Historie og samfunn

A unique account of how decolonization affected European integration. Explains the international challenges that led to the formation of the Single Market then the European Union in the 1990s, and explains why the EU is still portrayed as an "economic giant" but a "political dwarf" today.

The Routledge Reader on the Sociology of Music offers the first collection of source readings and new essays on the latest thinking in the sociology of music. Interest in music sociology has increased dramatically over the past decade, yet there is no anthology of essential and introductory readings. The volume includes a comprehensive survey of the field¿s history, current state and future research directions. It offers six source readings, thirteen popular contemporary essays, and sixteen fresh, new contributions, along with an extended Introduction by the editors. The Routledge Reader on the Sociology of Music represents a broad reference work that will be a resource for the current generation of sociologically inclined musicologists and musically inclined sociologists, whether researchers, teachers or students.

I denne ekstraordinære reportasjeboken, vender Kapka Kassabova tilbake til Bulgaria, landet hun emigrerte fra tjuefem år tidligere. Hun er der for å utforske grensen landet deler med Tyrkia og Hellas. Da hun var barn var det enklere å komme seg inn i Vesten her enn over Berlinmuren der det myldret av soldater og spioner. Kassabova kommer tilbake til en grense som har blitt formet av historiekreftene. Boken hennes består av utsøkte portretter av smuglere, skattejegere, botanikere og grensevakter. Det er også de fillete menn og kvinner som har vandret over Tyrkia fra Syria og Irak. Men det ser ut til å være ikke -menneskelige krefter i arbeid også her: Dette tett skogkledde landskapet er rikt på helbredende kilder og tragiske gravlunder, og den antikke verdens fortid er aldri langt unna. Grensen er en glimrende, oppslukende reisefortelling som også viser frem skyggesiden av den kalde krigen og et skråblikk på migrasjonskrisen som plager Europa.

New edition of the most comprehensive survey of modern architecture in Africa to date that explores the close relationship between architecture and nation building after African countries gained independence from their former colonial powers.

From Finland to Newfoundland and Jelling to Jerusalem, follow in the wake of the Vikings-a transformative story of a people that begins with paganism and ends in Christendom. In AD 800, the Scandinavians were just barbarians in longships. Though they held sway in the north, their power meant little more than the ability to pillage and plunder, which they did to bolster their status at home. But as these Norse warriors left their strongholds to trade, raid, and settle across wide areas of Europe, Asia, and the North Atlantic, their violent and predatory culture left a unique imprint on medieval history. The twist that no one predicted, however, was a much slower, insidious takeover than any the Vikings would execute, and by a turn of the tide, they themselves became its target. For as they made their mark on Europe, Europe made its mark on them. By the year 1200, what remained of the Vikings' pagan origins floated beneath the surface and the strong, strange territories of the north had become a part of Latin Christendom.Northmen is there to tell the tale, to pay homage to what was lost and celebrate what was won. Focusing on key events, including the sack of Lindisfarne in 793 and the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066, medieval history expert John Haywood recounts the saga of the Viking Age, from the creation of the world through to the dwindling years of halfhearted raids and elegiac storytelling in the thirteenth century. He does so with meticulous research, engaging narrative, and sensitivity for his subject, shedding light and blood along the way.

This book introduces the reader to the times and upheavals during which Maximus lived. It makes available a selection of Maximus' theological treaties, many of them translated for the first time.

I denne boken trekkes linjene gjennom 50 år av Lillesands historie, fra 1800 til 1850.Den innledes med en rundtur i ladestedet Lillesand og gjennom sognene Vestre Moland og Høvåg, med oversikt over innbyggerne og deres yrker. Deretter er årene 1800-1814 tema, med fokus på hvordan området klarte seg i ly av nøytralitet fram til 1807, og deretter i krig. Så settes søkelyset på sogneprest og eidsvollsmann Hans Jacob Grøgaard i mirakelåret 1814, før næringslivet generelt og skipsfarten spesielt er tema. Dette leder fram til kapitlet om fellesoppgaver og lokalt selvstyre. Boken avsluttes med kapitler om skole, en tidlig utvandring og Marcus Thranes arbeiderbevegelse.

'The Book that really held me, in fact, obsessed me, was Rubicon . . . This is narrative history at its best. Bloody and labyrinthine political intrigue and struggle, brilliant oratory, amazing feats of conquest and cruelty' Ian McEwan, Books of the Year, Guardian'Marvellously readable' Niall FergusonThe Roman Republic was the most remarkable state in history. What began as a small community of peasants camped among marshes and hills ended up ruling the known world. Rubicon paints a vivid portrait of the Republic at the climax of its greatness - the same greatness which would herald the catastrophe of its fall. It is a story of incomparable drama. This was the century of Julius Caesar, the gambler whose addiction to glory led him to the banks of the Rubicon, and beyond; of Cicero, whose defence of freedom would make him a byword for eloquence; of Spartacus, the slave who dared to challenge a superpower; of Cleopatra, the queen who did the same.Tom Holland brings to life this strange and unsettling civilization, with its extremes of ambition and self-sacrifice, bloodshed and desire. Yet alien as it was, the Republic still holds up a mirror to us. Its citizens were obsessed by celebrity chefs, all-night dancing and exotic pets; they fought elections in law courts and were addicted to spin; they toppled foreign tyrants in the name of self-defence. Two thousand years may have passed, but we remain the Romans' heirs.

