Author: Peter H. Marshall
Publisher: Random House
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
In the late sixteenth century the greatest philosophers, alchemists, astronomers, painters and mathematicians flocked to Prague to work under the patronage of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II - an emperor more interested in the great minds of his times than in the exercise of his immense power. Rarely leaving Prague Castle, he gathered around himself a galaxy of celebrated figures: among them the painter Arcimboldo, thee astronomer Tycho Brahe, the mathematician Johannes Kepler, the philosopher Giordano Bruno and the magus John Dee. Fascinated by the new Renaissance learning, Rudolf found it nearly impossible to make decisions of state. Like Faust, he was prepared to risk all in the pursuit of magical knowledge and the Philosopher's Stone which would turn base metals into gold and prolong life indefinitely. But he also faced threats: religious discord, the Ottoman Empire, his own deepening melancholy and an ambitious younger brother. As a result he lost his empire and nearly his sanity. But he enabled Prague to enjoy a golden age of peace and creativity before Europe was engulfed in the Thirty Years' War. Filled with angels and devils, high art and low cunning, talismans and stars, The Mercurial Emperor offers a captivating perspective on a pivotal moment in the history of Western civilisation. 'An admirable and fascinating book.' Alex Butterworth, Observer 'An entertaining description of life at the heart of a Europe stained by the clash of new and old ideas...an enjoyable description of an extraordinary epoch.' Greg Neale, BBC History Magazine
The Mercurial Emperor
Author: Peter H. Marshall
Publisher: Random House
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
In the late sixteenth century the greatest philosophers, alchemists, astronomers, painters and mathematicians flocked to Prague to work under the patronage of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II - an emperor more interested in the great minds of his times than in the exercise of his immense power. Rarely leaving Prague Castle, he gathered around himself a galaxy of celebrated figures: among them the painter Arcimboldo, thee astronomer Tycho Brahe, the mathematician Johannes Kepler, the philosopher Giordano Bruno and the magus John Dee. Fascinated by the new Renaissance learning, Rudolf found it nearly impossible to make decisions of state. Like Faust, he was prepared to risk all in the pursuit of magical knowledge and the Philosopher's Stone which would turn base metals into gold and prolong life indefinitely. But he also faced threats: religious discord, the Ottoman Empire, his own deepening melancholy and an ambitious younger brother. As a result he lost his empire and nearly his sanity. But he enabled Prague to enjoy a golden age of peace and creativity before Europe was engulfed in the Thirty Years' War. Filled with angels and devils, high art and low cunning, talismans and stars, The Mercurial Emperor offers a captivating perspective on a pivotal moment in the history of Western civilisation. 'An admirable and fascinating book.' Alex Butterworth, Observer 'An entertaining description of life at the heart of a Europe stained by the clash of new and old ideas...an enjoyable description of an extraordinary epoch.' Greg Neale, BBC History Magazine
Publisher: Random House
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
In the late sixteenth century the greatest philosophers, alchemists, astronomers, painters and mathematicians flocked to Prague to work under the patronage of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II - an emperor more interested in the great minds of his times than in the exercise of his immense power. Rarely leaving Prague Castle, he gathered around himself a galaxy of celebrated figures: among them the painter Arcimboldo, thee astronomer Tycho Brahe, the mathematician Johannes Kepler, the philosopher Giordano Bruno and the magus John Dee. Fascinated by the new Renaissance learning, Rudolf found it nearly impossible to make decisions of state. Like Faust, he was prepared to risk all in the pursuit of magical knowledge and the Philosopher's Stone which would turn base metals into gold and prolong life indefinitely. But he also faced threats: religious discord, the Ottoman Empire, his own deepening melancholy and an ambitious younger brother. As a result he lost his empire and nearly his sanity. But he enabled Prague to enjoy a golden age of peace and creativity before Europe was engulfed in the Thirty Years' War. Filled with angels and devils, high art and low cunning, talismans and stars, The Mercurial Emperor offers a captivating perspective on a pivotal moment in the history of Western civilisation. 'An admirable and fascinating book.' Alex Butterworth, Observer 'An entertaining description of life at the heart of a Europe stained by the clash of new and old ideas...an enjoyable description of an extraordinary epoch.' Greg Neale, BBC History Magazine
The Magic Circle of Rudolf II
Author: Peter Marshall
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0802715516
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
An intriguing portrait of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II, heir to the Habsburg empire, focuses on the thirty-six-year reign and the extraordinary mathematicians, alchemists, artists, astronomers, and philosophers who made up his court--including Johannes Kepler, Tycho Brahe, Francis Bacon, and others--and made Prague the artistic and scientific center of Europe. 25,000 first printing.
