive feel for character and place, and combines elegant prose with a novelistic gift for narrative. Above all, she has rescued this much-traduced and forgotten royal rebel from the backwaters and set him once more at the centre of one of Britain’s great historical whirlpools * Daily Telegraph *Substantial ... The strength of this admirable biography is that it makes the reader consider Monmouth from Monmouth’s point of view, without the benefit of hindsight ... Here is Monmouth, and here is his world. It is a considerable achievement -- Andrew Taylor * The Times *A beautifully written book, with a superb feel for 17th century society and international intrigue as well as a masterful ability to depict the lived reality of Stuart London, Flanders and Paris. Anna Keay has provided not just a great life of a long forgotten royal rebel and revived his place in popular politics, but also a compelling account of British history during one of its most dangerous and tumultuous eras -- Tristram HuntWritten with the flair of a novelist and the punctilious skill of a forensic historian, this book tells one of the most riveting chapters of Stuart history … It is the best royal biography I have read in years, and it deeply enhanced my knowledge of the seventeenth century -- A. N. WilsonAnna Keay's fascinating, compelling, outrageous and ultimately tragic The Last Royal Rebel delivers, with scholarly authority, political acumen, exciting narrative and a worldly, playful eye for drama, character and detail a vivid political–personal portrait of the hitherto-neglected Monmouth but also a shrewd study of Charles II, his dangerous, seductive, amoral court and Restoration England – and of a golden youth doomed -- Simon Sebag MontefioreAnna Keay has effectively turned [the] old-fashioned, censorious judgment of Monmouth on its head by making him the hero of his own story. It is a bold approach, and this vividly told story will remain in the reader’s memory long after the last page of Keay’s book has been turned. No one can deny that Monmouth’s life was anything other than dramatic … Keay’s real achievement in this book is not so much a re-evaluation of Monmouth himself, though that may be well overdue, but her deft analysis of 17th-century personalities and politics … Keay has brought a period almost lost to popular history compellingly alive * Literary Review *‘Admirable ... Keay is a winning guide to the man and the period; this is an account not just of James but of one of the most interesting and fruitful periods of English history ... And she does it without jargon, making the personal as political as it in fact was ... She brings James, Duke of Monmouth, back to life * Evening Standard *Returns this glamorous rebel to life. One contemporary described him as someone who lived ‘in a mad ramble after pleasure’, and Keay colourfully recreates that mad ramble: womanising, dangerous sports and princely extravagance. The writing is lively and fast-paced … A vivid, easy read … Tragedy lends Monmouth’s story piquancy. Keay makes the most of his doomed heroism * Mail on Sunday *Keay’s study of Monmouth, the first for many years, is meticulous in its attention to scholarly detail and invaluably fills a gap in the historiography. But what distinguishes her as as biographer is her unflagging appetite for the drama and poignancy of the story, and her skill and fluency in portraying it. I can’t remember the last time I read a historical biography that so vividly evokes the atmosphere of another age, whether it be the Caroline palaces of the era or the flat, watery darkness of the battlefield at Sedgemoor * Spectator *Powerful ... [A] penetrating and superbly researched biography * Country Life *Fans of Hilary Mantel are bound to enjoy this new biography of a figure from a fascinating period. Keay provides a lively account of the licentious Restoration court … Ambitious and scholarly … Enjoyable, and should do for the Stuarts what Mantel has done for the Tudors * The Lady *Splendid … Plotted like a novel, full of riveting detail, The Last Royal Rebel offers a vivid portrayal of politics in the dynastic age, when bloodlines ruled and accidents of nature swayed the fate of nations * Wall Street Journal *Grounded in mastery of a formidable archival record … Keay displays a gift for eye catching detail, complemented by knowledgeable explanations … Her enthusiasm is infectious * Times Literary Supplement *Viscerally compelling ... The Last Royal Rebel is the very best sort of historical work. It is based on the meticulous use of an eclectic array of primary sources, and represents substantial painstaking and well-documented research. The action, intrigue, romance, and suspense drive the reader relentlessly toward the stirring conclusion * Royal Studies Journal *

