Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Everything you ever wanted to know about Lucia!
Who was the maiden with candles in her hair?This interesting book traces her history, the legends, and the present Lucia Day's tie to pagan folklore, finally taking you through to modern traditions.You'll also find tips, recipes, and songs for celebrating your own Lucia Day on December 13, a simple but charming opener to the Christmas season.This book is quite suitable to read-aloud to the whole family.

highly informative book on one of Sweden's greatest holidays
this book is absolutely amazing. it gives in detail and easy to follow instructions the how to's of the Saint Lucia celebration in Sweden. i especially like hearing about the origin of the Saint and why Sweden has honored her for so long. another bonus of this incredible book is the recipe's at the end. it is a sweet surprise indeed! the author gives step by step instructions on how to prepare your own Lucia celebration, and tips to help it be fun and beautiful. and for those of us with swedish heritage it is especially nice to find Lucia songs in english AND swedish. all in all a wonderful read. ... Read more

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The sixteenth and seventeenth centuries saw many ambitious European rulers develop permanent armies and navies. War and the State in Early Modern Europe examines this military change as a central part of the political, social and economic transformation of early modern Europe. ... Read more

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Early Modern State Building
That is what this book is about - how early modern European states were constructed, manufactured, bought, or cajoled into existance.Jan Glete writes an informative synthesis of old and new interpretations to examine state building in Spain, the Dutch Republic, and Sweden.It is military history with a strong dose of economic and social theory to examine how central governments used the development of permanent military organizations to "sell" protection and to "extract" resources, and thereby enhance or enlarge the authority of that government.He calls the end product the "fiscal-military state."
Overall, this thesis is not new (book first published in 2002), particularly as it relies heavily on Charles Tilly, Michael Roberts, Geoffrey Parker, John Elliott and other heavy hitters for the Early Modern historigraphic review.Changes in warfare technology, tactics, ideas along with changes in bureaucracy coupled with population expansion gave centralizing rulers the means to gain more influence and power; warfare provided the opportunity.What is new and interesting is that Glete uses the idea of protection selling (could be equally usefully called imperialism) to explain how Spanish and Swedish monarchs and Dutch states could gain willing cooperation from domestic elites, cities, and foreign lands.Those governments most "efficient" (this word is used a lot) prospered and expanded - when the cost of protection became too high or "inefficient" then the state lost its ability to maintain itself (a very long discourse on the so-called decline of Spain illustrates this well).
Structurally, the reader does have to wade through two chapters heavy on theory and historiography, but the background is essential to understand fully the historical narrative that uses economic and social history terms frequently to make the arguement.Chapters on Spain, Dutch Republic and Sweden make good use of published sources and contrast each society well to show how the same ideas was compatible with various forms of early modern governments.The final chapter probably needs to be read first, as it most efficiently brings the author's ideas into focus.
Finally, the author assumes a good deal of background knowledge of 1500-1700 of European history and of the basic historiography - excellent and comprehensive bibliography is a strong point of the book.
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...papers in this volume may be seen as attempts to grapple with questions of narrative and meaning in our understanding of science and industry. The non-linear models now in vogue seem to shadow broad socioeconomic change in an uncanny fashion. But as academic scholars, one thing we surely want to avoid is a corrosion of the character of research... ... Read more

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Originally published in Swedish in 2002, Death, Modernity, and the Body explores the impact of modernization on customs and practices of treating the dead body in Sweden in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when intense social and cultural change transformed the country from an agricultural society to a modern industrial state. The book focuses on five arenas: medical research and education, displays of the dead body for entertainment purposes, funerary preparations of the body, memorial photography, and cremation. Ahren takes an original approach to the history of death in modern society by focusing on the dead body in intersecting cultural domains. Medical, scientific and technological history are thereby connected to popular culture, social and political history, as well as ethnography and anthropology. The scholarly literature on the history of death is disproportionately focused on the Anglophone world, France, and Germany; this study contributes to the scholarship by examining the case of Sweden, where modernization was exceptionally rapid and pervasive, and full of interesting particularities. ... Read more

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This book represents the first recent attempt to provide a comprehensive treatment of Sweden's economic development since the middle of the 18th century.It traces the rapid industrialisation, the political currents and the social ambitions, that transformed Sweden from a backward agrarian economy into what is now regarded by many as a model welfare state.
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The influence of old Sweden helped to make a Swede theSwede of today.This book is an insightful look at the influence ofheritage in producing national character.The history starts with theVikings and Sweden's early trading contacts with the ancients, Romeand Egypt.There are rebel heroes, Engelbrekt and Dacke, who becamelegends in the hearts of common folk.There are backgrounds onprominent poets, writers, artists, scientists, and inventors.Vividlydescribes the advent of repression, fire, pain and suffering thatcontributed to the molding of the contemporary Swedish citizen. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Good beginner's history
This was just what I was looking for and I really liked it. Like the series it is (Little History Series) you should expect a "little" history.This book is not an in-depth, all-inclusive history of Sweden, but it is a great starter book. I knew nothing of Swedish history and was overwhelmed by some of the larger volumes. I wanted something simple that I could read easily and gain a basic understanding of Swedish history. This book was perfect for that. I was able to read it quickly and become familiar with the basics. I feel that I am now ready to try to tackle a larger in-depth history. If you already have a general understanding of Swedish history and culture, this book probably isn't for you, but if you are a beginner without much knowledge of Swedish history, particularly of the royalty and wars, then this is a great starting place. I only gave it 4 stars though because I wished there were some maps showing where the places were located (since I also know nothing of Swedish geography) and perhaps a chronology chart.

NOT a great book
In this small book Jack R. Evans attempts an "all-you-wanted-to-know-about-Sweden" book.Unfortunately, his book is very uneven, and it reads like a collection of high-school termpapers on Swedish topics, with little connecting thread.His historicalsection ends with the establishment of the present royal house in 1818, hissection on religion devotes more to the mythical Sankta Lucia than toeither Christianity or the old faith, and sprinkled here and there are afew pages on Swedish inventors, foods and recipes.There is nothing onSwedish politics after the early nineteenth century, and almost nothing onthe contributions of Swedish-Americans to our national culture.On top ofthat, the book is terribly edited, with typos throughout, from"Lews," Delaware, as the name of the first Swedish settlement inAmerica (it's "Lewes") on page 1 to two different misspellings ofthe name for Swedish hot spiced wine on page 149. In a time whenword-processors can handle almost anything, there is little excuse forEvans' almost total omission of Swedish diacritical marks. There are manyfar better books. For starters, try Sweden: A Political and CulturalHistory by Eric Elstob, and Swedish Mentality by Ake Daun (my wife says shecan see me in this one!). ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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An important addition to the Societies at War series, this book covers the challenges, threats, and changes Sweden faced during the conflict.

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For centuries Sweden was a rather backward, relatively unknown country. It burst onto the world scene during the Viking Age, and then under the warrior kings Gustavus Adolphus and Charles XII in the 17th and 18th centuries, only to withdraw into isolation again. In this century, however, the country has been transformed and hailed as a model welfare state. The over 240 entries in this volume range from the Viking Age to the present day, but the emphasis is on personalities and events of the 20th century and Sweden's rapid social and economic evolution. Sweden's internal affairs are reflected in articles on economics, politicians and political parties, newspapers, parliament, trade unions, social welfare, education, religion, and the status of women. Foreign affairs are covered in such articles as Sweden and Finland, Union with Norway, Estonia, Nordic Council, the two World Wars, Neutrality, the United Nations, and the European Union. Cultural entries include Swedish theater, music, visual arts, literature and language, libraries, and cinema. Several Swedes of international fame have been included (e.g., Linneaus, Kreuger, Nobel, Palme, St. Birgitta, and Raoul Wallenberg). The dictionary is preceded by a chronology and an introduction which give the reader an overview of Swedish history. There is, finally, a substantial bibliography to assist further reading. ... Read more

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Shortly after the Augsburg peace settlement of 1555, from 1563 to 1576, the Holy Roman Empire was threatened by the rivalry between Denmark and Sweden. This title examines the empire's reaction to a foreign crisis, the Seven Years' War of the north, and the connection between foreign policy and internal imperial politics. As this study shows, and contrary to most assumptions, the empire, through its confederal structure, was able to provide effective means for defending the domestic order against external dangers. Further, the empire could conduct a common foreign policy to protect common interests. This study highlights the empire's internal organization and politics by introducing two new concepts: initiative and consensus. Initiative was possible on the basis of consensus, but as this study reveals, there were two specific limits on building consensus. First, the empire's polities could only support a common approach if they had common aims. Second, a united approach to an outside crisis had to foster the preservation of internal stability. Motivated by German commerce in the Baltic, the empire was persistent in trying to achieve peace in that region.The empire was not alone in its interest in the Scandinavian conflict, which threatened no less that the economic well-being of western Europe. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Groundbreaking research on European History
This book is an excellent example of how to synthesize a wide variety of archival and secondary resources. It provides a deep analysis the relationships between the Holy Roman Empire and the Scandinavian countries. There is much to learn from this book in order to understand European relationships with foreign countries. A must read! ... Read more

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Sweden has recently come to the attention to global strategic planners.This report puts these executives on the fast track.Ten chapters provide: an overview of how to strategically access this important market, a discussion on economic fundamentals, marketing & distribution options, export and direct investment options, and full risk assessments (political, cultural, legal, human resources).Ample statistical benchmarks and comparative graphs are given. ... Read more

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...With the coexistence of such contrasting and highly differentiated cultural and political currents in a territory linked albeit in a somewhat unhomogenous manner by a single language, Italy constitutes a perfect microcosm of the main intellectual currents present in 18th century Europe and from this historical perspective a significant case study in the complex dynamics that shaped the reception, influence and appropriation of the Linnaean revolution. In particular, it illustrates the process by which the works of a devotedly Protestant scientist gradually conquered a country that was, at least in appearance, devotedly Catholic. As emerges clearly from the overview provided by the essays published here, Linnaeustheories found both solid support and clamorous denial, underlining the subterranean mélange of personal, political, cultural and religious motives that influenced the diffusion of thenewnatural sciences as conceived by Linnaeus in Systema naturae....From the preface. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Plenty of footnoted scholarly references assure college-level readers receive the best in researched science history.
College-level libraries strong in science history will want to add LINNAEUS IN ITALY: THE SPREAD OF A REVOLUTION IN SCIENCE to their collections: it considers the evolution of both science and intellectual thinking in early 19th century Europe and uses Italy and one Linnaean revolution in particular to highlight changes in scientific thought. The scholarly essays to be found here consider Linnaeus' theories, their public representation and reception, and how these theories found support and controversy in all sectors of Italian society. Plenty of footnoted scholarly references assure college-level readers receive the best in researched science history.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch ... Read more

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This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's preservation reformatting program. The Library seeks to preserve the intellectual content of items in a manner that facilitates and promotes a variety of uses. The digital reformatting process results in an electronic version of the text that can both be accessed online and used to create new print copies. This book and thousands of others can be found in the digital collections of the University of Michigan Library. The University Library also understands and values the utility of print, and makes reprints available through its Scholarly Publishing Office. ... Read more

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This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing’s Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more