Societies in Upheaval

As nation states consolidated their power in the early modern period, Europe witnessed tragic economic dislocations, oppression, and wars leading to waves of terrorism and revolution that mirror our contemporary world situation in striking ways. Current perceptions of the dynamics of revolution, however, are largely determined by theoretical models that fail to account for the realities of the early modern peiod. This volume, the first comparative study of the three insurrections that erupted almost simultaneously during the War of the Spanish Succession, addresses that problem. Using their careful review of historical events as a focus, Linda Frey and Marsha Frey explore the nature and causes of revolution and examine the preconceptions and mythology surrounding that term.