"An account of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the forging of a leader, The Showman provides an insider's perspective on the war reshaping our world, based on unprecedented access to Volodymyr Zelensky and the high command in Kyiv."--

A gripping exploration of the fall of Constantinople and its connection to the world we live in today.The fall of Constantinople in 1453 signaled a shift in history and the end of the Byzantium Empire. Roger Crowley's readable and comprehensive account of the battle between Mehmet II, sultan of the Ottoman Empire, and Constantine XI, the 57th emperor of Byzantium, illuminates the period in history that was a precursor to the current conflict between the West and the Middle East.

Suitable for aviation buffs, covering the enduring impact that aircraft has on society as an object of curiosity, a symbol of luxury, and an essential weapon of war, this title is all about the men, machines, and landmark technology behind the iconic aircraft from the Supermarine Spitfire to the Concorde.

A reassessment of the 20th century exploring topics such as the breakdown of the Old World, the lack of international accord, the failure of the Arts in recent years and the influence of the Third World.

Jomsviking er første bok i en serie som følger livet til Torstein Tormodson. Året er 993. Under et angrep øst i Viken ser unge Torstein faren bli drept på grufullt vis. Selv blir han ført bort som trell. Det går mot ufred i Norge. Olav Tryggvason vil ha makten i landet og gjøre Hvite-Krist til den nye guden. Med inngående kjennskap til perioden og et skarpt blikk for detaljer bringer forfatteren oss tett på Torstein Tormodson, som skal oppleve trelleslit og fredløs tilværelse før han står frem som fryktet kriger og leiesoldat. Underveis veves skjebnen hans sammen med Olav Tryggvasons. Jomsviking er en bredt anlagt fortelling fra dramatiske år i norsk historie, med skildringer av legendariske hendelser som slaget ved Svolder og trellen Karks drap på Håkon Jarl. Jomsviking er første bok i en serie som følger livet til Torstein Tormodson, en mann som mot alle odds reiste seg mot kongsmakt og tyranni. Dette er en bok for alle fans av fjernsynsserien Vikings.

Vi inviteres med på en sjeldent spennende og lærerik reise i vår tids politiske historie. Gjennom portretter av Storbritannias statsministere fra de siste 115 årene går ferden fra verdens største koloniimperium på overgangen fra 1800-tallet, via to verdenskriger og en kald krig på 1900-tallet, frem til vårt århundres finanskrise og krig mot terror. En godbit for alle med et minimum av interesse for historie, politikk eller mennesker.

Drawing on a huge range of sources - letters, memoirs, conversations - Orlando Figes tells the story of how Russians tried to endure life under Stalin. Those who shaped the political system became, very frequently, its victims. Those who were its victims were frequently quite blameless. The Whisperers recreates the sort of maze in which Russians found themselves, where an unwitting wrong turn could either destroy a family or, perversely, later save it: a society in which everyone spoke in whispers - whether to protect themselves, their families, neighbours or friends - or to inform on them.

On D-Day, Dick Winters took off with 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment and prepared to parachute into German-held north France. Ground troops landing on Utah beach were relying on Easy Company to secure one of the causeways that were vital if the troops were to get off the beaches and reach the solid ground of Normandy. The plane carrying many of the commanding officers was shot down, leaving Dick Winters suddenly in command of his company. But during the drop he, and many of his men, had been separated from his equipment and was unarmed except for a trench knife.In this remarkable World War 2 memoir, Dick Winters tells the tales left untold by Stephen Ambrose in his 1992 epic Band of Brothers. Starting with an account of the gruelling training designed to make the 506th the most elite unit in the US Army, Beyond Band of Brothers is fascinating account of one man's experience of commanding Easy Company from D-Day, to the Battle of the Bulge and into Germany. Dick Winters gives real insight into leadership under the most difficult conditions - every man in the company had been injured by the time they reached Germany - and tells the real story of the Allies' final defeat of Hitler, from the point of view of someone who was really there.

Den amerikanske drømmen er over. Tre tiår etter kommunismens fall er stemningsleiet i USA et ganske annet enn da nasjonen sto igjen som seierherre. I dag hersker mismot, uro og til dels kaos. Hva gikk egentlig galt, og hva må gjøres? I boka tegner professor Espen Hammer et skarpt bilde av landets viktigste konfliktlinjer. Mens Donald Trump ofte pekes på som årsak til urolighetene, viser Hammer hvilke større krefter som over tid har virket under overflaten og forvandlet USA fra et relativt trygt folkehjem til en nasjon med enorme sosiale forskjeller, dyp politisk splittelse og et dysfunksjonelt demokrati. Gjennom å rette søkelyset mot økonomien, høyrepopulismen og krisen i det politiske systemet klargjør Hammer de avgjørende skjæringspunktene i dagens Amerika. Dette er blitt en sylskarp bok som går rett til kjernen av USAs viktigste utfordringer.

Michelle Higgs combines a rich narrative of the sights, sounds and smells of Victorian England that will fascinate social history lovers with original sources helpful for students of the period. This title will also appeal to the audience captivated by recent popular costume dramas such as Ripper Street and Downton Abbey.