With a blend of narrative and analysis, this book explores the extent to which mercenaries have been used, from Sumer to Rome, and the reasons governments hired them when they could conscript native citizens.

First published to wide critical acclaim in 1992, "The Two Cities" has become an essential text for students of medieval history. For the second edition, the author has thoroughly revised each chapter, bringing the material up to date and taking the historiography of the past decade into account.
"The Two Cities" covers a colorful period from the schism between the eastern and western churches to the death of Dante. It encompasses the Crusades, the expansionist force of the Normans, major developments in the way kings, emperors and Popes exercised their powers, a great flourishing of art and architecture and the foundation of the very first universities. Running through it is the defining characteristic of the high Middle Ages--the delicate relationship between the spiritual and secular worlds. In medieval times, these two essential elements of life were seen as the two 'cities' of the title, they could not be divided but there was constant tension between them.
This survey provides all the facts and background information that students need, and is defined into straightforward thematic chapters. It makes extensive use of primary sources, and makes new trends in research accessible to students. Its fresh approach gives students the most rounded, lively and integrated view of the high Middle Ages available.

The end of the Cold War ushered in a moment of nearly pure American dominance on the world stage, yet that era now seems ages ago. Since 9/11 many informed commentators have focused on the relative decline of American power in the global system. While some have welcomed this as a salutary development, outspoken proponents of American power-particularly neoconservatives-have lamented this turn of events. As Jeanne Morefield argues in Empires Without Imperialism, the defenders of a liberal international order steered by the US have both invoked nostalgia for a golden liberal past and succumbed to amnesia, forgetting the decidedly illiberal trajectory of US continental and global expansion. Yet as she shows, the US is not the first liberal hegemon to experience a wave of misguided nostalgia for a bygone liberal order; England had a remarkably similar experience in the early part of the twentieth century. The empires of the US and the United Kingdom were different in character-the UK's was territorially based while the US relied more on pure economic power-yet both nations mouthed the rhetoric of free markets and political liberty. And elites in both painted pictures of the past in which first England and then the US advanced the cause of economic and political liberty throughout the world. Morefield contends that at the times of their decline, elites in both nations utilized the attributes of an imagined past to essentialize the nature of the liberal state. Working from that framework, they bemoaned the possibility of liberalism's decline and suggested a return to a true liberal order as a solution to current woes. By treating liberalism as fixed through time, however, they actively forgot their illiberal pasts as colonizers and economic imperialists. According to Morefield, these nostalgic narratives generate a cynical 'politics in the passive' where the liberal state gets to have it both ways: it is both compelled to act imperially to save the world from illiberalism and yet is never responsible for the outcome of its own illiberal actions in the world or at home. By comparing the practice and memory of liberalism in early nineteenth century England and the contemporary United States, Empires Without Imperialism addresses a major gap in the literature. While there are many examinations of current neoliberal imperialism by critical theorists as well as analyses of liberal imperialism by scholars of the history of political thought, no one has of yet combined the two approaches. It thus provides a much fuller picture of the rhetorical strategies behind liberal imperialist uses of history. At the same time, the book challenges presentist assumptions about the novelty of our current political moment.

The title needs explaining. Why back? We haven't been there yet In 1939 the same team of Maurice Gorham (text) and Edward Ardizzone (illustrations) published The Local. Like so many books of that time it had a short life, all the remaining stock being destroyed in the Blitz. After the war, they decided to do a new edition with a revised text and redrawn, in some cases completely new, illustrations. It is this book, Back to the Local, first published in 1949, that Faber Finds is reissuing.

Prepare yourself for the most delightful of nostalgic rambles around the pubs of London in the late 1940s. Text and illustrations are in perfect harmony as we are introduced to The Regulars, Barmaids Old and New, as we venture into The Saloon Lounge, The Saloon Bar, The Public Bar and squeeze into The Jug-And-Bottle Bar. We visit The Mews Pub, The Wine-House, the Riverside Pub and The Irish House. These are all chapter headings and eloquently testify to what awaits you. Treat yourself to a memorable pub crawl

This is the first complete biography of one of the most brilliant fifteenth-century monarchs, Alfonso V of Aragon. Ryder traces Alfonso's life from his childhood in the chivalric world of Castile to the newly-acquired states of Aragon and his subsequent accession to the Aragonese throne. In addition to being a shrewd politician, Alfonso is revealed to have been an accomplished diplomat, acutely aware of the power of commerce, and one of the greatest patrons of the early Renaissance. He brought humanism to life in Southern Italy and made his court the most brilliant in Europe. Offering not only an insightful look at Alfonso's life but a vivid portrait of political and cultural life during his reign, this volume will hold special appeal for scholars and students of early modern European history, fifteenth-century Italian and Spanish history, and Renaissance studies.

