This book offers a new paradigm of the history of the German nobility in the early modern period. It shows that, contrary to the prevailing view, the nobility was not in a period of crisis that facilitated the rise of the state. Rather, the nobility underwent a process of social stratification in the wake of the growth of the state. This process led to the formation of an elite of wealthy noble families on whose cooperation the state depended. This alliance, and not a presumed partnership between rulers and bourgeoisie, was the driving force in early modern Germany.
This book offers a new paradigm of the history of the German nobility in the early modern period. It shows that, contrary to the prevailing view, the ...
The Flanders armada, took shape in response to the use of seapower by the Dutch rebels, and evolved into the most effective unit in Spain's defence establishment. In combination with its privateering auxiliaries, this elite striking force dominated the North Sea for some twenty years (1625 45), and campaigned also in the Mediterranean and Atlantic theatres of war. Yet its contribution to the tenacious survival of Spanish hegemony has never before been assessed. A narrative of the armada's fighting record over the century of its meaningful existence is presented with constant reference to the...
The Flanders armada, took shape in response to the use of seapower by the Dutch rebels, and evolved into the most effective unit in Spain's defence es...
Historians have long ignored the military aspect of the French wars of religion. In contrast, The King's Army--a meticulously researched analysis of the royal army during the early civil wars--brings warfare back to the center of the picture. The King's Army makes an important contribution to the history of military forces, warfare, religion and society in France, and will be of great interest to those engaged in the debate over the "Military Revolution" in early modern Europe.
Historians have long ignored the military aspect of the French wars of religion. In contrast, The King's Army--a meticulously researched analysis of t...
The emergence of religious toleration was one of the main features of the development of Western society after the Reformation. While previous research has concentrated largely on ideas of toleration, this study of the Lutheran Imperial City of Hamburg analyses the way in which those ideas were received and gradually implemented. Hamburg was one of the most dynamic mercantile centres of early modern Europe. It attracted substantial numbers of Catholics, Calvinists and Jews. Dr Whaley examines the factors, which influenced the often uneasy relationship with the Lutheran majority. He...
The emergence of religious toleration was one of the main features of the development of Western society after the Reformation. While previous researc...
This book reveals the workings of a culture that cherished death, and invested its resources in the pursuit of heaven. This is the first full-length study of Spanish attitudes toward death and the afterlife in the peak years of the Counter-Reformation. It contains an analysis of the death rituals requested in hundreds of sixteenth-century Madrid testaments, as well as a detailed account of the ways in which the "good" deaths of King Philip II and Saint Teresa of Avila were interpreted by contemporaries.
This book reveals the workings of a culture that cherished death, and invested its resources in the pursuit of heaven. This is the first full-length s...
This stylish and highly entertaining account of the origins of the Franco-Dutch War of 1672 is based on massive archival researches covering twelve countries. Contrary to the accepted historical opinion that there was a meeting of minds within Louis XIV??'s conseil d???en haut over the desirability of the war, Professor Sonnino chronicles a story of bitter division, in the course of which the contrasting personalities of the king and of his most intimate advisors emerge in vivid detail. Racine once eulogized the war as a brilliantly executed venture which put the insolent Dutch in their...
This stylish and highly entertaining account of the origins of the Franco-Dutch War of 1672 is based on massive archival researches covering twelve co...
This book uses the Breton experience to address two fundamental historiographical issues: the meaning of absolutism and the nature of early-modern French society. It abandons the old framework that opposed orders to classes, and instead seeks to find the central meaning of the evolution of the French state in the maintenance of order (especially the preservation of property). Professor Collins's main purpose, illustrated by his fusion of economic, social and institutional approaches, is to combine social and political/institutional history, so long separated in works on this field. Contrary...
This book uses the Breton experience to address two fundamental historiographical issues: the meaning of absolutism and the nature of early-modern Fre...
The publication of The Army of Flanders and the Spanish Road in 1972 marked the birth of the "new military history," which emphasized military organization--mobilization, pay, supply, morale and, above all, logistics--rather than military "events" such as sieges and battles. Constantly cited since its first publication in English (with translations into Spanish and Dutch), this revised updated second edition includes new sources and references but otherwise remains faithful to the original edition. First Edition Hb (1972): 0-521-08462-8 First Edition Pb (1975): 0-521-09907-2
The publication of The Army of Flanders and the Spanish Road in 1972 marked the birth of the "new military history," which emphasized military organiz...
The Swedish invasion of 1655, known to Poles ever since as the ???Swedish deluge???, provoked the political and military collapse of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the second-largest state in Europe. Robert Frost examines the reasons for Poland??'s fall and the conduct of the war by the Polish government, and addresses the crucial question of why, despite widespread recognition of the shortcomings of the political system, subsequent attempts at reform failed. War has long been seen as crucial to the development of more effective systems of government in Europe during the seventeenth...
The Swedish invasion of 1655, known to Poles ever since as the ???Swedish deluge???, provoked the political and military collapse of the Polish-Lithua...
This book is the first modern study to examine the history of a single French community over the full course of the civil wars (1560 1600), and its account of local developments is enriched by frequent comparisons with events and conditions elsewhere in the country. An introductory chapter describes Rouen's economy, social structure and political institutions on the eve of the Wars of Religion. Successive chapters explore the rise and decline of Protestantism; the sociology of the faith; the causes and chronology of the popular violence which began to disturb the city after 1560; the roots of...
This book is the first modern study to examine the history of a single French community over the full course of the civil wars (1560 1600), and its ac...