The Struggle for Power in Early Modern Europe

Religious Conflict, Dynastic Empires, and International Change

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Politics, History & Theory, History, European General
Cover of the book The Struggle for Power in Early Modern Europe by Daniel H. Nexon, Princeton University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Daniel H. Nexon ISBN: 9781400830800
Publisher: Princeton University Press Publication: March 31, 2009
Imprint: Princeton University Press Language: English
Author: Daniel H. Nexon
ISBN: 9781400830800
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Publication: March 31, 2009
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Language: English

Scholars have long argued over whether the 1648 Peace of Westphalia, which ended more than a century of religious conflict arising from the Protestant Reformations, inaugurated the modern sovereign-state system. But they largely ignore a more fundamental question: why did the emergence of new forms of religious heterodoxy during the Reformations spark such violent upheaval and nearly topple the old political order? In this book, Daniel Nexon demonstrates that the answer lies in understanding how the mobilization of transnational religious movements intersects with--and can destabilize--imperial forms of rule.

Taking a fresh look at the pivotal events of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries--including the Schmalkaldic War, the Dutch Revolt, and the Thirty Years' War--Nexon argues that early modern "composite" political communities had more in common with empires than with modern states, and introduces a theory of imperial dynamics that explains how religious movements altered Europe's balance of power. He shows how the Reformations gave rise to crosscutting religious networks that undermined the ability of early modern European rulers to divide and contain local resistance to their authority. In doing so, the Reformations produced a series of crises in the European order and crippled the Habsburg bid for hegemony.

Nexon's account of these processes provides a theoretical and analytic framework that not only challenges the way international relations scholars think about state formation and international change, but enables us to better understand global politics today.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Scholars have long argued over whether the 1648 Peace of Westphalia, which ended more than a century of religious conflict arising from the Protestant Reformations, inaugurated the modern sovereign-state system. But they largely ignore a more fundamental question: why did the emergence of new forms of religious heterodoxy during the Reformations spark such violent upheaval and nearly topple the old political order? In this book, Daniel Nexon demonstrates that the answer lies in understanding how the mobilization of transnational religious movements intersects with--and can destabilize--imperial forms of rule.

Taking a fresh look at the pivotal events of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries--including the Schmalkaldic War, the Dutch Revolt, and the Thirty Years' War--Nexon argues that early modern "composite" political communities had more in common with empires than with modern states, and introduces a theory of imperial dynamics that explains how religious movements altered Europe's balance of power. He shows how the Reformations gave rise to crosscutting religious networks that undermined the ability of early modern European rulers to divide and contain local resistance to their authority. In doing so, the Reformations produced a series of crises in the European order and crippled the Habsburg bid for hegemony.

Nexon's account of these processes provides a theoretical and analytic framework that not only challenges the way international relations scholars think about state formation and international change, but enables us to better understand global politics today.

More books from Princeton University Press

Cover of the book Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 6 by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book The Hidden Agenda of the Political Mind by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book How Do You Find an Exoplanet? by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book Jean Sibelius and His World by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book The "Dead Sea Scrolls" by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book Of War and Law by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book Birds of Prey of the East by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book Stand and Prosper by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book The War of the Sexes by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book The Founder's Dilemmas by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book On the Side of the Angels by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book A Corporate Solution to Global Poverty by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book Free Trade Reimagined by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book Against the Current by Daniel H. Nexon
Cover of the book Nuclear Logics by Daniel H. Nexon
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy