A pioneering text which covers the urban society of early modern Europe as a whole. Challenges the usual emphasis on regional diversity by stressing the extent to which cities across Europe shared a common urban civilization whose major features remained remarkably constant throughout the period. After outlining the physical, political, religious, economic and demographic parameters of urban life, the author vividly depicts the everyday routines of city life and shows how pitifully vulnerable city-dwellers were to disasters, epidemics, warfare and internal strife.

Urban Politics in Early Modern Europe is an important survey of the complex relationships between urban politics and regional and national politics in Europe from 1500 to 1789. In an era when the national state was far less developed than today, crucial decisions about economic, religious and social policy were often settled at the municipal level. Cities were frequently the scenes of sudden tensions or bitter conflicts between ordinary citizens and the urban elite, and the threat of civic unrest often underlay the political dynamics of early modern cities.
With vivid descriptions of events in cities in central Europe, England, France, Italy and Spain, this book outlines the forms of political interaction in the early modern city. Urban Politics in Early Modern Europe takes a fascinating comparative approach to the nature of conflict and conflict resolution in early modern communities throughout Europe.

A pioneering text which covers the urban society of early modern Europe as a whole. Challenges the usual emphasis on regional diversity by stressing the extent to which cities across Europe shared a common urban civilization whose major features remained remarkably constant throughout the period. After outlining the physical, political, religious, economic and demographic parameters of urban life, the author vividly depicts the everyday routines of city life and shows how pitifully vulnerable city-dwellers were to disasters, epidemics, warfare and internal strife.

Under the premise that local history can illuminate aspects of the past in ways that few works of broad historical synthesis can ever hope to equal, Christopher Friedrichs draws a comprehensive portrait of the small German city of Nordlingen during a turbulent century and a half of early modern history. In doing so he explores the transition from a traditional to a modern way of life.

Originally published in 1980.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Under the premise that local history can illuminate aspects of the past in ways that few works of broad historical synthesis can ever hope to equal, Christopher Friedrichs draws a comprehensive portrait of the small German city of Nordlingen during a turbulent century and a half of early modern history. In doing so he explores the transition from a traditional to a modern way of life. Originally published in 1980. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.