The Ecclesiastical and Political History of the Popes of Rome
The Ecclesiastical and Political History of the Popes of Rome

Author: Leopold von Ranke

Publisher:

Published: 1841

Total Pages: 540

ISBN-13:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The title does not appear to me to represent accurately the subject of the book, which is not so much a history of the popes, as a history of the great struggle between catholicism and protestantism, between authority and innovation, in which the popes were indeed actors, but generally rather as the servants than the rulers of events. The chief interest of the work lies in the solution it affords of the greatest problem of modern history. It is impossible to contemplate the rapid and apparently resistless progress of the Reformation in its infancy, without wondering what was the power which arrested and forced back the torrent, and reconquered to the ancient faith countries in which protestantism seemed firmly established. The ebb and flow of this mighty wave are traced with singular vividness as well as accuracy in the following pages. - Translator's preface.

The Ecclesiastical and Political History of the Popes of Rome
The Ecclesiastical and Political History of the Popes of Rome

Author: Leopold von Ranke

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2011-01-20

Total Pages: 560

ISBN-13: 1108027113

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This translation by Sarah Austin (1793-1867) of German historian Leopold von Ranke's work contributed significantly to early modern history and historiography. By some accounts 'the best living translator' of her time, Austin was a member of social circles that included Jeremy Bentham and J. S. Mill. Ranke (1795-1886) worked for most of his life at the University of Berlin, writing several histories covering the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries. Austin's translation recognises Ranke's importance to Western historiography: his methodology stressed the centrality of using primary sources and of the historian's objectivity. Ranke's history engages with a much wider area than his title suggests; indeed, his subject is 'the struggle between Catholicism and Protestantism, between authority and innovation', as Austin writes. Volume 1 traces the impact and history of the popes from their 'epochs' to the sixteenth century. These volumes will be of interest to early modern historians and historiographers alike.

Court and Politics in Papal Rome, 1492–1700
Court and Politics in Papal Rome, 1492–1700

Author: Gianvittorio Signorotto

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2002-03-21

Total Pages: 271

ISBN-13: 1139431412

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This 2002 book attempts to overcome the traditional historiographical approach to the role of the early modern papacy by focusing on the actual mechanisms of power in the papal court. The period covered extends from the Renaissance to the aftermath of the peace of Westphalia in 1648 - after which the papacy was reduced to a mainly spiritual role. Based on research in Italian and other European archives, the book concentrates on the factions at the Roman court and in the college of cardinals. The sacred college came under great international pressure during the election of a new pope, and consequently such figures as foreign ambassadors and foreign cardinals are examined, as well as political liaisons and social contacts at court. Finally, the book includes an analysis of the ambiguous nature of Roman ceremonial, which was both religious and secular: a reflection of the power struggle both in Rome and in Europe.