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Books > Humanities > History > European history
This volume gathers together extracts from texts in Latin, Hispanic
vernaculars, and French, concerning the relations of the Christians
and Moors in Spain in the first four hundred years of their
co-existence in the Peninsula. An effort has been made to
illustrate aspects other than the exclusively military. The texts
are both historical and 'literary' (this distinction not being one
that the medieval mind would make) and in both prose and verse;
they are arranged in order of the events to which they refer, not
by date of composition. The purpose is to make these texts
available in a form not previously attempted, to all who are
interested in this fascinating period, but may be unable to read
the original languages or may not have access to the published
sources. Each text has a facing translation and introductory
section with notes on the background and on textual difficulties.
There is also a general introduction and a short booklist.
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Night
(Paperback)
Elie Wiesel, Marion Wiesel
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R215
R172
Discovery Miles 1 720
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Elie Wiesel's harrowing first-hand account of the atrocities
committed during the Holocaust, Night is translated by Marion
Wiesel with a preface by Elie Wiesel in Penguin Modern Classics.
Born into a Jewish ghetto in Hungary, as a child, Elie Wiesel was
sent to the Nazi concentration camps at Auschwitz and Buchenwald.
This is his account of that atrocity: the ever-increasing horrors
he endured, the loss of his family and his struggle to survive in a
world that stripped him of humanity, dignity and faith. Describing
in simple terms the tragic murder of a people from a survivor's
perspective, Night is among the most personal, intimate and
poignant of all accounts of the Holocaust. A compelling
consideration of the darkest side of human nature and the enduring
power of hope, it remains one of the most important works of the
twentieth century. Elie Wiesel (b. 1928) was fifteen years old when
he and his family were deported by the Nazis to Auschwitz. After
the war, Wiesel studied in Paris and later became a journalist.
During an interview with the distinguished French writer, Francois
Mauriac, he was persuaded to write about his experiences in the
death camps. The result was his internationally acclaimed memoir,
La Nuit or Night, which has since been translated into more than
thirty languages. If you enjoyed Night, you might also like Primo
Levi's The Periodic Table, also available in Penguin Modern
Classics. 'A slim volume of terrifying power' The New York Times
'To the best of my knowledge no one has left behind him so moving a
record' Alfred Kazin 'Wiesel has taken his own anguish and
imaginatively metamorphosed it into art' Curt Leviant, Saturday
Review
The last two volumes in this series have looked at the
confrontation between Christian and Moor in Medieval Spain
exclusively from the Christian side.This book attemps to redress
the balance by looking at many of the same incidents from the
Moslem point of view. Apart from military encounters, some
attention is paid to diplomacy, and also to lawsuits, legal
judgements and regulations governing the co-existance of the rival
communities. The 112 texts, many available in English for the first
time, are also given in Arabic.
'Fascinating... One of the most astute political commentators on
Putin and modern Russia' Financial Times 'An amazing achievement'
Peter Frankopan Can anyone truly understand Russia? Russia is a
country with no natural borders, no single ethos, no true central
identity. At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it is everyone's
'other'. And yet it is one of the most powerful nations on earth, a
master game-player on the global stage with a rich history of war
and peace, poets and revolutionaries. In this essential
whistle-stop tour of the world's most complex nation, Mark Galeotti
takes us behind the myths to the heart of the Russian story: from
the formation of a nation to its early legends - including Ivan the
Terrible and Catherine the Great - to the rise and fall of the
Romanovs, the Russian Revolution, the Cold War, Chernobyl and the
end of the Soviet Union - plus the rise of a politician named
Vladimir Putin, and the events leading to the Ukrainian war.
The two previous volumes draw a fascinating picture of the
confrontation between the Christians and Moors in Spain from the
Christian side. This volume attempts to redress the balance by
describing many of the same incidents from the Muslims' point of
view. The close intermingling of Christians and Moors, whether in
love, in politics or in the common enjoyment of popular festivals,
helps to account for the unique character of Islamic society in the
Iberian Peninsula. Extracts from Arabic sources cover the relations
between Christians and Moors in Spain over nearly 800 years. Apart
from military encounters, some attention is paid to diplomacy, and
also to lawsuits, legal judgments and regulations governing the
co-existence of the rival communities. These not only reveal the
fundamental differences between the two sides, but show how, in
many cases, the divisions were not as clear-cut as the jurists and
theologians would have wished. Only a handful of these texts have
ever been translated into English before, and it is hoped that this
selection will make a contribution to the understanding of this
remarkable period in Spanish and Islamic history.
