Christendom Destroyed: Europe 1517-1648 - Hardcover

Greengrass, Mark

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0713990864 ISBN 13: 9780713990867

Publisher: Allen Lane, 2014

Synopsis

Mark Greengrass's gripping, major, original account of Europe in an era of tumultuous change

SUNDAY TIMES and FINANCIAL TIMES Books of the Year 2014

This latest addition to the landmark Penguin History of Europe series is a fascinating study of 16th and 17th century Europe and the fundamental changes which led to the collapse of Christendom and established the geographical and political frameworks of Western Europe as we know it.

From peasants to princes, no one was untouched by the spiritual and intellectual upheaval of this era. Martin Luther's challenge to church authority forced Christians to examine their beliefs in ways that shook the foundations of their religion. The subsequent divisions, fed by dynastic rivalries and military changes, fundamentally altered the relations between ruler and ruled. Geographical and scientific discoveries challenged the unity of Christendom as a belief-community. Europe, with all its divisions, emerged instead as a geographical projection. It was reflected in the mirror of America, and refracted by the eclipse of Crusade in ambiguous relationships with the Ottomans and Orthodox Christianity. Chronicling these dramatic changes, Thomas More, Shakespeare, Montaigne and Cervantes created works which continue to resonate with us. Christendom Destroyed is a rich tapestry that fosters a deeper understanding of Europe's identity today.

'The Penguin History of Europe series ... is one of contemporary publishing's great projects' New Statesman

About this title

Review:

Mark Greengrass succeeds brilliantly in bringing to life a vanished world that is consistently strange and surprising-and sometimes disturbing and repellent-even as he encourages us to recognise the ways in which it prefigures our own (Peter Marshall Literary Review)

The Penguin History of Europe series ... is one of contemporary publishing's great projects (New Statesman)

With five volumes now out, the Penguin History of Europe series ... is shaping up to be the best general account available, superseding all previous ones (Economist)

Greengrass's learned book explores the bloody history of Europe . . . Nothing escapes Greengrass's gaze, from the arrival of pineapples to the making of maps. For sheer scholarly breadth, there is nothing to touch it this year (Dominic Sandbrook Sunday Times BOOKS OF THE YEAR)

The political and religious conflicts of early modern Europe receive high-quality treatment from Greengrass . . . But he also gives a detailed account of changes in ordinary people's lives, from diet and clothes to language, making the book an excellent addition to the new Penguin History of Europe (Tony Barber Financial Times BOOKS OF THE YEAR)

Christendom Destroyed captures a great deal of truth about the wrenching transitions of the early modern age. As difficult as this history is, Mr. Greengrass narrates it with admirable clarity and a notable lack of condescension (Jeffrey Collins Wall St Journal)

About the Author:

Mark Greengrass is Professor Emeritus at the University of Sheffield. His books include Governing Passions: Peace and Reform in the French Kingdoms, 1576-1585, France in the Age of Henri IV and The European Reformation, c.1500-1618.

About this edition

• Publisher: Allen Lane
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 0713990864
• ISBN 13: 9780713990867
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 752