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0802715516
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
An intriguing portrait of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II, heir to the Habsburg empire, focuses on the thirty-six-year reign and the extraordinary mathematicians, alchemists, artists, astronomers, and philosophers who made up his court--including Johannes Kepler, Tycho Brahe, Francis Bacon, and others--and made Prague the artistic and scientific center of Europe. 25,000 first printing.
The Boy from Bithynia
Author: John Jaie Palmero
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
ISBN: 1477133755
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 272
Book Description
During the first half of the second century CE, Hadrian, the 47-year-old Emperor of Rome met a beautiful young Greek named Antinous, in Bithynia, which is now northern Turkey. What followed shook the inflexible morality of Roman society and still creates discomfort among many western scholars nearly two thousand years later. This tragic tale follows the Emperor and Antinous from their initial meeting, the placement of the youth into a "finishing school for pages" in Rome and eventually at the boy's age of sixteen, the affair that intrigued an empire and scandalized Roman society. What follows next is a predestined journey through Greece, Asia Minor and eventually to Egypt, where fate and the gods decide to intervene. The relationship between Hadrian and Antinous raised the eyebrows of their contemporaries and the ire of the early Christians, yet the passion and pure essence of their connection remains as fresh and current today as it was during the second century. The contemporary chronicles of Hadrian's personality and the numerous sculptures of Antinous belie the qualities and power of both characters and make for a seductive, personal story told with clarity and supported by historical facts.
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
ISBN: 1477133755
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 272
Book Description
During the first half of the second century CE, Hadrian, the 47-year-old Emperor of Rome met a beautiful young Greek named Antinous, in Bithynia, which is now northern Turkey. What followed shook the inflexible morality of Roman society and still creates discomfort among many western scholars nearly two thousand years later. This tragic tale follows the Emperor and Antinous from their initial meeting, the placement of the youth into a "finishing school for pages" in Rome and eventually at the boy's age of sixteen, the affair that intrigued an empire and scandalized Roman society. What follows next is a predestined journey through Greece, Asia Minor and eventually to Egypt, where fate and the gods decide to intervene. The relationship between Hadrian and Antinous raised the eyebrows of their contemporaries and the ire of the early Christians, yet the passion and pure essence of their connection remains as fresh and current today as it was during the second century. The contemporary chronicles of Hadrian's personality and the numerous sculptures of Antinous belie the qualities and power of both characters and make for a seductive, personal story told with clarity and supported by historical facts.
Forging Modernity
Author: Martin Hutchinson
Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand
ISBN: 0718896866
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 452
Book Description
The Industrial Revolution provided the greatest increase in living standards the world has ever known while propelling Britain to dominance on the global stage. In Forging Modernity, Martin Hutchinson looks at how and why Britain gained this prize ahead of its European competitors. After comparing their endowments and political structures as far back as 1600, he then traces how Britain, through better policies primarily from the political Tory party, diverged from other European countries. Hutchinson’s Harvard MBA allows a unique perspective on the early industrial enterprises - many successes resulted from marketing, control systems and logistics rather than from production technology alone, while on a national scale the scientific method and commercial competition were as important as physical infrastructure. By 1830, through ever-improving policies, Britain had built a staggering industrial lead, half a century ahead of its rivals. Then the Tories lost power and policy changed forever. In his conclusion, Hutchinson shows how changes welcomed by conventional historians caused the decline of Industrial Britain. Nevertheless, the policies that drove growth, ingenuity and rising living standards are still available for those bold enough to adopt them.
Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand
ISBN: 0718896866
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 452
Book Description
The Industrial Revolution provided the greatest increase in living standards the world has ever known while propelling Britain to dominance on the global stage. In Forging Modernity, Martin Hutchinson looks at how and why Britain gained this prize ahead of its European competitors. After comparing their endowments and political structures as far back as 1600, he then traces how Britain, through better policies primarily from the political Tory party, diverged from other European countries. Hutchinson’s Harvard MBA allows a unique perspective on the early industrial enterprises - many successes resulted from marketing, control systems and logistics rather than from production technology alone, while on a national scale the scientific method and commercial competition were as important as physical infrastructure. By 1830, through ever-improving policies, Britain had built a staggering industrial lead, half a century ahead of its rivals. Then the Tories lost power and policy changed forever. In his conclusion, Hutchinson shows how changes welcomed by conventional historians caused the decline of Industrial Britain. Nevertheless, the policies that drove growth, ingenuity and rising living standards are still available for those bold enough to adopt them.
