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Books > History
The city of Constantinople was named New Rome or Second Rome very
soon after its foundation in AD 324; over the next two hundred
years it replaced the original Rome as the greatest city of the
Mediterranean. In this unified essay collection, prominent
international scholars examine the changing roles and perceptions
of Rome and Constantinople in Late Antiquity from a range of
different disciplines and scholarly perspectives. The seventeen
chapters cover both the comparative development and the shifting
status of the two cities. Developments in politics and urbanism are
considered, along with the cities' changing relationships with
imperial power, the church, and each other, and their evolving
representations in both texts and images. These studies present
important revisionist arguments and new interpretations of
significant texts and events. This comparative perspective allows
the neglected subject of the relationship between the two Romes to
come into focus while avoiding the teleological distortions common
in much past scholarship.
An introductory section sets the cities, and their comparative
development, in context. Part Two looks at topography, and includes
the first English translation of the Notitia of Constantinople. The
following section deals with politics proper, considering the role
of emperors in the two Romes and how rulers interacted with their
cities. Part Four then considers the cities through the prism of
literature, in particular through the distinctively late antique
genre of panegyric. The fifth group of essays considers a crucial
aspect shared by the two cities: their role as Christian capitals.
Lastly, a provocative epilogue looks at the enduring Roman identity
of the post-Heraclian Byzantine state. Thus, Two Romes not only
illuminates the study of both cities but also enriches our
understanding of the late Roman world in its entirety.
As one of the nation's oldest cities, Cambridge, Massachusetts, has
a tumultuous history filled with Revolutionary War beginnings,
religious persecution and centuries of debate among Ivy League
intelligentsia. It should come as no surprise that the city is also
home to spirits that are entangled with the past and now inhabit
the dormitories, local watering holes and even military structures
of the present. Discover the apparitions that frighten freshmen in
Harvard's Weld Hall, the Revolutionary War ghosts that haunt the
estates of Tory Row and the flapper who is said to roam the seats
of Somerville Theatre. Using careful research and firsthand
accounts, author Sam Baltrusis delves into ghastly tales of murder,
crime and the bizarre happenings in the early days of Cambridge to
uncover the truth behind some of the city's most historic haunts.
When George S. Halas was asked to rebuild the Staley Company's
football club in Decatur, Illinois in 1920, nobody could have
imagined that his efforts would forever change Sunday afternoons in
America. Halas helped found the National Football League, and with
it the Chicago Bears, the most storied franchise in the league's
history. From the Galloping Ghost, to the Monsters of the Midway,
to that indomitable "46" defense -- the "Grabowskis" as their coach
named them -- Bears teams and players have made such an impact on
the city of big shoulders that Chicago will be forever known as a
"Bears town."
In 1940 few Americans had heard of mutual funds. Today U.S. mutual
funds are the largest financial industry in the world, with over 88
million shareholders and over $11 trillion in assets. Cottage
Industry to Financial Giant describes the developments that have
produced mutual funds' long history of success. Among these
developments are: * formation of the first mutual funds in the
roaring 20s * how the 1929 stock market crash, a disaster for most
financial institutions, spurred the growth of mutual funds *
establishment in 1934, over FDR's objection, of the United States
Securities and Exchange Commission, the federal agency that
regulates mutual funds * enactment of the Revenue Act of 1936, the
tax law that saved mutual funds from extinction * passage of the
Investment Company Act of 1940, the "constitution" of the mutual
fund industry * the creation in 1972 of money market funds, which
totally changed the mutual fund industry and the entire U.S.
financial system *enactment of the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act of 1974, which created Individual Retirement Accounts
* the accidental development of 401(k) plans, which have
revolutionized the way Americans save for retirement * the 2003
trading abuses, the greatest scandal ever in the history of the
mutual fund industry Many events have never been reported before.
Others have been discussed in works on other subjects such as
retirement plans. Thus, this is first book that pulls together the
many strands of mutual funds' unique history. Moreover, the author
was personally involved in developments over the past forty years,
and much of the book is a personal narrative regarding the people
and events that have produced mutual funds' success.
