The Alps, as Professor Bergier shows in this selection of his work, should not be considered an impassable barrier, nor an isolated region, but rather as an integral part of the history of Europe. The lowlanders' typical view of the mountains as fearful heights to be crossed, and the image of those who lived there as existing in a delicate balance with nature, are part only of the story. These articles are particularly concerned with transalpine traffic, and the different routes it took in response to changing circumstances in the lands to south and north, and with the exploitation and use of mountain resources. A number aim also to identify the particularities of the mountain way of life, and its social and political organisation.