In this classic work which analyzes the context in which thirty years of war and revolution wracked the European continent, the great historian Arno Mayer emphasizes the backwardness of the European economies and their political subjugation by aristocratic elites and their allies. Mayer turns upside down the vision of societies marked by modernization and forward-thrusting bourgeois and popular social classes, thereby transforming our understanding of the traumatic crises of the early twentieth century. The Verso World History Series This series provides attractive new editions of classic works of history, making landmark texts available to a new generation of readers. Covering a timespan stretching from Ancient Greece and Rome to the twentieth century, and with a global geographical range, the series will also include thematic volumes providing insights into such topics as the spread of print cultures and the history of money.

This book investigates the role of bourgeoisie society and the political developments of the nineteenth century in the peculiarities of German history. Most historians attribute German exceptionalism to the failure or absence of bourgeois revolution in German history and the failure of the bourgeoisie to conquer the pre-industrial traditions of authoritarianism. However, this study finds that there was a bourgeois revolution in Germany, though not the traditional type. This so-called silent bourgeois revolution brought about the emergence and consolidation of the capitalist system based on the sanctity and disposability of private property and on production to meet individual needs through a system of exchange dominated by the market. In this connection, this book proposes a redefinition of the concept of bourgeois revolution to denote a broader pattern of material, institutional, legal, and intellectual changes whose cumulative effect was all the more powerful for coming to be seen as natural.

In 1957 the Dodgers broke the hearts of blue-collar Brooklyn for the embrace of booming Los Angeles. Thus began a new era for the fabled Bums, whose exploits inside -- and outside -- the white lines have intrigued generations of baseball fans.

Based on scores of fresh and exuberant interviews, True Blue brings you into the dugout and the locker room, capturing the nearly half-century of clutch performances, World Series triumphs, blown pennant races, clubhouse brawls, contract disputes, stunning trades, and turbulent managerial changes -- all with a startling insider's perspective.

In their own candid and provocative words, a who's who of Dodger legends and stars such as Duke Snider, Maury Wills, John Roseboro, Don Sutton, Steve Garvey, Ron Cey, Davey Lopes, Reggie Smith, Tommy Lasorda, Bill Russell, Dusty Baker, Kirk Gibson, Steve Sax, and Eric Karros recall their years with the Dodgers. Also providing their unique commentary are a number of noted opponents, writers, and broadcasters, including Willie Mays, Sparky Anderson, Pete Hamill, Roger Kahn, Tim McCarver, and Bob Costas.

Their voices, woven into a rich and fast-paced narrative, bring to life the rise and shocking retirement of Sandy Koufax, Kirk Gibson's dramatic 1988 World Series home run, the controversial trade of Mike Piazza, and so much more. It is the vivid story of how the Dodgers became one of the great successes in major league history, winning nine National League pennants and five World Series championships.

A fascinating and colorful history of a team, an era, and baseball itself, True Blue is must reading for any baseball fan.

Karl Barth (1886-1968) was a prolific theologian of the 20th century. Dr Gorringe places the theology in its social and political context, from World War I through to the Cold War by following Barth's intellectual development through the years that saw the rise of national socialism and the development of communism. Barth initiated a theological revolution in his two "Commentaries on Romans", begun during World War I. His attempt to deepen this during the turbulent years of the Weimar Republic made him a focus of theological resistance to Hitler after the rise to power of the Nazi party. Expelled from Germany, he continued to defy fashionable opinion by refusing to condemn communism after World War II. Drawing on a German debate largely ignored by Anglo-Saxon theology, Dr Gorringe shows that Barth responds to the events of his time not just in his occasional writings, but in his magnum opus, the "Church Dogmatics". In conclusion Dr Gorringe asks what this admittedly patriarchal author still has to contribute to contemporary theology, and in particular human liberation. This book is intended for undergraduate courses in theology and history of doctrine.

From the headlines of local newspapers to the coverage of major media outlets, scenes of war, natural disaster, political revolution and ethnic repression greet readers and viewers at every turn. What we often fail to grasp, however, despite numerous treatments of events is the deep meaning and broader significance of crisis and disaster. The complexity and texture of these situations are most evident in the broader personal stories of those whom the events impact most intimately. Oral history, with its focus on listening and collaborative creation with participants, has emerged as a forceful approach to exploring the human experience of crisis. Despite the recent growth of crisis oral history fieldwork, there has been little formal discussion of the process and meaning of utilizing oral history in these environments. Oral history research takes on special dimensions when working in highly charged situations often in close proximity to traumatic events. The emergent inclination for oral historians to respond to document crisis calls for a shared conversation among scholars as to what we have learned from crisis work so far. This dialogue, at the heart of this collection of oral history excerpts and essays, reveals new layers of the work of the oral historian. From the perspective of crisis and disaster oral history, the book addresses both the ways in which we think about the craft of oral hsitory, and the manner in which we use it. The book presents excerpts from oral histories done after twelve world crises, followed by critical analyses by the interviewers. Additional analytical chapters set the interviews in the contexts of pyschoanalysis and oral history methodology.

