Early Modern Europe, 1450–1789

Cambridge History of Europe

by Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks

Covering European history from the invention of the printing press to the French Revolution, this accessible and engaging textbook offers an innovative account of people's lives, from a variety of backgrounds, in the early modern period and within the global context of European developments. Six central topics - individuals in society, politics and power, cultural and intellectual life, religion, economics and technology - are explored in two chronological sections, 1450-1600 and 1600-1789. The text takes in Europe in its entirety, eastward to the Ottoman Empire, northward to Sweden, and southward to Portugal, includes European colonies overseas, and integrates religious, ethnic, gender, class, and regional differences. Students are encouraged to think about continuities as well as changes across this formative period and throughout the text, maps, illustrations, timelines, and textboxes of original sources and featured topics illuminate the narrative. Online resources include primary source material, music examples and regularly updated bibliographies.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, European History, Academic, School, 16th Century, Historical

510 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2006

About the author

Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison) taught first at Augustana College in Illinois, and since 1985 at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where she is currently UWM Distinguished Professor in the department of history. She is the coeditor of the Sixteenth Century Journal and the author or editor of more than twenty books, most recently The Marvelous Hairy Girls: The Gonzales Sisters and Their Worlds and Gender in History. She is the former Chief Reader for Advanced Placement World History.

Reviews

[Costas... · Rating 5 out of 5]

Άκρως ενδιαφέρουσα εργασία. Περιγράφει ικανοποιητικότατα μια ευρεία γκάμα θεμάτων από τη χρονική περίοδο της πρώιμης νεωτερικότητας. Θέματα που αφορούν τόσο τις ευρύτερες πτυχές της συλλογικής συγκρότησης των μεταβατικών κοινωνιών της εποχής από το 1450 μέχρι το 1789, όσο και θέματα οικονομίας και εμπορίου, υψηλής πολιτικής, ιστορίας των επιστημών, ακόμη και στρατιωτικής ιστορίας. Εξαιρετικό στυλ γραφής που δεν κουράζει τον αναγνώστη (εδώ υποθέτω έκανε καλή δουλειά και η μεταφράστρια) και βαθιά γνώση της πραγματευόμενης περιόδου, στοιχεία που επιτρέπουν στη συγγραφέα να εστιάζει όποτε πρέπει -με ιδιαίτερη ευστοχία- στις λεπτομέρειες χωρίς να χάνει καθόλου σε ποιότητα η αφήγηση της κεντρική ιστορίας.

[Tuncay Özdemir · Rating 5 out of 5]

Günümüz dünyasına büyük ölçüde şekil veren iki büyük devrim var: biri siyasal sonuçlarıyla Fransız Devrimi, diğeri ekonomik sonuçlarıyla Sanayi Devrimi. İşte bu kitap hayatın çok da fazla değişmediği orta çağdan hayatın yıkıcı bir şekilde değişeceği bu devrimlere kadarki süreci, yani bu devrimlerin altyapısını oluşturan gelişmeleri, haliyle merkezi Avrupa olacak şekilde anlatıyor.

Dönem 1450-1600 ve 1600-1789 şeklinde ikiye ayrılmış. Bu iki dönemle ilgili olarak sadece siyasi meseleler değil, ekonomi, sanat, edebiyat, teknoloji ve gündelik yaşama dair de birçok ayrıntı sunulmuş. Aralarda arşivlerden çıkma ilginç anekdotlar, görseller de verilmiş. Özellikle 1600 sonrasında dünyanın merkezinin çok net bir şekilde Akdeniz'den Atlas Okyanusuna kaydığını görebiliyorsunuz. İlk dönemde Osmanlı ve İtalyan devletleri büyük oyuncularken, ikinci dönemde önce İspanya & Portekiz, sonra ise İngiltere & Fransa ve Hollanda ön plana çıkıyor.

[Bertrand · Rating 3 out of 5]

A history text-book for undergrads with a commandable attempt at problematising the major terms. The introduction, on the titular notions of (early) modernity and of Europe is concise and intelligent. The writing is lively and precise, with just the right amount of anecdotes and primary sources. The bibliographies are thorough and must have been up to date when published.
The book stands out for its interest in women's experience in the period, and its inclusion of the Ottoman Empire within the boundaries of Europe. Some attention is also given to European Jews and Muslims. The format of the book, however, means that such a broad scope leaves a lot out (in particular as far as the arts and religions are concerned). All the same it is an enjoyable read, and it provided me with the grounding I was hoping for.

