War, State, and Society in England and the Netherlands 1477-1559.

From the library of Prof. Wolfgang Haase, long-time editor of ANRW and the International Journal of the Classical Tradition (IJCT). - Slightly rubbed jacket, otherwise very good and clean. / Leicht beriebener Umschlag, sonst sehr gut und sauber. - Exploring the effects of war on state power in early modern Europe, this book asks if military competition increased rulers� power over their subjects and forged more modern states, or if the strains of war broke down political and administrative systems. Comparing England and the Netherlands in the age of warrior princes such as Henry VIII and Charles V, it examines the development of new military and fiscal institutions, and asks how mobilization for war changed political relationships throughout society. Towns in England, such as Norwich, York, Exeter, and Rye, are compared with towns in the Netherlands, such as Antwerp, Leiden, �s-Hertogenbosch and Valenciennes, to see how the magistrates� relations with central government and the urban populace were modified by war. Great noblemen from the Howard and Percy families are set alongside their equivalents from the houses of Croy and Egmond to examine the role of recruitment, army command, and heroic reputation in maintaining noble power. The wider interactions of subjects and rulers in wartime are reviewed to measure how effectively war extended princes� claims on their subjects� loyalty and service, their ambitions to control news and opinion and to promote national identity, and their ability to manage the economy and harness religious change to dynastic purposes. The result is a compelling but nuanced picture of societies and polities tested and shaped by the pressures of ever more demanding warfare. - Contents: I WAR AND THE STATE -- 1. Polities at War -- 2. Military Institutions and Fiscal Growth -- II TOWNS AT WAR -- 3. Introduction -- 4. Urban Military Resources -- 5. Life During Wartime -- 6. War and Urban Government -- 7. Towns in the Polity -- 8. War, Towns, and the State -- III NOBLES AT WAR -- 9. Introduction -- 10. The Military Resources of the Nobility -- 11. Nobles in Command -- 12. Costs and Rewards -- 13. War and Noble Power -- 14. War and Noble Identity -- 15. War, Nobles, and the State -- IV SUBJECTS AT WAR -- 16. Introduction -- 17. Obligations -- 18. Information and Response -- 19. The Trials of War -- 20. War and Identity -- 21. War, Subjects, and the State -- V CONCLUSION -- War, State, and Society. ISBN 9780199207503