As Cyprus experienced British imperial rule between 1878 and 1960,
Greek and Turkish nationalism on the island developed at different
times and at different speeds. Relations between Turkish Cypriots
and the British on the one hand, and Greek Cypriots and the British
on the other, were often asymmetrical with the Muslim community
undergoing an enormous change in terms of national/ethnic identity
and class characteristics. Turkish Cypriot nationalism developed
belatedly as a militant nationalist and anti-Enosis movement. This
book explores the relationship between the emergence of Turkish
national identity and British colonial rule in the 1920s and 1930s.
Chosen as a BOOK OF THE YEAR in The Times, The Spectator, Prospect,
Sunday Times, Economist, New Statesman, Telegraph, Financial Times,
TLS, New York Times, and Washington Post. 'This is ridiculous. No
book about German philosophy has any right to be this fun. This
witty, gossipy, sparkling history . . . fizzed with creative
energy' The Times, Book of the Year Magnificent Rebels is - well -
magnificent. This is how such books should be written, with
clarity, passion and delight. A thrilling intellectual adventure'
JOHN BANVILLE, Book of the Year 'History writing at its best' The
Spectator, Book of the Year 'A thrilling page-turner, by turns
comical & tragic... My book of the year so far' TOM HOLLAND In
the 1790s an extraordinary group of friends changed the world.
Disappointed by the French Revolution's rapid collapse into
tyranny, what they wanted was nothing less than a revolution of the
mind. The rulers of Europe had ordered their peoples how to think
and act for too long. Based in the small German town of Jena,
through poetry, drama, philosophy and science, they transformed the
way we think about ourselves and the world around us. They were the
first Romantics. Their way of understanding the world still frames
our lives and being.We're still empowered by their daring leap into
the self. We still think with their minds, see with their
imagination and feel with their emotions. We also still walk the
same tightrope between meaningful self-fulfilment and destructive
narcissism, between the rights of the individual and our role as a
member of our community and our responsibilities towards future
generations who will inhabit this planet. This extraordinary group
of friends changed our world. It is impossible to imagine our
lives, thoughts and understanding without the foundation of their
ground-breaking ideas.
The history of Madeira's women and the writing of women travellers
about the island are less well known than they should be. This
livret combines a flavour of all these elements for the visitor or
armchair traveller.
6 June 1944 marked the beginning of the Allied liberation of France
- and Europe. But what does the 'D' in D-Day stand for? Why were
the code names Omaha, Utah, Gold chosen? How many casualties were
there on D-Day? How did they keep the operation secret? Why land at
Omaha, the 'Bloody' beach? What happened to Rommel? The latest
addition to the Pitkin Collectable series, D-Day Decoded answers
these questions and many more as it uncovers the facts and secrets
behind the greatest landing-force ever assembled.
When Europeans first arrived in North America, they faced a cold
new world. The average global temperature had dropped to lows
unseen in millennia, and its effects were stark and unpredictable:
blizzards and deep freezes, droughts and famines, and winters when
even the Rio Grande froze. This period of climate change has come
to be known as the Little Ice Age, and it played a decisive role in
Europe's encounter with the lands and peoples of North America. In
A Cold Welcome, Sam White tells the story of this crucial period in
world history, from Europe's earliest expeditions in an unfamiliar
landscape to the perilous first winters at Santa Fe, Quebec, and
Jamestown. Weaving together evidence from climatology, archaeology,
and the written historical record, White describes how the severity
and volatility of the Little Ice Age climate threatened to freeze
and starve out the Europeans' precarious new settlements. Lacking
basic provisions and wholly unprepared to fend for themselves under
such harsh conditions, Europeans suffered life-threatening
privation, and their desperation precipitated violent conflict with
Native Americans. In the twenty-first century, as we confront an
uncertain future from global warming, A Cold Welcome reminds us of
the risks of a changing and unfamiliar climate.
