This book makes two distinctive contributions to one of the most fundamental debates in modern European history. First, it presents readable and judicious accounts of the events and decisions directly precipitating the outbreak of war in each of the main belligerent countries; second, it assesses th[...]

This book addresses a number of interrelated themes over two hundred years and more in the political, religious, cultural, and social history of a broad but often neglected swathe of the European continent. It seeks - against the grain of conventional presentations - to apprehend the era from the la[...]

This is the first collection of its kind, with a broad European coverage and very international team of authors. It shows how modern states and societies have used the history of the Middle Ages to legitimize themselves, and draws on some of the most famous and fascinating medieval themes, from Icel[...]