H.M. Scott (Editor), Derek Beales (Contributor), M.S. Anderson (Contributor), Kenneth Maxwell (Contributor), Charles C. Noel (Contributor), R.J.W. Evans (Contributor), Charles W. Ingrao (Contributor), Thomas Munck (Contributor), Timothy C.W. Blanning (Contributor), Isabel de Madariaga (Contributor)

One of the liveliest and most influential historical debates about eighteenth-century Europe has concerned 'Enlightened Absolutism'. This is the idea that, particularly after 1750, the theory and practise of government were strongly influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment and were therefore sharply distinguished from what had gone before. Rulers such as Joseph II and Catherine the Great, together with their ministers and bureaucrats, embarked on a wide-ranging series of reforms. Administrations and law codes were modernised, religious toleration pioneered and state control over the Church extended, the provision of primary and secondary education dramatically increased and efforts made to stimulate the economy and modernise agriculture.

These initiatives, their success and their inspiration are re-examined in this collection by a team of distinguished historians. Particular attention is given to countries where little that is reliable or up to date is otherwise available in English, such as the ministry of Pombal in Portugal, the reign of Charles III in Spain, and the reform period in Denmark. The three major rulers of Central and Eastern Europe, Frederick the Great, Catherine the Great and Joseph II have always been central to the Enlightened Absolutism debate, and each receives detailed consideration. The wide-ranging importance of Italian reformist ideas and of German cameralism, as well as the French Enlightenment, as sources of reform are made clear. The whole collection is an important and timely reminder that the eighteenth-century was not simply an extended prelude to the French Revolution and , outside France, the 'Ancien Regime' was not in terminal decline by the second half of the eighteenth century but was rather engaged in a remarkable and surprisingly successful attempt to improve the lives of all the people.

Each book in this series is designed to make available to students important new work on key historical problems and periods that they encounter. Each volume, devoted to a central topic or theme, contains specially commissioned essays from scholars in the relevant field. These provide an assessment of a particular aspect, pointing out areas of development and controversy and indicating where conclusions can be drawn or where further work is necessary, while an editorial introduction reviews the problem or period as a whole.

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H.M. Scott / Enlightened Absolutism (Large Paperback)

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Enlightened Absolutism: Reform and Reformers in Later Eighteenth-Century Europe