John Calvin (1509-1564) is one of the most important figures in
religious history. Sitting on the cusp of the medieval and early
modern world, he was centre stage during the Reformation. In this
new biography, Michael Mullett introduces us to this most important
figure, tying his life together with that of Martin Luther, but
also valuing his individual contribution and influence. From what
Calvin himself described as 'humble beginnings', he became one of
the most influential theologians of the Protestant Reformation. The
influence of his teachings and the development of Christian
theology into what was to become known as Calvinism, swept across
Europe, reinforcing the Reformation's radical break from the
Catholic Church. John Calvin was 'a mighty and formidable man, able
to achieve the vast amount he did because of his unbending
conviction of his rightness'. Michael Mullett explores the
significant influences on Calvin and his work, and the
relationships that he formed along his reforming path. Looking not
only at the impact of Calvin throughout the early modern period and
the importance of his work to contemporaries, Michael Mullett also
assesses the impact that Calvin's works have had in shaping the
modern world, and the relevance that they still have today.
The Oxford University Studies in the Enlightenment series,
previously known as SVEC (Studies on Voltaire and the Eighteenth
Century), has published over 500 peer-reviewed scholarly volumes
since 1955 as part of the Voltaire Foundation at the University of
Oxford. International in focus, Oxford University Studies in the
Enlightenment volumes cover wide-ranging aspects of the eighteenth
century and the Enlightenment, from gender studies to political
theory, and from economics to visual arts and music, and are
published in English or French.
In 1942, the United States War Department distributed a handbook to American servicemen that advised them on the peculiarities of the "British, their country, and their ways."
Over sixty years later, this newly published reproduction from the rich archives of the Bodleian Library offers a fascinating glimpse into American military preparations for World War II. The guide was intended to alleviate the culture shock for soldiers taking their first trip to Great Britain, or, for that matter, abroad. The handbook is punctuated with endearingly nostalgic advice and refreshingly candid quips such as: "The British don't know how to make a good cup of coffee. You don't know how to make a good cup of tea. It's an even swap."
By turns hilarious and poignant, many observations featured in the handbook remain relevant even today. Reproduced in a style reminiscent of the era, "Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain" is a powerfully evocative war-time memento that offers a unique perspective on the longstanding American-British relationship and reveals amusingly incisive American perceptions of the British character and country.
Set like a stronghold south-west of the Caucasus mountains, Armenia
is caught between East and West. Briefly a great empire in the
first century BCE under King Tigranes the Great, Armenia was later
incorporated first by the Sasanian and then the Byzantine Empires.
Armenian art, literature, religion and material culture have
reinterpreted elements of a wide variety of cultures. Spanning over
two and a half millennia, the history of Armenia and the Armenian
people is a series of riveting tales, from its first mention under
the Achaemenid King Darius I to the independence of the Republic of
Armenia from the Soviet Union. With the help of the Bodleian
Libraries' magnificent collection of Armenian manuscripts and early
printed books, this volume tells the story of the region through
the medium of its cultural output. Together with introductions
written by experts in their fields, close to one hundred
manuscripts, works of art and religious artefacts serve as a guide
to Armenian culture and history. Gospel manuscripts splendidly
illuminated by Armenian masters feature next to philosophical
tractates and merchants' handbooks, affording us an insight into
what makes the Armenian people truly unique, especially in the
shadow of the genocide that threatened their annihilation a hundred
years ago: namely their spirituality, language and perseverance in
the face of adversity. VISIT THE EXHIBITION Armenia: Treasures from
an Enduring Culture October 2015 - January 2016 Bodleian Library,
Oxford
What was happening in Burnley Town Hall when the British National
Party was winning and holding seats there? What lay behind the far
right's advance, and what effect did it have on local government
and wider policy trends? How did mainstream parties respond? This
is the inside story of these developments, written by the council
worker responsible for promoting good race relations in Burnley
during the turbulent years following the 'northern town
disturbances' of 2001. The book connects the story of one
Lancashire town to contemporary social divisions and political
trends across the UK: - The rise of right-wing populism, widespread
antipathy to immigration, and a deep distrust of established
politicians - The success of Boris Johnson's Conservatives in
offering nationalism as an answer to some people's sense of
abandonment in deindustrialised areas - Labour's attempts to
'reconnect' and win back support in northern constituencies like
Burnley, which voted 67 per cent for Brexit and was one of the 'red
wall' seats that Labour lost at the 2019 general election. On
Burnley Road is both a remarkable example of granular social
history and an urgent contribution to current debates on issues
which affect us all. MakinWaite's perspectives on political
identities, multiculturalism, and the potential of 'civic
mediation' will interest anyone who is looking for effective ways
forward to overcome racism and inequality, and to rebuild our
democratic culture.
