Political Culture in the Holy Roman Empire

This article reviews six essay collections and one monographon late medieval and early modern political culture in the HolyRoman Empire. Following a general survey of historiographicaltrends and a discussion of the specific contributions of theworks under review (covering topics from international relations,state formation and the role of language to representative assembliesand the exercise of power in towns and villages), it attemptsa preliminary sketch of the basic parameters of pre-modern politics.Prominent insights include shifts in the balance between oral,ritual and written communication, the significance of informalbonds and the negotiated quality of developments at all levelsof government. The conclusion assesses the potential of the‘new’ political history and calls for renewed effortsto link discourses, representations and perceptions to the norms,structures and socio-economic conditions with which they interacted.     

The Mediterranean Lateen Sail in Late Antiquity

The Mediterranean lateen sailing rig has been studied since the early-to-mid-20th century. Recently-published depictions of sailing vessels rigged with lateen and settee sails, dating to the late-antique period, allow some of the principle characteristics of that rig to be established. This allows comparison with lateen- or settee-rigged vessels from both earlier and later periods. The sailing rigs depicted on other vessels can be identified and the level of technical continuity between the late-antique and medieval Mediterranean addressed. Finally it is possible to assess the extent to which the lateen sail was established in the Mediterranean by late antiquity.
© 2009 The Author     

犹太民族与土地的特殊关系

犹太民族的历史从某种意义上说就是犹太民族与土地关系的发展史,这是因为犹太民族的每一次历史变迁都是犹太民族与土地关系的变迁：犹太民族的大流散是其失去土地的时期;犹太复国主义运动是犹太民族重新拥有土地的过程;以色列建国是两千多年来犹太民族第一次以主权国家身份拥有土地;阿以矛盾和冲突的根本原因在于对土地的争夺,而这一矛盾和冲突的最终解决依然要回到土地问题上来。所以说,犹太民族与土地有着非常特殊的关系