European Jewry in the Age of Mercantilism, 1550-1750
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Book Overview
Contrary to commonly accepted belief, the 16th and 17th centuries marked a radically new phase in Jewish history. Far more than a mere extension of the Jewish Middle Ages, this was an era in which European Jewry was partially set free from the stifling restraints and restrictions of the past. This historical survey focuses on the rapidly expanding Jewish role in the political, economic, and cultural realms that began in the 1570s, when the tide of mercantilism, politique attitudes, and raison d'Etat political theory swept Jews back into the mainstream of western life. The book highlights the interaction between Jewry and the European states, seeing the golden age of the "Court Jews" from 1650 to 1713 as the peak period of Jewish impact on European culture and affairs, and concludes with the decline of Jewish influence on European society in the 18th century.
Format:Hardcover
Language:English
ISBN:0198219288
ISBN13:9780198219286
Release Date:December 1985
Publisher:Clarendon Press
Length:280 Pages
Weight:1.05 lbs.
Customer Reviews
1 rating
Very interesting
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 17 years ago
What I learned from this book is that Jewish culture, as I have come to understand it now, was not a product of Western European socio-geographical historical idiosyncracies. This book details how Jewish people were forced to leave their homes in Spain, Portugal and increasingly all Western European countries. Two migration flows seem to have occurred: one into Northern Eastern Europe, one to the East of the Mediterranean. That is apparently where a major condensation of Jewish culture occurred. Other very interesting insights I gained deal with the role of money in medieval Europe, the stifling role of the Catholic church, the importance of kings and other absolute rulers, pathways of commerce and the role of old cities. Highly interesting.
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