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Book SynopsisThe story of the Rising is still being told, and in these pages the reader will find much to ponder, much to discuss, and much to disagree with. From the Introduction by Kirsty Lusk and Willy Maley On Easter Monday 1916, leaders of a rebellion against British rule over Ireland proclaimed the establishment of an Irish Republic. Lasting only six days before surrender to the British, this landmark event nevertheless laid the foundations for Ireland’s violent path to Independence. It is little known that James Connolly, one of the rebellion’s leaders, was born in Edinburgh’s Cowgate, at the time nicknamed ‘Little Ireland’, or that another key figure in the events of Easter 1916 was a young woman from Coatbridge, Margaret Skinnider. These and other surprising Scottish connections are explored in Scotland and the Easter Rising, as Kirsty Lusk and Willy Maley gather together a rich grouping of writers, journalists and academics to examine, for the first time, the Scottish dimension to the events of 1916 and its continued resonance in Scotland today. Featuring a mix of fiction, memoir, poetry and essays, this book provides a thought-provoking and necessary negotiation of historical and contemporary Irish-Scottish relations, and explores the Easter Rising’s intersections with other movements, from Women’s Suffrage to the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum.Trade ReviewThe book, marking the centenary of the Easter Rising, brings together writers, journalists and academics to reflect on the part played by Scotland in the rebellion and its many legacies. - SCOTLAND ON SUNDAYTable of ContentsContents Acknowledgements 14 Timeline 15 Introduction 21Kirsty Lusk and Willy Maley Not only was the Easter Rising an attempt at declaring Irish independence from Britain, it was also a statement of equality and equal suffrage for women and the first attempt to assert a Socialist Republic. To Shake the Union: The 1916 Rising, Scotland and the World Today 25Allan Armstrong The words of James Connolly proved to be remarkably prophetic. In ‘Labour and the Proposed Partition of Ireland’ Connolly warned there would be ‘a carnival of reaction both North and South’, if the UK state was able to impose such a settlement. The Shirt that was on Connolly: Sorley MacLean and the Easter Rising 31Richard Barlow For the Scottish Gael Sorley MacLean, the ghostly attendance of Connolly is affirmed through his absence and the ‘red rusty stain’ forms a nexus of some of the poet’s great themes: wartime heroism, Marxism, and the fate of the Gaelic world. Connolly and Independence 37Ian BellI don’t remember his name being mentioned during the long argument that preceded Scotland’s independence referendum in September 2014… The fact remains that when it mattered most his birthplace excluded Connolly yet again. A Terrible Beauty 42Alan BissettDa, says Chelsea. This is the best experience ay ma life. Look at it. Scotland’s wakin up, Da. Scotland’s wakin up! Who Fears to Speak? 49Joseph M BradleyFew in Scotland have heard of Irish-born Padraic Pearse and Englishborn Tom Clarke, two of the seven signatories to the historic Easter Proclamation, and seven who form half of the 14 executed by British Army firing squads in its immediate wake. ‘They will never understand why I am here’: The Irony of Connolly’s Scottish Connections 56Ray BurnettPartly in terms of content, and entirely in terms of method, Connolly’s explicitly ‘land and labour’ approach to the lessons of the past had direct relevance to Scotland. Anti-imperialist Insurrection 63Stuart ChristieDespite the heroic attempts by Connolly, Larkin and their comrades of the ICA on Easter Monday 1916 to break the alliances between the financial circles of Ireland and the British Empire and establish a genuinely worker-friendly democratic socialist Republic, by 1923 the links between those