Tagged: Europe

Dracula : Essays on the Life and Times of Vlad the Impaler

This book includes a wide range of studies on the life and times of Vlad III Dracula by leading historians and scholars from around the world. It presents a diversity of viewpoints, allowing the reader to understand the different historical perspectives with which Vlad is viewed in modern historiography. It also includes a wealth of supplementary materials, essential for anyone interested in learning about the life of Vlad the Impaler: translations of important documents concerning his reign; a genealogy of the family of Vlad the Impaler, translations from Turkish and Byzantine chronicles referring to the controversial Wallachian prince; a chronology, and an extensive bibliography of works on the life and times of Vlad the Impaler.

Magic and Magicians in the Middle Ages and the Early Modern Time: The Occult in Pre-Modern Sciences, Medicine, Literature, Religion, and Astrology

There are no clear demarcation lines between magic, astrology, necromancy, medicine, and even sciences in the pre-modern world. Under the umbrella term’magic,’the contributors to this volume examine a wide range of texts, both literary and religious, both medical and philosophical, in which the topic is discussed from many different perspectives. The fundamental concerns address issue such as how people perceived magic, whether they accepted it and utilized it for their own purposes, and what impact magic might have had on the mental structures of that time.

Beyond Boycotts : Sport During the Cold War in Europe

Sport during Cold War has recently begun to be studied in more depth. Some scholars have edited a book about the US and Soviet sport diplomacy and show ow the government of these two countries have used sport during this period, notably as a tool of’soft power’during the Olympic games. Our goal is to continue in this direction and to focus more on the sport field as a place of exchanges during the Cold War. Regarding this point, our aim is to show that there were events’beyond boycotts’many and that unknown connections existed inside sport.

Les loteries royales dans l’Europe des Lumieres

Un « impôt sur les imbéciles », une « friponnerie », un « jeu cruel », un « fléau inventé par le despotisme »… Les hommes des Lumières n’avaient pas de mots assez durs pour dénoncer la loterie royale, une institution que tous les États européens ont mis sur pied au xviiie siècle. Les souverains encourageaient donc la passion du jeu, l’oisiveté, et captaient sans vergogne l’épargne de leurs sujets ? Faire croire que l’on gagne, tandis que l’on perd toujours, n’était-ce pas le propre d’un État corrompu ? Ou bien doit-on plutôt considérer la loterie royale comme un outil d’ingénierie financière, le fruit d’une nouvelle rationalité publique ?