[Moses · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wiesner-Hanks's book is a careful and readable study of the period, with a distinct emphasis on women's roles and gender hierarchies throughout the period. That emphasis, although no doubt interesting to some, probably detracted somewhat from the quality of this book as a survey of the period. Every author of history has to decide what to include, and what to exclude, in the limited space available. Wiesner-Hanks probably thinks that other textbooks have focused too much on, say, battlefield tactics and warfare, but she has gone too far in the other direction.

[Utku · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yeni Çağ'ın yani erken modern dönemin Avrupa'sını akıcı bir şekilde ve yoğun bilgiyle anlatan bir tarih kitabı. Dolu dolu bir kitap. Tarihçi olmamama rağmen ilgiyle okudum.

[Spyros Stavroulakis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Το εν λόγω βιβλίο μου το πρότεινε φίλος ιστορικός όταν του ζήτησα κάποιο βιβλίο να καλύπτει την ιστορία της Ευρώπης κυρίως το 17ο και το 18ο αιώνα. Αφορμή ήταν η παντελής άγνοια μου για πολέμους όπως ο Τριακονταετής, ο Επταετής ή της Ισπανικής Διαδοχής. Όμως προς μεγάλη μου απογοήτευση ελάχιστα ασχολείται το σύγγραμμα με αυτά τα γεγονότα ως γεγονότα. Αντίθετα εστιάζει στις αιτίες και συνέπειες των γεγονότων, στην επιρροή και στην εξέλιξη της θρησκείας, στην οικονομία και το εμπόριο παγκοσμίως και σε θέματα όπως το πώς ζούσε ο απλός κόσμος, κοινωνία και οικογένεια, επιστήμη και τέχνες. Αποτέλεσμα είναι να μην είναι ιδιαίτερα διασκεδαστικό αφού απουσιάζουν αυτά τα οποία ζητούσα.
Δεν μπορώ να παραβλέψω όμως ότι πρόκειται για ένα άρτιο βιβλίο, που ότι καταπιάνει το ξεψαχνίζει, παρέχει πλήθος πληροφοριών και απλά μάλλον απευθύνεται σε άλλο κοινό.

[Emrah Sever · Rating 5 out of 5]

gerçekten keyifle okudum. anlatımı ve anlaşılması en iyi eserlerden

[Barbaros · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wiesner-Hanks hem historiyografi dersi veriyor hem de bugünün inşa edildiği erken modern dönemin hemen her yönünü analiz ediyor. Siyaset, toplum, birey, din, savaş, yemek, sanat, ticaret, kültür, teknoloji, bilim ve daha pek çok katman.

Kitap Rankeci tarih yazımı ile "aşağıdan tarih" yaklaşımını homojen bir şekilde birleştirmiş. Okur Fransız sarayına da giriyor, bir matbaa çırağının yaşam koşullarına da şahit oluyor.

Özellikle tarihte kendine yer edinememiş sessiz kitlelerin analizi büyük resmin eksik parçalarını doldurmuş.

Yazarın Avrupa anlatısına Türkleri, Yahudileri ve Rusları da dahil etmesi bütüncül bir resim oluşmasını sağlıyor.

Her bölümün sonunda kaynakçaya ek olarak geniş bir okuma listesi sunulmuş. Birincil ve ikincil, çok geniş bir literatürden yararlanılmış.

Panoramik bir erken modern dönem okuması yapmak isteyene ısrarla tavsiyedir. Hacmi korkutmasın, sayfa sayısıyla ters orantılı bir hızda okunuyor.

[Nele · Rating 4 out of 5]

very well written. The text flows quite easily, which is an accomplishment for a history book that spans such a long period and covers such complicated subjects. The writer is clearly interested in womens history and she regularly puts in passages about womens stories, which is ok, but sometimes feels a bit unnecessary.