countries’ ruling elites remained unbroken and the hopes and dreams of the men and women who sacrificed their lives for a new Ireland had been hopelessly corrupted, and their ideals abused and manipulated out of all realistic shape. Commemorating Connolly in 1986 67Helen ClarkNot all visits however were welcome; some young men stormed in, and wanted to know the name of the person who set up the exhibition so they could ‘fill them in’. On a similar note, in the People’s Story Museum we have a panel with a photo of James and Lillie Connolly with their daughters Mona and Nora. This photo was slashed with a knife in about 1992. The Behans: Rebels of a Century 74Maria-Daniella DickIn addition to Connolly, there would be another Irish-Scottish connection for the Behans. If they had been connected through republican and socialist politics to one Scotsman, they were also to take those politics to Scotland. After Easter 78Des DillonLiberty. Rising. James Connolly tied to a chair. Sinn Féin rebels whispering partition. Civil War. Margaret Skinnider and Me 86Peter GeogheganMargaret Skinnider never appeared in the history books that I devoured as a lank-haired teenager in Longford. I had never heard her name until I started going to Coatbridge in 2014, ahead of the independence referendum. A Beautiful Thing Wronged 91Pearse HutchinsonI want to wear an Easter Lily in honour of Pearse and Connolly and all their comrades; of my father and mother and all the other sacrifices; of all the suffering generations – Black and Basque and Irish. Home Rule, Sinn Féin and the Irish Republican Movement in Greenock 94Shaun KavanaghThe Easter Rising and its aftermath, like the Great Famine, became embedded within the psyche of the Greenock-Irish enclave, whether Irish-born or not. It was a lasting reminder of their roots, and their ‘curious middle place’ between a Scottish and Irish Catholic identity. Homecoming 101Billy KayTo me, as a Scottish nationalist, identifying with 1916 and the successful independence struggle of a fellow Celtic nation was the most natural thing in the world. James Connolly’s Stations 107Phil Kelly and Aaron Kelly1916 instructs that full democratic equality requires those who want and need it to fight on and to fight hard against the grinding, obdurate violence of the world. A Slant on Connolly and the Scotch Ideas 114James KelmanEssential strands of our history are not generally accessed through popular media and ordinary educational resources. We contend with sectarianism, racism and assorted prejudice; historical misrepresentation, disinformation, falsification, and occasional outright lies, alongside everyday British State propaganda. Short Skirts, Strong Boots and a Revolver: Scotland and the Women of 1916 124Kirsty LuskBy bringing female voices back into the narrative of the Easter Rising perhaps it will be possible to take a step towards reconciliation and a fuller understanding of the importance of its legacy for Scotland today. Irish Kin under Scottish Skin 131Kevin MckennaIreland has been the mother who gave me up for adoption and I have been the reluctant son, torn between love and resentment. Such is the contradictory love-hate relationship my generation of Scots-Irish has with the old country. ‘Pure James Connolly’: From Cowgate to Clydeside 136Willy MaleyThose whose families left Ireland in the wake of Famine feel part of a great diaspora, and thus entitled to self-describe as Irish. Many Irish and Scottish socialists had cross-cultural connections and cross-water connections. ‘Mad, Motiveless and Meaningless’? The Dundee Irish and the Easter Rising 144Richard B McCreadyThe Easter Rising in 1916 was one of the pivotal events in modern Irish history. Its effects and the events after it had a profound effect not just on Ireland but also on the rest of the United Kingdom. The Rising and subsequent events had a lasting impact on the Irish Diaspora, not least in Dundee. MacLean in the Museum: James Connolly and ‘Àrd-Mhusaeum na h-Èireann’ 149Niall o’GallagherAn Irish revolutionary from an Edinburgh slum, Connolly was an important figure throughout MacLean’s career. The poet’s fullest tribute to the leader of the 1916 Rising had to wait until the 1970s, the decade in which MacLean’s earlier work was republished with facing English translations, the decade in which Scottish nationalism became