Watter soort mens was dr. H.F. Verwoerd, die sesde premier van die
Unie van Suid-Afrika en grondlegger van die huidige Republiek? Die
bydraers tot hierdie boek skryf op onderhoudende wyse oor hoe hulle
hom onthou, wat hulle saam met hom beleef het en oor hulle
opvatting van sy politieke oogmerke. Die persoonlike aard van die
bydraes verleen ’n dimensie aan die boek wat in objektiewe
geskiedskrywing ontbreek. Verwoerd tree te voorskyn as vriend,
gesinsman, volksman, raadsman en leier. Hierdie bundel verskyn die
eerste keer in 2001 by geleentheid van die 100ste herdenking van
dr. Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd se geboortedag, 8 September 1901. Die
bygewerkte weergawe in 2016 bevat nuwe bydraes deur onder andere
Elise Verwoerd, Cas Bakkes en Albert Hertzog.
Statues of important Romans frequently represented them nude. Men
were portrayed naked holding weapons--the naked emperor might wield
the thunderbolt of Jupiter--while Roman women assumed the guise of
the nude love-goddess, Venus. When faced with these strange images,
modern viewers are usually unsympathetic, finding them incongruous,
even tasteless. They are mostly written off as just another example
of Roman "bad taste."
This book offers a new approach. Comprehensively illustrated with
black and white photographs of nude Romans represented in a wide
range of artistic media, it investigates how this tradition arose,
and how the nudity of these images was meant to be understood by
contemporary viewers. And, since the Romans also employed a variety
of other costumes for their statues (toga, armor, Greek
philosopher's cloak), it asks, "What could nudity express that
other costumes could not?" It is Hallett's claim that--looked at in
this way--these "Roman nudes" turn out to be documents of the first
importance for the cultural historian.
As the saying goes, "dead men tell no tales." Or do they? From its
humble beginnings as a Spanish settlement in 1691 to the bloody
battle at the Alamo, San Antonio's history is rich in haunting
tales. Discover Old San Antonio's most haunted places and uncover
the history that lies waiting for those who dare to enter their
doorways. Take a peek inside the Menger Hotel, the "Most Haunted
Hotel in Texas," and just a block away, peer into the Emily Morgan
Hotel, one of the city's first hospitals and where many men and
women lost their lives. Explore the San Fernando Cathedral, where
people are buried within the walls and visitors claim to see faces
mysteriously appear. Uncover the legends behind Bexar County Jail.
Join authors James and Lauren Swartz and decide for yourself what
truly lurks behind the Alamo City's fabled past.
The Roman empire tends to be seen as a whole whereas the early
middle ages tends to be seen as a collection of regional histories,
roughly corresponding to the land-areas of modern nation states. As
a result, early medieval history is much more fragmented, and there
have been few convincing syntheses of socio-economic change in the
post-Roman world since the 1930s. In recent decades, the rise of
early medieval archaeology has also transformed our source-base,
but this has not been adequately integrated into analyses of
documentary history in almost any country.
In Framing the Early Middle Ages Chris Wickham aims at integrating
documentary and archaeological evidence together, and also, above
all, at creating a comparative history of the period 400-800, by
means of systematic comparative analyses of each of the regions of
the latest Roman and immediately post-Roman world, from Denmark to
Egypt (only the Slav areas are left out). The book concentrates on
classic socio-economic themes, state finance, the wealth and
identity of the aristocracy, estate management, peasant society,
rural settlement, cities, and exchange. These are only a partial
picture of the period, but they are intended as a framing for other
developments, without which those other developments cannot be
properly understood.
Wickham argues that only a complex comparative analysis can act as
the basis for a wider synthesis. Whilst earlier syntheses have
taken the development of a single region as 'typical', with
divergent developments presented as exceptions, this book takes all
different developments as typical, and aims to construct a
synthesis based on a better understanding of difference and the
reasons forit. This is the most ambitious and original survey of
the period ever written.
