Review:
"This book demonstrates the mastery Sverre Bagge has acquired through his immense and innovative work on state formation in Scandinavia. It will have enduring effects on future discussions because it is as peerless at describing and analyzing micro-processes as at integrating and comparing macro-processes from other parts of Europe."--Gerhard Althoff, University of Münster
"A tour de force. Cross and Scepter is a short, readable, and deeply learned introduction to the political and constitutional history of Scandinavia, written by Scandinavia's foremost medieval historian. No one else but Bagge could have achieved this with such apparent ease."--Patrick Geary, author of The Myth of Nations: The Medieval Origins of Europe
"A masterful survey of Scandinavian history in the Middle Ages. Bagge's writing has focus and drive without unduly skating over important details. The scholarship is superb, as one would expect from the leading Scandinavian medieval historian of his generation."--Anders Winroth, author of The Conversion of Scandinavia: Vikings, Merchants, and Missionaries in the Remaking of Northern Europe
"Bagge, one of the world's pre-eminent medieval historians, offers an introductory survey of early Scandinavian history that will be a welcome addition in the classroom. . . . Insightful, in-depth, and authoritative . . . Bagge's scholarly work will be of great use to those with interest in this oft-forgotten civilization."--Publishers Weekly
"Using clear language and avoiding narrowly academic concerns, Cross and Scepter is accessible to a broad audience. It will be useful to specialists wanting a regional perspective, but it also offers an excellent general overview for anyone curious about medieval Scandinavia after the Viking age."---Danny Yee, Danny Reviews
"Bagge presents his research in this thought-provoking work, masterfully weaving together the complex formation of Scandinavian states in an informative yet entertaining fashion that takes readers through the beginning of state formation in the Viking Age to the Reformation and its effects on Scandinavia. . . . Although the work is concise, Bagge's ability to present a detailed, well-researched history makes this an enjoyable read for general readers and scholars alike."--Choice
"With apparent ease, [Bagge] conflates a great range of details from a variety of sources into a well-readable outline of the complex political interrelations of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. . . . [His] present book is likely to become a popular primer for students."---Jan Alexander van Nahl, Mediaevistik
About the Author:
Sverre Bagge is professor emeritus of medieval history at the University of Bergen in Norway. His books include Kings, Politics, and the Right Order of the World in German Historiography.
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