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Ecstatic Transformation: On the Uses of Alterity in the Middle Ages by Michael Uebel (The New Middle Ages: Palgrave Macmillan) studies the manner in which medieval ways of knowing the Oriental "other" were constructed around the idea of a utopic East as located in the legend and Letter of Prester John (c. 1160). The birth of utopic thinking, it argues, is tied to an understanding of alterity having as much to do with the ways the medieval West understood itself as the manner in which the foreign was mapped. Drawing upon the insights of cultural studies, film studies, and psychoanalysis, this book rethinks the contours of the known and the unknown in the medieval period. It demonstrates how the idea of otherness intersected in intricate ways with other categories of difference (spatial, gender, and religious). Scholars in the fields of history as well as literary and religious studies will be interested in the manner in which the book considers the formal dimensions of how histories of the Oriental "other" were written and lived. More

Secret Societies Of The Middle Ages: The Assassins, Templars & the Secret Tribunals of Westphalia by Thomas Keightley, James Wasserman (Weiser Books) explores the foundations of modern secret societies, examining the history and known facts of three very different organizations. More

The Conservative Revolutionaries: The Protestant and Catholic Churches in Germany after Radical Political Change in the 1990s by Barbara Theriault (Monographs in German History: Berghahn Books) During the forty years of division, the Protestant and Catholic churches in Germany were the only organizations to retain strong ties and organizational structures: they embodied continuity in a country marked by discontinuity. As such, the churches were both expected to undergo smooth and rapid institutional consolidation and undertake an active role in the public realm of the new eastern German states in the 1990s. Yet critical voices were heard over the West German system of church-state relations and the public role it confers on religious organizations, and critics often expressed the idea that despite all their difficulties, something precious was lost in the collapse of the German democratic republic. Against this backdrop, the author delineates the conflicting conceptions of the Protestant and Catholic churches' public role and pays special attention to the East German model, or what is generally termed the "positive experiences of the GDR and the Wende." 

Nature in German History by Christof Mauch (Berghahn Books) Germany is a key test case for the burgeoning field of environmental history; in no other country has the landscape been so thoroughly politicized throughout its past as in Germany, and in no other country have ideas of `nature' figured so centrally in notions of national identity. The essays collected in this volume — the first collection on the subject in either English or German — place discussions of nature and the human relationship with nature in their political contexts. Taken together, they trace the gradual shift from a confident belief in humanity's ability to tame and manipulate the natural realm to the Umweltbewujl'tsein driving the contemporary conservation movement. Nature in German History also documents efforts to reshape the natural realm in keeping with ideological beliefs — such as the Romantic exultation of `the wild' and the Nazis' attempts to eliminate `foreign' flora and fauna — as well as the ways in which political issues have repeatedly been transformed into discussions of the environment in Germany. More

Jacob Burckhardt's Social and Political Thought by Richard Sigurdson (University of Toronto Press) Best known as the author of The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy, Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt (1818—97) is one of the most important figures in the development of European historiography. His critique of modernity and his emphasis on the importance of cultural history have helped to shape intellectual history in Europe, as have his analyses of political power, particularly those concerning totalitarianism. In this work, the first book-length study in English of Burckhardt's political and social thought, Richard Sigurdson explores the major themes in Burckhardt's political writings: the relationship between the individual and mass society, the tensions between equality and excellence, the quality and nature of culture in a mass age, and the role of the intellectual in the modern world.

Sigurdson's study sheds light on some of the most enduring elements of Burckhardt's life and work, while engaging the reader in disputes over fundamental issues in intellectual history. Of particular interest is an extensive discussion of Burckhardt's relationship with Friedrich Nietzsche, who regarded the older man as a spiritual kin and intellectual mentor. A unique and fascinating portrait of Burckhardt and his contribution, this book fills a significant gap in the literature, and will appeal to historians of social and political ideas, as well as historiographers, political theorists, philosophers, and cultural historians.

This is a book about the political ideas of the nineteenth-century Swiss cultural historian Jacob Burckhardt (1818-97). He is one of those thinkers relatively well known among educated people, but not so prominent as to be immediately recognizable by everyone. His book on The Culture of the Renaissance in Italy (1860) is still widely read by successive new cohorts of students and scholars. As well, his name crops up in studies of European history, culture, art, architecture, painting, and so on. He is usually regarded as a venerable old-style scholar with wise things to say on a number of weighty topics. Aside from his groundbreaking hypothesis about the nature of the Renaissance, his lectures on the Greeks and his reflections on the general course of events in world history are the most often quoted by learned writers. There are also many Burckhardt admirers among professional historiographers and philosophers of history. His pioneering work in cultural history and his emphasis on historical style, they tell us, provide useful lessons for contemporary scholars. Of course, there is also a small but hard-core group of devoted Burckhardt scholars who have mined the archives and produced a treasure trove of scholarship. Primarily their work is published in German, though there is a rich and profound English-language literature as well. The cradle of Burckhardt scholarship is at his home university in his beloved home city of Basel, Switzerland, where monumental efforts have been made to disseminate his work, analyse its historical significance, and celebrate his achievements. Most stunning in this regard is the complete, critical edition of Burckhardt's writings currently under preparation. Twenty-seven volumes are planned, some of which have now appeared. The final work will include multiple volumes containing previously unpublished or partially published material.