This all-encompassing guide: * Includes over 600 pages of current political, economic and social affairs of the region * Provides an impartial perspective on all the countries and territories of Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia * Combines detailed analysis by acknowledged experts, the latest statistics and invaluable directory material.

Long regarded as the preserve of French scholars and Francophone audiences due to its significance to France's colonial empire, North Africa is increasingly recognized for its own singular importance as a crossover region. Situated where Islamic, Mediterranean, African, and European histories intersect, the Maghrib has long acted as a cultural conduit, mediator and broker. From the medieval era, when the oasis of Sijilmasa in the Moroccan wilderness funnelled caravan loads of gold into international networks, through the 16th century when two superpowers, the Ottomans and the Spanish Hapsburgs, battled for mastery of the Mediterranean along the North African frontier, and well into the 20th century which witnessed one of Africa's cruellest wars unfold in "French Algeria," the Maghrib has retained its uniqueness as a place where worlds meet.

Riad El-Taher arrived in England to study engineering just in time to hear Tony Benn railing against Anthony Eden's 1956 Suez policy. He was rarely far from politics thereafter. When the UN imposed crippling sanctions on his native land, he took Tam Dalyell, George Galloway and ex-BBC reporter, Tim Llewellyn, to Iraq to see their effect. At Dalyell's suggestion he formed a widely supported organisation to campaign for a reversal of this policy; after the Second Gulf War this redirected its fire at the occupation. He made enemies too, and believed he landed in Wandsworth jail as a result. Dalyell, who considered Riad to be motivated by `an un-self-seeking desire to protect the well-being of people in Iraq,' called his treatment `a process of nasty, political vengeance.' Neither a Ba'athist, nor an emigre oppositionist, Riad's patriotic voice is arguably unique and deserves to be heard. Though polemical, and posing uncomfortable questions, this is also the story of a remarkably varied life and the wide range of people encountered in it, not least among them Saddam Hussein.

The concept of `economic planning' was a central theme of the popular economic policy debate in the 1930s. Dr Ritschel traces the many interpretations of planning, and examines the process of idealogical construction and dissemination of the new economic ideas. He finishes with an explanation of the planners' retreat, later in the decade, from the economics of planning towards the far less ambitious (but also less contentious) alternative - the `middle way' of Keynesian economics.

The emergence of the book was not merely an event of world historical importance, but the dawn of modernity. In this much praised work, Lucien Febvre and Henri-Jean Martin mesh together economic and technological history, sociology and anthropology, with the study of consciousness itself to root the development of printing in the changing social relations and ideological struggles of Western Europe. Now that the printed page may become a thing of the past, "The Coming of the Book" is more pertinent than ever.
The Verso World History Series This series provides attractive new editions of classic works of history, making landmark texts available to a new generation of readers. Covering a time-span stretching from Ancient Greece and Rome to the twentieth century, and with a global geographical range, the series will also include thematic volumes providing insights into such topics as the spread of print cultures and the history of money.

This provocative study breaks new ground. It argues that, in a period dominated by the white Australia ideal, the nation's political leaders were content to allow disease and malnutrition, as well as punitive police raids, to ravage the Aboriginal population of the Northern Territory, and that for decades there was a failure to provide funding to implement publicly announced policies. Written for a general readership, "Governing Savages" explains how such a state of affairs could arise and be tolerated in a professedly humane society. The result of almost a decade of research by one of the leading scholars in the field of Australian race relations, the book analyzes the attitudes of pastoralists, missionaries, administrators, judges and politicians and of those - including Aboriginal leaders - seeking to awaken the conscience of Australians and bring to an end generations of brutality and callous indifference. Andrew Markus is the editor of journals on Aboriginal history, intercultural studies and labour history, and was a consultant to the Fitzgerald Committee on Australia's immigration policies. The author of "Blood from a Stone", he is currently Senior Lecturer in History at Monash University, Melbourne. This book is intended for general readers, and students and researchers in Australian and Aboriginal studies.