[Kris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an easy to read book that covers all important aspects of this period. Not just wars and kings but also how people lived and how they viewed the world is covered. It has a subtle pro English bias in both focus and opinion.

[Thorunn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Áhugaverð, vel skrifuð og fjallar um marga þætti sem hafa yfirleitt ekki verið mikið til umfjöllunar í almennum mannkynssögubókum - eins og konur, gyðinga og múslima, verslun, þrælahald og nýlenduvæðinguna.

[Gökhan]

History books especially are boring but Hanks's this book is different others. It's easy-reading. It's not finished and i will write my opinion after that.

[Bridgett Johnson-Pride · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the more enjoyable history text books I have ever read! Very understandable and well organized.

[Seyyah Kudema · Rating 4 out of 5]

Günümüzde moda olan cinsiyet çalışması temelli bölümleri olmasa daha net bir kitap olabilirdi.

[Emma Nordin · Rating 5 out of 5]

She is definitely one of our time’s best historians

[Nadvornix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprisingly readable.

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was required reading for my Renaissance and Reformation class this term. The textbook was easy to read, and featured a lot of interesting information. I appreciate when the course materials are educational AND interesting.

[Kaya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very well written and easy to read which is good for a history book of this size. It was very detailed too & surprisingly wasn't at all boring :)

[Yasemen · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I love most about this historian is how they take history out of the narrow frame of wars and rulers, and instead tell it like a novel that follows the stories of real people. In this book, which I truly enjoyed, it may seem at first that the author is simply describing a slice of Europe, but through its structure, the book manages to capture the broader web of connections with the world, as well as links to both past and future events. I found this approach incredibly successful, as it turns what could have been a static snapshot into a dynamic picture of an entire era.

The division of chapters and the way the book is split into two main parts create a rhythm that keeps the reader engaged without ever feeling overwhelmed. Unlike many other history books that require constant side research, this one can be read on its own, while still leaving room for curious readers to explore more through additional sources. This design makes history more approachable and helps build genuine historical literacy.

Another strength of the book is how it reflects every aspect of life, human relationships, economy, politics, daily life, even sexuality, offering a mirror to the time and making it easier to imagine and reconstruct that period. Before each topic, the author provides a short, clear summary of what the reader needs to know, which both refreshes the mind and prepares the context efficiently. The flow is also remarkable: the author introduces the consequences or significance of events exactly at the moment when the reader begins to wonder about them, making the narrative smooth and deeply engaging.

[Nunzio Cicone · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book never quite transcends it's textbook status and is bit of a dry read. That said, it is a very good textbook providing vast information with plenty of entertaining fun facts sprinkled throughout. I found it very useful as a way to contextualize other reading I've done taking place in the time of history. That said, if you aren't the sort of person already reading books about this time period or in a classroom I wouldn't recommend it.

[inger anne gresset · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ikke veldig «spennende» i den grad, men en lettlest pensumbok i historie. Boken har et forståelig språk og oversiktlig indeks og overskrifter som var lett å følge. Den dekker europeiske forhold fra renessansen frem til den franske revolusjonen, men omhandler ikke bare forhold på kontinentet, også globale perspektiver som kolonialisering og handel.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was more of an introductory college text on the period than what I had anticipated. Many of the positions and essays come across as being exercises in reiterating academic convention versus providing insight.

[Dennis Hill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Can we take this as serious history text book when there are no references to anything in here. It reads well but can we believe her ?? Surely a book from Cambridge should give its sources. Am I alone in this belief?

Thanks

Dennis

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a an OK text book. (I was a bit more interested in the political history but this is a survey.)

[Mina M · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 I guess? Read it for uni.

[Marcela · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF @ 11%

[James Shorto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Studied this exact subject during my degree and it was all I needed for the entire unit, very well put together, thorough and interesting.

[Tuukka Hahl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informatiivinen mutta melko raskas tenttikirja.

[James S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

A decent textbook, nothing special. Too much emphasis on social issues and not enough on geopolitics for my taste.

[Adeline Hanson]

This damn textbook absorbed so many hours in which I could have been reading something I wanted to read therefore it’s gonna be contributing to my 2025 reading goal 🤪