I have the greatest respect for the work of the true Burckhardt scholars. But I admit that I come to the topic from the margins of this industry. For one thing, unlike most of the serious writers on Burckhardt I am a political scientist and not a historian. As such, my interest is mainly in Burckhardt's social and political ideas. That's what this book is about. In particular, I am intrigued by his culture critique of modernity, and by his analysis of the distinctive features of the politics of the modern world. I am also fascinated with Burckhardt's place within the history of European political thinking. With this book I hope to make a modest contribution to the larger project of intellectual history, especially to the study of the history of social and political ideas of the tumultuous nineteenth century. My objective is not to advocate Burckhardt's political point of view. Rather, it is to explicate his political views, which have been previously under-appreciated, and to give his ideas the kind of careful consideration that might spur on others to engage in further examination and critical analysis.

A secondary aim of this book is to help introduce Burckhardt to a larger English-speaking academic audience. In this spirit, I've tried to gear the contents of the book to a wide readership, including political scientists, cultural critics, humanists, social scientists, European specialists, and anyone else interested in the general intellectual history of the nineteenth century. Of course, I hope that Burckhardt specialists too will find something of worth in these pages. I use the most accessible sources, quoting from the standard English translations when-ever possible. Original texts in German are used where necessary, though the publication of the complete critical edition was not under-way in time for me to consult this definitive source.

Like Karl Marx, who was born in the same year as he, Burckhardt was a keen analyst and powerful critic of modern capitalism, with its ethos of materialism and consumerism. But unlike Marx, who envisioned the dictatorship of the proletariat and the violent overthrow of the bourgeoisie as the avenues towards emancipation, Burckhardt anticipated a dictatorship of an altogether different type and greatly feared that it would grant power to the worst types of people and unleash a spirit of revenge that would annihilate freedom and individuality. Specifically, he feared that mass democracy and popular rule would result in a new kind of despotism — not direct rule by the masses themselves, but a dictatorship of unscrupulous leaders who would enhance and justify their power on the basis that they alone could serve the will of the people. Burckhardt foresaw a new `Caesarism' — a form of rule that arises from lack of genuine authority and from mass willingness to be led by anyone, even by the most violent usurpers and demagogues (characters he famously dubbed `terribles simplificatenrs'). Like Alexis de Tocqueville and J.S. Mill, Burckhardt saw in the drive towards greater equality and political participation a serious threat to individual liberty and cultural freedom. But unlike them, he saw no redeeming features in the liberal and democratic spirit of the age.

Burckhardt none the less carved out a distinctive place for himself within the group of distinguished scholars and thinkers who flourished in Basel's welcoming intellectual climate. His original contributions to cultural history and art criticism are best known, but his teachings and writings cover a wide range of themes – from music and architecture to politics and religion. As well, he remained highly engaged with many key social and political questions, commenting on many in his lectures and letters. This book focuses primarily on the distinctiveness and significance of these social and political aspects of Burckhardt's unique worldview. As well as examining his commentary on such matters as democracy, freedom, power, and the state, my study of Burckhardt's political thinking entails a good deal of attention to his 'philosophy of history' (a term that Burckhardt would reject, since he was not 'philosophical'). Most telling in this regard are his analyses of the intricate relationships between history and philosophy and between culture and politics. Finally, any discussion of Burckhardt's politics leads to the question of his relationship to Nietzsche, who looms so large in modern political philosophy.

Hence the plan for the rest of this book is as follows: Part I, 'Burckhardt and the Birth of Cultural History,' contains the first three chapters. In chapter 1 I argue, contrary to many Burckhardt scholars, that Burckhardt's political reflections are neither frivolous nor irrelevant. More specifically, this chapter combines biographical information about Burckhardt with an analysis of his major writings in order to challenge the notion that Burckhardt was simply a cultural historian and not a serious political thinker. Chapter 2 examines the confrontation between Burckhardt's 'cultural history' (Kulturgeschichte) and modern 'political history,' especially as it is represented by Ranke and the nationalist historians of the Prussian-German school. Chapter 3 traces the foundations of Burckhardt's cultural history in response to Schopenhauer and reaction to Hegel and explains its methods – contemplation, the search for aristocratic style, and poetic history – and its implications for politics and culture. Chapters 4 to 6 make up Part II, 'Burckhardt's Political Analysis.' Chapter 4 begins a more focused discussion of the specifics of Burckhardt's politics. Its key organizing principles are Burckhardt's pessimism and scepticism, his organicism, his view of human nature, and his concept of historical greatness. Chapter 5 explores the interconnections between Burckhardt's concepts of freedom, the state, and society, including a critical analysis of his relations to thinkers such as Tocqueville, Mill, Humboldt, and Burke. The final chapter examines the crucial issue of Burckhardt's relation to Friedrich Nietzsche, including an analysis of the political importance of the similarities and the profound differences in their social and political thinking, which confirm Burckhardt's ultimate humanism.