false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175395231m/511389.jpg 511389 1 <p>Henri Pirenne is best known for his provocative argument--known as the "Pirenne thesis" and familiar to all students of medieval Europe--that it was not the invasion of the Germanic tribes that destroyed the civilization of antiquity, but rather the closing of Mediterranean trade by Arab conquest in the seventh century. The consequent interruption of long distance commerce accelerated the decline of the ancient cities of Europe. Pirenne first formulated his thesis in articles and then expanded on them in Medieval Cities. In the book Pirenne traces the growth of the medieval city from the tenth century to the twelfth, challenging conventional wisdom by attributing the origins of medieval cities to the revival of trade. In addition, Pirenne describes the clear role the middle class played in the development of the modern economic system and modern culture. The "Pirenne thesis" was fully worked out in the book Mohammed and Charlemagne, which appeared shortly after Pirenne's death.</p><p> Pirenne was one of the world's leading historians and arguably the most famous Belgium had produced. During World War I, while teaching at the University of Ghent, he was arrested for supporting Belgium's passive resistance and deported to Germany, where he was held from 1916 to 1918. In 1922, universities in various parts of the United States invited him to deliver lectures: out of these lectures grew Medieval Cities, which appeared in English translation before being published in French in 1927.</p> 499385 1 4 1969 Medieval Cities: Their Origins and the Revival of Trade total:23|5:5|4:7|3:10|2:1|1:0| 23 85 49 2 3 0 false false Sat Oct 17 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 17 22:04:53 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 17 22:05:58 -0700 2009 It would help t...more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Jan 04 14:15:37 -0800 2008 Fri Jan 04 14:16:06 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Mon Nov 23 09:48:26 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 23 09:48:26 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Nov 13 14:14:32 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 13 14:14:34 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Oct 30 22:41:39 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 30 22:41:51 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Sep 03 14:53:14 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 03 14:53:14 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Jul 28 19:46:57 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 28 19:46:57 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Jul 07 19:23:34 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 07 19:23:34 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Jun 22 11:57:38 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 22 11:57:45 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat May 23 15:34:20 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 04 06:44:20 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Tue May 12 11:34:03 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 25 22:04:00 -0700 2009 Tue May 12 11:34:03 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Tue Apr 21 15:06:20 -0700 2009 Tue Apr 21 15:06:20 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Tue Feb 24 09:15:53 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 24 09:15:53 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Feb 16 12:32:58 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 16 12:33:01 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Wed Feb 18 10:31:43 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 12 09:13:02 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 18 10:31:43 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Wed Feb 04 01:57:46 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 04 01:57:50 -0800 2009 4 0 true false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Sun Jan 18 07:55:59 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 18 07:56:15 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Wed Jan 07 03:23:01 -0800 2009 Wed Jan 07 03:23:09 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Thu Jan 01 11:25:03 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 01 11:25:08 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 1998 Sun Dec 28 16:16:36 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 28 16:19:16 -0800 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=511389