Alastair Reid provides a clear guide to debates about the analysis of British social classes and social relations in the second half of the nineteenth century. He distinguishes among the wealth-holding, political power, and cultural influence of the ruling class; he summarizes the recent literature on changes in skills and incomes of different groups within the working classes; and he divides the debate on social relations into distinct emphases on coercion, control and consent.

Most books about Britain's transport history have concentrated on canals and railways. It is now clear that a great deal of traffic went by road even before turnpikes, and that goods as well as passenger services were much more highly developed than previously thought. Development of road transport continued during the Canal and Railway Ages and expanded with the advent of more efficient but more environmentally damaging motor vehicles. This book will be an essential book not only for transport specialists but also for genealogists, geographers, motor engineers, and those interested in...

This book is a concise and lucid review of the strengths and weaknesses of the British motor industry during the one hundred years since its foundation. Placing the industry firmly in a European context, the author first assesses its achievements before 1960, and then tests the various explanations that have been offered to explain its decline in the past thirty years. He examines the role of government, of the trade unions, of management and of the multinationals, all of which have been seen as major players in the industry's demise.

This is a fully revised and updated edition of R.J. Overy's highly regarded survey of the Nazi economic recovery (first published by Macmillan in 1982). The performance of the German economy under the Nazi regime has been the subject of intense academic debate. Overy discusses the main areas of this debate, arguing that the war preparation that took place at this time was ultimately incompatible with long-term economic recovery, and that the German economic miracle did not occur until after 1945.

Even while slavery existed, Americans debated slavery. Was it a profitable and healthy institution? If so, for whom? The abolition of slavery in 1865 did not end this debate, and it still remains among the most hotly disputed topics in American history. Smith outlines the main contours of this debate, summarizes the contending viewpoints, and weighs the relative importance, strengths and weaknesses of the various interpretations. This book introduces an important topic in American history in a manner that is accessible to students.

British health policy has undergone radical change in the postwar period and Virginia Berridge provides here a concise and accessible survey of these changes since 1939. While the rise, and recent decline, of the NHS is examined in detail, this book also looks at the changes in the role of doctors and associated medical professions, and the recent emphasis on "health promotion" and "primary care." Also considered are the role that lay people, especially women, play in providing health care, and the transition of the individual from "patient" to "consumer."

This book is intended to be a guide to the burgeoning literature on the history of childhood. Harry Hendrick reviews the most important debates and main findings of a number of historians on a range of topics including the changing social constructions of childhood, child-parent relations, social policy, schooling, leisure and the thesis that modern childhood is "disappearing." The intention of this concise study is to provide readers with a reliable account of the evolution of some of the most important developments in adult-child relations during the past one hundred years. The author draws...

This historical and comparative overview of family business examines the different relationships within family businesses and among family enterprises, as well as different political and institutional contexts. Andrea Colli compares the performance of family businesses with that of other economic organizations, and looks at how these enterprises have contributed to the evolution of contemporary industrial capitalism. He also analyzes the reasons for both the decline and persistence of family businesses.

In this book, the author draws on much new research to examine the effects of sustained warfare on eighteenth-century British society. War was a "characteristic feature" of the period, but recently the centrality of war in the development of Britain's economy and society has become increasingly apparent. The author shows that between 1688 and 1815 war touched all aspects of life in Britain, transforming a wide range of economic and social institutions, processes and structures. This book will be essential reading for all students of eighteenth-century British history, society and culture.

This book presents a concise survey of the Spanish economy from the end of the Civil War of 1936-39 to the present. In it the author analyzes the transformation of Spain from a backward agrarian economy--committed by Franco and the country's military rulers to the impossible quest of self-sufficiency--to a modern, rapidly growing, outwardly oriented economy. Spain is now fully integrated into the international economy and, since January 1986, has been an active member of the European Community.