One of the most fascinating figures of seventeenth-century music, composer and singer Antonia Padoani Bembo (c.1640 - c.1720) was active in both Venice and Paris. Her work provides a unique cross-cultural window into the rich musical cultures of these cities, yet owing to her clandestine existence in France, for almost three centuries Bembo's life was shrouded in mystery. In this first-ever biography, Clare Fontijn unveils the enthralling and surprising story of a remarkable woman who moved in the musical, literary, and artistic circles of these European cultural centers. Rebuffed in the attempt to divorce her abusive husband, Bembo fled to Paris, leaving her children in Venice. Joining ranks with composers glorifying Louis XIV, her song charmed the Sun King and won over his court's sympathy to the cause of women. She obtained his sponsorship to live in a semi-cloistered community in Paris, where she wrote music for the spiritual and worldly needs of the royal family. Offering fine examples of sacred and secular vocal repertory for chamber settings and large ensembles, Bembo's oeuvre reveals her preoccupation with female agency through dynamic portrayals of such powerful figures as the Virgin Mary and the Duchess of Burgundy. The genres in which she worked-love song, opera, motet, cantata, trio sonata, and air-testify to the magic of her voice and to her place alongside Strozzi, Jacquet de La Guerre, and other major women composers of her time. Expertly engaging with musicology, history, and gender studies, Claire Fontijn tells the story of a brave and daring woman while providing a valuable key to a long-hidden treasure trove of music. A groundbreaking biography, Desperate Measures details the compelling life and music of a woman with courage, determination, and talent who thrived within the dictates of society and culture.

Migration is the most imprecise and difficult of all aspects of pre-industrial population to measure. It was a major element in economic and social change in early modern Britain, yet, despite a wealth of detailed research in recent years, there has been no systematic survey of its importance. This book reviews a wide range of aspects of population migration, and their impacts on British society, from Tudor times to the main phase of the Industrial Revolution.

In September of 1809 during the opening night of Macbeth at the newly rebuilt Covent Garden theatre the audience rioted over the rise in ticket prices. Disturbances took place on the following sixty-six nights that autumn and the Old Price riots became the longest running theatre disorder in English history. This book describes the events in detail, sets them in their wider context, and uses them to examine the interpenetration of theatre and disorder. Previous understandings of the riots are substantially revised by stressing populist rather than class politics. Baer concentrates on the theatricality of audiences, the role of the stage in shaping English self-image and the relationship between contention and consensus. In so doing, theatre and theatricality are rediscovered as explanations for the cultural and political structures of the Georgian period. Based on meticulous research in theatre and governmental records, newspapers, private correspondence, and satirical prints and other ephemera, this study is an unusually interesting and original contribution to the social and political history of early 19th-century Britain.

The World We Want compares the future world that Enlightenment intellectuals had hoped for with our own world at present. In what respects do the two worlds differ, and why are they so different? To what extent is and isn't our world the world they wanted, and to what extent do we today still want their world? Unlike previous philosophical critiques and defenses of the Enlightenment, the present study focuses extensively on the relevant historical and empirical record first, by examining carefully what kind of future Enlightenment intellectuals actually hoped for; second, by tracking the different legacies of their central ideals over the past two centuries.
But in addition to documenting the significant gap that still exists between Enlightenment ideals and current realities, the author also attempts to show why the ideals of the Enlightenment still elude us. What does our own experience tell us about the appropriateness of these ideals? Which Enlightenment ideals do not fit with human nature? Why is meaningful support for these ideals, particularly within the US, so weak at present? Which of the means that Enlightenment intellectuals advocated for realizing their ideals are inefficacious? Which of their ideals have devolved into distorted versions of themselves when attempts have been made to realize them? How and why, after more than two centuries, have we still failed to realize the most significant Enlightenment ideals? In short, what is dead and what is living in these ideals?

This book is based on the first edition titled Historical Dictionary of Mozambique - with new entries, updating of information, some reorganisation, and the correction of a few minor errors of fact and interpretation in the earlier work; it is aimed primarily at a South African readership.

The purpose of bringing out this revised edition is to make information on Mozambique more easily available and affordable for students and others in southern Africa who are interested in the history of one of South Africa's closest neighbours. Over several centuries, relations between the two emerging territories have been complex and sometimes troubled, and despite the fact that the economies of the two countries have more recently become historically interdependent, the simple fact that Mozambique is officially – at least, a Portuguese-speaking country has perhaps functioned as a barrier to understanding.

The emphasis in focus is on contemporary history from the middle of the twentieth century onwards, with perhaps one-third of all entries dealing with topics and personalities from that period. However, the dictionary includes many entries covering both the period before the arrival of the Portuguese in the late fifteenth century, as well as on the five centuries of their presence – often precarious – in Mozambique.