Volume XXVI/2 of History of Universities contains the customary mix
of learned articles and book reviews which makes this publication
such an indispensable tool for the historian of higher education.
The volume is, as always, a lively combination of original research
and invaluable reference material.
Chicago has long been regarded as home to some of the world's most
impressive architecture. Responding to the Great Fire of 1871,
Chicagoans rebuilt the city, creating a radically new architectural
style. Chicago continued to grow and evolve through the 20th
century, but many of its architectural masterpieces have been lost,
some to modernization, and others simply to the ravages of time.
Forgotten Chicago preserves the unique story of many of Chicago's
famed architectural wonders. Included are the old Northwestern
Train station, the Coliseum, the Chicago Stadium, old Comiskey
Park, and Soldier Field. Many of the smaller treasures of the city
will also be found here, including some of Chicago's most famous
diners.
A leading public intellectual’s timely reckoning with how Jews can and should make sense of their tradition and each other.
What does it mean to be a Jew? At a time of worldwide crisis, venerable answers to this question have become unsettled. In To Be a Jew Today, the legal scholar and columnist Noah Feldman draws on a lifelong engagement with his religion to offer a wide-ranging interpretation of Judaism in its current varieties. How do Jews today understand their relationship to God, to Israel, and to each other―and live their lives accordingly?
Writing sympathetically but incisively about diverse outlooks, Feldman clarifies what’s at stake in the choice of how to be a Jew, and discusses the shared “theology of struggle” that Jews engage in as they wrestle with who God is, what God wants, or whether God exists. He shows how the founding of Israel has transformed Judaism itself over the last century―and explores the ongoing consequences of that transformation for all Jews, who find the meaning of their Jewishness and their views about Israel intertwined, no matter what those views are. And he examines the analogies between being Jewish and belonging to a large, messy family―a family that often makes its members crazy, but a family all the same. Written with learning, empathy and clarity, To Be a Jew Today is a critical resource for readers of all faiths.
For jazz historians, Louis Armstrong's Hot Five and Hot Seven
recordings mark the first revolution in the history of a music
riven by upheaval. Yet few traces of this revolution can be found
in the historical record of the late 1920s, when the records were
made. Even black newspapers covered Armstrong as just one name
among many, and descriptions of his playing, while laudatory, bear
little resemblance to those of today. For this reason, the
perspective of Armstrong's first listeners is usually regarded as
inadequate, as if they had missed the true significance of his
music. This attitude overlooks the possibility that those early
listeners might have heard something valuable on its own terms,
something we ourselves have lost. If we could somehow recapture
their perspective-without abandoning our own-how might it change
our understanding of these seminal recordings? In Louis Armstrong's
Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings, Harker selects seven exceptional
records to study at length: "Cornet Chop Suey," "Big Butter and Egg
Man," "Potato Head Blues," "S.O.L. Blues"/"Gully Low Blues," "Savoy
Blues," and "West End Blues." The world of vaudeville and show
business provide crucial context, revealing how the demands of
making a living in a competitive environment could catalyze
Armstrong's unique artistic gifts. Technical achievements such as
virtuosity, structural coherence, harmonic improvisation, and
high-register playing are all shown to have a basis in the workaday
requirements of Armstrong's profession. Invoking a breadth of
influences ranging from New Orleans clarinet style to Guy Lombardo,
and from tap dancing to classical music, this book offers bold
insights, fresh anecdotes, and, ultimately, a new interpretation of
Louis Armstrong and his most influential body of recordings.
A strike gripped Winnipeg from May 15 to June 26, 1919. Some
twenty-five thousand workers walked out, demanding better wages and
union recognition. Red-fearing opponents insisted labour radicals
were attempting to usurp constitutional authority and replace it
with Bolshevism. Newspapers like the "Manitoba Free Press" claimed
themselves political victims and warned of Soviet infiltration.
Supporters of the general sympathetic strike like the "Toronto
Daily Star" maintained that strikers were not Reds; they were
workers fighting for their fair rights. What was really happening
in Winnipeg? In an information age dominated by newspapers and
magazines, the public turned to reporters and editors for answers.
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