Twentieth-Century Germany: From Bismarck to Brandt
Author: A.J. Ryder
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1349001430
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 687
Book Description
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1349001430
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 687
Book Description
Antiquarianism and the Visual Histories of Louis XIV
Author: Robert Wellington
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351576402
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 287
Book Description
Antiquarianism and the Visual Histories of Louis XIV: Artifacts for a Future Past provides a new interpretation of objects and images commissioned by Louis XIV (1638-1715) to document his reign for posterity. The Sun King's image-makers based their prediction of how future historians would interpret the material remains of their culture on contemporary antiquarian methods, creating new works of art as artifacts for a future time. The need for such items to function as historical evidence led to many pictorial developments, and medals played a central role in this. Coin-like in form but not currency, the medal was the consummate antiquarian object, made in imitation of ancient coins used to study the past. Yet medals are often elided from the narrative of the arts of ancient r?me France, their neglect wholly disproportionate to the cultural status that they once held. This revisionary study uncovers a numismatic sensibility throughout the iconography of Louis XIV, and in the defining monuments of his age. It looks beyond the standard political reading of the works of art made to document Louis XIV's history, to argue that they are the results of a creative process wedded to antiquarianism, an intellectual culture that provided a model for the production of history in the grand si?e.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351576402
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 287
Book Description
Antiquarianism and the Visual Histories of Louis XIV: Artifacts for a Future Past provides a new interpretation of objects and images commissioned by Louis XIV (1638-1715) to document his reign for posterity. The Sun King's image-makers based their prediction of how future historians would interpret the material remains of their culture on contemporary antiquarian methods, creating new works of art as artifacts for a future time. The need for such items to function as historical evidence led to many pictorial developments, and medals played a central role in this. Coin-like in form but not currency, the medal was the consummate antiquarian object, made in imitation of ancient coins used to study the past. Yet medals are often elided from the narrative of the arts of ancient r?me France, their neglect wholly disproportionate to the cultural status that they once held. This revisionary study uncovers a numismatic sensibility throughout the iconography of Louis XIV, and in the defining monuments of his age. It looks beyond the standard political reading of the works of art made to document Louis XIV's history, to argue that they are the results of a creative process wedded to antiquarianism, an intellectual culture that provided a model for the production of history in the grand si?e.
Astronomy at the Frontiers of Science
Author: Jean-Pierre Lasota
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9400716583
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 368
Book Description
Astronomy is by nature an interdisciplinary activity: it involves mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology. Astronomers use (and often develop) the latest technology, the fastest computers and the most refined software. In this book twenty-two leading scientists from nine countries talk about how astronomy interacts with these other sciences. They describe modern instruments used in astronomy and the relations between astronomy and technology, industry, politics and philosophy. They also discuss what it means to be an astronomer, the history of astronomy, and the place of astronomy in society today.
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9400716583
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 368
Book Description
Astronomy is by nature an interdisciplinary activity: it involves mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology. Astronomers use (and often develop) the latest technology, the fastest computers and the most refined software. In this book twenty-two leading scientists from nine countries talk about how astronomy interacts with these other sciences. They describe modern instruments used in astronomy and the relations between astronomy and technology, industry, politics and philosophy. They also discuss what it means to be an astronomer, the history of astronomy, and the place of astronomy in society today.
Edmund Campion
Author: Richard Simpson
Publisher: TAN Books
ISBN: 1618906372
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 609
Book Description
Recount the life of Edmund Campion, saint and martyr in this newly revised and definitive version from TAN Books. A new and updated life of St. Edmund Campion, Simpson's classic biography has been thoroughly revised and enlarged by Fr. Peter Joseph. With a foreword by Cardinal Pell.
Publisher: TAN Books
ISBN: 1618906372
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 609
Book Description
Recount the life of Edmund Campion, saint and martyr in this newly revised and definitive version from TAN Books. A new and updated life of St. Edmund Campion, Simpson's classic biography has been thoroughly revised and enlarged by Fr. Peter Joseph. With a foreword by Cardinal Pell.
The Golem Returns
Author: Cathy S. Gelbin
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472117599
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 226
Book Description
Exploring the role of the golem in the formation of modern Jewish culture
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472117599
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 226
Book Description
Exploring the role of the golem in the formation of modern Jewish culture
The Origins of the Wars of German Unification
Author: William Carr
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317872037
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 254
Book Description
In his last book, the late William Carr provides a masterly account of the origins and impact of the three major wars fought by Prussia in creating the Bismarckian Reich of 1871. He begins with a study of the development of nationalism and liberalism from the late eighteenth century to the 1860's, before turning to a detailed examination of the Schleswig-Holstein Conflict of 1864; the `Six Weeks War' of 1866; and the Franco-Prussia War of 1870--71.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317872037
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 254
Book Description
In his last book, the late William Carr provides a masterly account of the origins and impact of the three major wars fought by Prussia in creating the Bismarckian Reich of 1871. He begins with a study of the development of nationalism and liberalism from the late eighteenth century to the 1860's, before turning to a detailed examination of the Schleswig-Holstein Conflict of 1864; the `Six Weeks War' of 1866; and the Franco-Prussia War of 1870--71.