David Potter - Böcker

No Roman emperor had a greater impact on the modern world than did Constantine. The reason is not simply that he converted to Christianity, but that he did so in a way that brought his subjects along after him. Indeed, this major new biography argues that Constantine's conversion is but one feature of a unique administrative style that enabled him to take control of an empire beset by internal rebellions and external threats by Persians and Goths. The vast record of Constantine's administration reveals a government careful in its exercise of power but capable of ruthless, even savage, actions. Constantine executed (or drove to suicide) his father-in-law, two brothers-in-law, his eldest son, and his once beloved wife. An unparalleled general throughout his life, planning a major assault on the Sassanian Empire in Persia even on his deathbed. Alongside the visionary who believed that his success came from the direct intervention of his God resided an aggressive warrior, a sometimes cruel partner, and an immensely shrewd ruler. These characteristics combined together in a long and remarkable career, which restored the Roman Empire to its former glory. Beginning with his first biographer Eusebius, Constantine's image has been subject to distortion. More recent revisions include John Carroll's view of him as the intellectual ancestor of the Holocaust (Constantine's Sword) and Dan Brown's presentation of him as the man who oversaw the reshaping of Christian history (The Da Vinci Code). In Constantine the Emperor, David Potter confronts each of these skewed and partial accounts to provide the most comprehensive, authoritative, and readable account of Constantine's extraordinary life.

Two of the most famous mosaics from the ancient world, in the church of San Vitale in Ravenna, depict the sixth-century emperor Justinian and, on the wall facing him, his wife, Theodora (497-548). This majestic portrait gives no inkling of Theodora's very humble beginnings or her improbable rise to fame and power. Raised in a family of circus performers near Constantinople's Hippodrome, she abandoned a successful acting career in her late teens to follow a lover whom she was legally forbidden to marry. When he left her, she was a single mother who built a new life for herself as a secret agent, in which role she met the heir to the throne. To the shock of the ruling elite, the two were married, and when Justinian assumed power in 527, they ruled the Eastern Roman Empire together. Their reign was the most celebrated in Byzantine history, bringing wealth, prestige, and even Rome itself back to the Empire. Theodora was one of the dominant political figures of her era, helping shape imperial foreign and domestic policy and twice saving her husband from threatened deposition. She played a central role trying to solve the religious disputes of her era and proactively assisted women who were being trafficked. An extraordinarily able politician, she excited admiration and hatred from those around her. Enemies wrote extensively and imaginatively about her presumed early career as a prostitute, while supporters elevated her, quite literally, to sainthood.Theodora's is a tale of a woman of exceptional talent who overcame immense obstacles to achieve incredible power, which she exercised without ever forgetting where she had come from. In Theodora: Actress, Empress, Saint, David Potter penetrates the highly biased accounts of her found in the writings of her contemporaries and takes advantage of the latest research on early Byzantium to craft a modern, well-rounded, and engaging narrative of Theodora's life. This fascinating portrait will intrigue all readers with an interest in ancient and women's history.

By any measure, Julius Caesar is one of the most significant and famous figures in Roman history. Self-identified as a "popular" politician, he advocated for effective government to better the lives of average Romans,but believed such a government could not be based upon the existing democracy. Only through his personal authority and the massive organization he built to overthrow the government could the prosperity of all Rome's citizens be ensured.Through a careful analysis of the ancient sources, especially Caesar's own writings, David Potter offers us a stunning and original portrait of this great general and statesman.Master of Rome reveals Caesar as a highly organized manager with an extraordinary ability to adjust to circumstances while maintaining the ancient equivalent of a positive "media presence." After his death, Caesar's followers put forward a narrative of his life that made his rise to power seem inevitable, but Caesar's own writing tells us a different story--one of a detail-oriented general who demanded a high degree of accountability from his subordinates.A critical aspect of Caesar's philosophy of command was the need to find room for former enemies to serve in his organization. While this philosophy catapulted Caesar to great fame as a general during the wars in Gaul, when he attempted to put this method into effect in the wake of the civil war that established him as the master of Rome, it led to his brutal assassination in 44 BCE.Master of Rome tells the dramatic story of one of history's most intriguing figures, who rose from the fringes of Roman political society to unprecedented heights. Along the way, Potter identifies the extraordinary qualities that enabled Caesar to dominate the world in which he lived.