a serious political force and in which bloodshed in Ireland reached levels not seen for decades. Scotland is my home, but Ireland my country: The Border Crossing Women of 1916 153Alison o’Malley-YoungerWhile Pearse’s messianic rhetoric appears to mark the Easter Rising as a solely male affair, an expanding body of scholarship has shown that women, across a variety of classes and ranks were key participants in the events of 1916. To Rise for a Life Worth Having 160Alan RiachEaster 1916 recollected may be a reminder of failure, violence, bloodshed, vicious state reprisal, and how public sympathies change, but in a broader context, and in more intimate ways, it may also be an enactment of virtues: different co-ordinate points, strengths, suppleness and subtlety, loyalty, determination, hope: a play, a drama, a weathering of storm, coming to rest in the prospect of a future, in Scotland as in Ireland, most apt for 2016. ‘Let the People Sing’: Rebel Songs, the Rising, and Remembrance 168Kevin RooneyThose preparing to celebrate the centenary of the Easter Rising should seize on this occasion to show a new tolerance. James Connolly could, if we allowed him, be a unifying figure in present-day Scotland. Before the Rising: Home Rule and the Celtic Revival 174Michael ShawArthur Conan Doyle, a Scot of Irish descent and twice a candidate for the Liberal Unionists in Scotland, made a striking conversion to the cause of Irish Home Rule in 1911, influenced by his friend Roger Casement, on whose behalf he petitioned the British Prime Minister in 1916. ‘Hibernian’s most famous supporter’ 179Irvine Welsh Afterword: Scotland 2015 and Ireland 1916 181Owen Dudley EdwardsThe Irish past summons us provided we keep it as tutor not as jailer. The Scottish future can remain one of ideals provided we blunt their agency for hurt. Contributors 219 Endnotes 225

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Book SynopsisStates of emotion were vital as a foundation to society in the premodern period, employed as a force of order to structure diplomatic transactions, shape dynastic and familial relationships, and align religious beliefs, practices and communities. At the same time, societies understood that affective states had the potential to destroy order, creatiTable of ContentsIntroduction: destroying order, structuring disorder: gender and emotions, Susan Broomhall. Part I Structuring Emotions of War and Peace: ‘Now evil deeds arise’: evaluating courage and fear in early English fight narratives, Andrew Lynch; Order, emotion, and gender in the crusade letters of Jacques de Vitry, Megan Cassidy-Welch; Married noblewomen as diplomats: affective diplomacy, Tracy Adams; Ordering distant affections: fostering love and loyalty in the correspondence of Catherine de Medici to the Spanish court, 1568-1572, Susan Broomhall. Part II Chronicling Feelings of Disaster and Ruin: Emotions and the social order of time: constructing history at Louvain’s Carthusian House, 1486-1525, Matthew S. Champion; A landscape of ruins: decay and emotion in late medieval and early modern antiquarian narratives, Alicia Marchant; ‘O, Lord, save us from shame’: narratives of emotions in convent chronicles by female authors during the Dutch revolt, 1566-1635, Erika Kuijpers; Recasting images of witchcraft in the later 17th century: the witch of Endor as ritual magician, Charles Zika. Part III Aligning Children, Familial, and Religious Communities: ‘That the boys come to school half an hour before the girls’: order, gender, and emotion in school, 1300-1600, Annemarieke Willemsen; An ordered cloister? Dissenting passions in early modern English cloisters, Claire Walker; ‘Will we ever meet again?’ Children travelling the world in the late 17th and 18th centuries, Claudia Jarzebowski; Gendered power and emotions: the religious revival movement in Herrnhut in 1727, Jacqueline Van Gent. Select bibliography; Index.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisAs the US fought the Civil War in the early 1860s, the country's western frontier was the site of significant military campaigns that took the lives of both American and Sioux. The Dakota campaign against the Sioux between 1863 and 1864 was greater in scope, intensity and bloodshed than almost all other Indian battles fought in the West.

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