Customer Reviews

The General Crisis of the Seventeenth Century

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Several theses discussing the much debated cause of the crisis of the 17th Century and whether it actually existed. Views ranging from solely economic attributes to lack of governmental flexibility to change with the times is argued as the sole reasons for the crisis. Some center completely on Europe, showing their ethnocentrism, while other acknowledge the existence and contribution of the growing South-East Asian colonies. As a whole, most if not all the possible contributing factors are presented at one point or the other. This compilation is often used in graduate courses to stimulate discussion on the topic.

This book is a collection of essays on the historical theory of the 'Crisis of the Seventeenth Century'. The basis of this theory is that do to a number of reasons, European counries jointly experainced national crisises during the Seventeenth Century. As the Seventeenth Century includes the Thirty Years War and the English Revelution this sounds like an plaudible theory. Some modern historians theorize that the poor weather was the cause of this general Crisis. Taking this train of logic to its natural conclusion, the book includes a number of essays on whether there was a General Crisis in the entire world or not. In my opinion, this book is intended for the serious History student and is certainly not good for someone who doesn't already know the History of the Seventeenth Century.