How do things change? The question is critical to the historical study of any era but it is also a profoundly important issue today as western democracies find the fundamental tenets of their implicit social contract facing extreme challenges from forces espousing ideas that once flourished only on the outskirts of society. This books argues that radical change always begins with ideas that took shape on the fringes. Throughout time the "mainstream" has been inherently conservative, allowing for incremental change but essentially dedicated to preserving its own power structures as the dominant ideology justifies existing relationships. In this tour of radical change across Western history, David Potter will show how ideologies that develop in opposition or reaction to those supporting the status quo are employed to effect profound changes in political structures that will in turn alter the way that social relations are constructed.Not all radical groups are the same, and all the groups that the book will explore take advantage of challenges that have already shaken the social order. They take advantage of mistakes that have challenged belief in the competence of existing institutions to be effective. It is the particular combination of an alternative ideological system and a period of community distress that are necessary conditions for radical changes in direction. The historical disruptions chronicled in this book-the rise of Christianity, rise of Islam, Protestant reformations, Age of Revolution (American and French), and Bolshevism and Nazism--will help readers understand when the preconditions exist for radical changes in the social and political order. As Disruption demonstrates, not all radical change follows paths that its original proponents might have predicted. An epilogue helps situate contemporary disruptions, from the rise of Trump and Brexit to the social and political consequences of technological change, in the wider historical forces surveyed by the book.

How do things change? The question is critical to the historical study of any era but it is also a profoundly important issue today as western democracies find the fundamental tenets of their implicit social contract facing extreme challenges from forces espousing ideas that once flourished only on the outskirts of society. This books argues that radical change always begins with ideas that took shape on the fringes. Throughout time the "mainstream" has been inherently conservative, allowing for incremental change but essentially dedicated to preserving its own power structures as the dominant ideology justifies existing relationships. In this tour of radical change across Western history, David Potter will show how ideologies that develop in opposition or reaction to those supporting the status quo are employed to effect profound changes in political structures that will in turn alter the way that social relations are constructed.Not all radical groups are the same, and all the groups that the book will explore take advantage of challenges that have already shaken the social order. They take advantage of mistakes that have challenged belief in the competence of existing institutions to be effective. It is the particular combination of an alternative ideological system and a period of community distress that are necessary conditions for radical changes in direction. The historical disruptions chronicled in this book-the rise of Christianity, rise of Islam, Protestant reformations, Age of Revolution (American and French), and Bolshevism and Nazism--will help readers understand when the preconditions exist for radical changes in the social and political order. As Disruption demonstrates, not all radical change follows paths that its original proponents might have predicted. An epilogue helps situate contemporary disruptions, from the rise of Trump and Brexit to the social and political consequences of technological change, in the wider historical forces surveyed by the book.

This volume traces the development of France and its identity in a period replete with crisis, from the Albigensian crusades in the first half of the 13th century, through the Hundred Years War, to the beginnings of the Italian wars in the 1490s. There are expert contributions covering state-building, the political world, the economy and society, the relationship between crown and provinces, the Hundred Years War, and the role of the nobility and a strong focus on relations between the centre and the regions builds upon recent developments in the historiography of France in this period. The text includes a separate chapter on the nobility provides a useful introduction to this important area of late medieval historiography.

The three centuries from 1200 to 1500, from the Albigensian Crusades, though the catastrophic defeats of Crécy, Poitiers and Agincourt, to the beginnings of the Italian Wars, were crucial in the development of the identity of France as a kingdom and as an idea in the minds of its people. They saw sharp upheavals both in the material fortunes and in the cohesiveness of the country, with an initial period of consolidation under the later Capetian kings followed by political disintegration, war, and the economic crisis of which the Black Death was an integral part. These years witnessed not only the development of the main institutions of the monarchical state but also the growth of regional principalities which paralleled the power of the crown, and only towards the end of the fifteenth century were the contradictions between the two resolved. Concentrating on central themes such as the tensions between the crown and the regions, the growth of political institutions, noble identity, and socio-economic crisis, the expert contributions in this book trace the development of the French kingdom from the struggle to exert monarchical authority in the south of the country through to the opening chapters of the French monarchy's struggle for supremacy in Italy.