Who was the enigmatic Jean Moulin, a man as skilled in deception as
he was in acts of heroism? The memory of this French Resistance
hero, who was betrayed to the Gestapo and tortured by Klaus Barbie,
the infamous 'Butcher of Lyon', is revered alongside that of other
national icons. But Moulin's story is full of unanswered questions
and the truth of his life is far more complicated than the legend.
Patrick Marnham, winner of the Marsh Prize for biography,
thrillingly tells the epic story of France's greatest war hero,
bringing to light the shadowy and often deceitful world of the
French Resistance, and offers a shocking conclusion to one of the
great unsolved mysteries of World War II.
Originally published in 1994. In 1989 Poland, Hungary and
Czechoslovakia began to cooperate as a regional grouping in the
Warsaw Treaty Organisation(WTO). With the primary objective to
cooperate with western organisations they have also worked to
dismantle the WTO and the CMEA. Since 1991, they have been regarded
as the Visegard Group which now includes the Slovak Republic as
well as the newly named Czech Republic. The subtitle reflects the
author's belief that in comparison with other WTO states, this
Group of four nations are on a fast track in their objective of
being a member of NATO.
Book IV 2-41 of the Thucydides: History of the Peloponnesian War
concerns the events of the campaign fought at Pylos and the island
of Sphacteria between the Athenians and the Spartans in 425 BC.
J.B. Wilson's much cited edition includes a Greek text and
translation, followed by supplementary tets. The bulk of the volume
consists of historical and topographical notes analysing in detail
the events of the campaign based on both close textual analysis of
Thucydides account, and first hand experience of the geography of
the area.
The definitive survey of the countries and territories of Western
Europe, comprising expert analysis and commentary, up-to-date
economic and socio-political data and extensive directory
information. General Survey Essays by leading experts on the area
cover issues of regional importance. Country Surveys Individual
chapters on each country, comprising: an introductory survey,
containing essays on the geography, history and economy of each
country, including a chronology and map. an extensive statistical
survey of economic and demographic indicators, including area and
population, health and welfare, agriculture, forestry, fishing,
mining, industry, finance, trade, transport, tourism,
communications media and education. a comprehensive directory of
names and contact details covering the most significant political
and commercial institutions. Regional Information a directory of
research institutes specializing in the region bibliographies of
books and periodicals covering the region.
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The Medici
(Paperback)
Mary Hollingsworth
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R468
R382
Discovery Miles 3 820
Save R86 (18%)
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Ships in 9 - 15 working days
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'This forensic study of the Renaissance banking dynasty conjures up
a world of art, literature, philosophy - and brutality' Telegraph
'Likely to become the standard work of reference on the members of
the family that dominated Florence' TLS 'A lucid and beautifully
illustrated family history' The Times Wealthy bankers, wise
politicians, patrons of the arts, glittering dukes... so runs the
traditional telling of the story of the Medici, the family that
ruled Florence for two hundred years and inspired the birth of the
Italian Renaissance. In this definitive account of their rise and
fall, Mary Hollingsworth argues that the idea that the Medici were
wise rulers and enlightened fathers of the Renaissance is a
fiction. In truth, she says, the Medici were as devious and immoral
as the Borgias - tyrants loathed in the city they illegally made
their own and which they beggared in their lust for power.
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