King Alfonso VIII of Castile: Government, Family and War brings together a diverse group of scholars whose work concerns the reign of Alfonso VIII (1158–1215). This was a critical period in the history of the Iberian peninsula, when the conflict between the Christian north and the Moroccan empire of the Almohads was at its most intense, while the political divisions between the five Christian kingdoms reached their high-water mark. From his troubled ascension as a child to his vic...

Fernand Braudel (1912-1985), was a leading French historian and author of, among other books, the groundbreaking The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II (1949). One of the founders of the Annales School in France, Braudel insisted on treating the Mediterranean region as a whole, irrespective of religious and national divides. Braudel's new historiography rejected political history as the dominant discipline and espoused a 'total history' or a 'history...

This book is based on an in-depth conversation between Howard Burton and Teofilo Ruiz, Professor Emeritus of History at UCLA. Teo Ruiz is a scholar of the social and popular cultures of late medieval and early modern Spain and the Western Mediterranean. He received the University’s Distinguished Teaching Award and was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Barack Obama for his “inspired teaching and writing”. This wide-ranging conversation provides captivating insights into his...

Between the late twelfth century and the mid fourteenth, Castile saw a reordering of mental, spiritual, and physical space. Fresh ideas about sin and intercession coincided with new ways of representing the self and emerging perceptions of property as tangible. This radical shift in values or mentalités was most evident among certain social groups, including mercantile elites, affluent farmers, lower nobility, clerics, and literary figures--"middling sorts" whose outlooks and values were f...

A reflection on the diverse ways Western humanity has attempted to escape its frightening historyThis book reflects on Western humanity's efforts to escape from history and its terrors—from the existential condition and natural disasters to the endless succession of wars and other man-made catastrophes. Drawing on historical episodes ranging from antiquity to the recent past, and combining them with literary examples and personal reflections, Teofilo Ruiz explores ...

A King Travels examines the scripting and performance of festivals in Spain between 1327 and 1620, offering an unprecedented look at the different types of festivals that were held in Iberia during this crucial period of European history. Bridging the gap between the medieval and early modern eras, Teofilo Ruiz focuses on the travels and festivities of Philip II, exploring the complex relationship between power and ceremony, and offering a vibrant portrait of Spain's cultural and ...

The articles in the first part of this volume, two being a revised English version of an article originally in Spanish, examine the place of the city in the historical development of Castile. The focus is the social and economic history of Burgos, and the work is founded on detailed research in the archives of the area. Professor Ruiz also calls into question the long held belief in the democratic character of medieval Castilian municipal life. In the second section he opens the field of e...

“Uno de los aspectos más destacados de esta obra es su enfoque interdisciplinario. A diferencia de los análisis tradicionales que tienden a limitarse a un solo marco teórico o a una perspectiva jurídica estricta, esta contribución combina el análisis jurídico con aportaciones provenientes del derecho, la criminología, la sociología, la psicología y los estudios de género. Esta amplitud metodológica no solo enriquece el contenido, sino que también permite un abordaje más profundo y matizado...

Uno de los aspectos más destacados de esta obra es su enfoque interdisciplinario. A diferencia de los análisis tradicionales que tienden a limitarse a un solo marco teórico o a una perspectiva jurídica estricta, esta contribución combina el análisis jurídico con aportaciones provenientes del derecho, la criminología, la sociología, la psicología y los estudios de género. Esta amplitud metodológica no solo enriquece el contenido, sino que también permite un abordaje más profundo y matizado ...

A comprehensive history that focuses on the crises of Spain in the late middle ages and the early transformations that underpinned the later successes of the Catholic Monarchs.Illuminates Spain's history from the early fourteenth century to the union of the Crowns of Castile and Aragon in 1474Examines the challenges and reforms of the social, economic, political, and cultural structures of the countryLooks at the early transformations that readied Spain fo...

From the Straits of Gibraltar to Sicily, the European northern Mediterranean nations to the shores of North Africa, the western Mediterranean is a unique cultural and sociopolitical entity which has had a singular role in shaping today’s global society. The Western Mediterranean and the World is the fascinating story of the rise of that peculiar world and of its evolution from the end of the Western Roman Empire to the present. Uniquely, rather than present the history of the regi...

Beginning with the Black Death in 1348 and extending through to the demise of Habsburg rule in 1700, this second edition of Spanish Society, 1348–1700 has been expanded to provide a wide and compelling exploration of Spain’s transition from the Middle Ages to modernity.Each chapter builds on the first edition by offering new evidence of the changes in Spain’s social structure between the fourteenth and seventeenth century. Every part of society is examined, culmin...