Two of the most famous mosaics from the Byzantine period, from the church of San Vitale in Ravenna, depict the sixth-century Emperor Justinian and, on the wall facing him, his wife, Theodora (497-548). This magestic portrait gives no inkling to Theodora's very humble beginnings or her improbable rise to fame and power. Raised in a family of circus performers near Constantinople's Hippodrome, she became one of the most influential women in Byzantine history. It was on stage as an actress--or, as some said, "stage whore"--that Theodora caught the attention of the future emperor Justinian. To the shock of the ruling elite, the two were married, and when Justinian assumed power in 527, they ruled the Eastern Roman Empire together. Their reign was the most celebrated in Byzantine history, bringing wealth, prestige, and even Rome itself back to the Empire. During this time Theodora was Justinian's most trusted advisor, and her influence on the Empire is discernible in a variety of important ways. Her interest in social causes, for example, is seen in the added legal protections for women and the lower classes. Theodora's most lasting impact was her support for the unorthodox Christian sect of Monophysitism. Although her husband was orthodox, Theodora maintained her religions independence, and today in Syria, where the sect still thrives, she is revered as a saint. In Theodora: Actress, Empress, Saint, renowned historian David Potter provides a new account of the life and times of this important historical figure. Potter penetrates the highly biased accounts of her found in the writings of her contemporaries and takes advantage of the latest research on early Byzantium to craft a modern, well-rounded, and engaging narrative of Theodora's life. There is simply nothing of this scope currently available to historians or the general reader, and those with an interest in ancient and women's history will be intrigued by Potter's account of this fascinating figure.

This year Christians worldwide will celebrate the 1700th anniversary of Constantine's conversion and victory at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge. No Roman emperor had a greater impact on the modern world than did Constantine. The reason is not simply that he converted to Christianity but that he did so in a way that brought his subjects along after him. Indeed, this major new biography argues that Constantine's conversion is but one feature of a unique administrative style that enabled him to take control of an empire beset by internal rebellions and external threats by Persians and Goths. The vast record of Constantine's administration reveals a government careful in its exercise of power but capable of ruthless, even savage actions. Constantine executed (or drove to suicide) his father-in-law, two brothers-in-law, his eldest son, and his once beloved wife. An unparalleled general throughout his life, even on his deathbed he was planning a major assault on the Sassanian Empire in Persia. Alongside the visionary who believed that his success came from the direct intervention of his God resided an aggressive warrior, a sometimes cruel partner, and an immensely shrewd ruler. These characteristics combined together in a long and remarkable career, which restored the Roman Empire to its former glory. Beginning with his first biographer Eusebius, Constantine's image has been subject to distortion. More recent revisions include John Carroll's view of him as the intellectual ancestor of the Holocaust (Constantine's Sword) and Dan Brown's presentation of him as the man who oversaw the reshaping of Christian history (The Da Vinci Code). In Constantine the Emperor, David Potter confronts each of these skewed and partial accounts to provide the most comprehensive, authoritative, and readable account of Constantine's extraordinary life.

A survey of French history from the reign of Louis XI to the outbreak of the Wars of Religion that isolates some of the controversial theories of the period: state building, nobility and clientage and the Reformation and discusses them with full attention to the regional diversity of France. It also introduces the reader to recent research on the court and government set in the context of the basic social and economic movements of the period. It is argued that the basic identity of France as a nation was reinforced under the aegis of monarchical legitimacy backed by the nobility and the church, setting the pattern for the rest of the Ancien Regime.

This book aims - through translations of key documents concerning communal religious violence, political confrontation and war - to provide the means to study the French Wars of Religion through the most important contemporary sources.Documents include: -Key legislative acts of the period from the edicts concerning religion and toleration in 1560-62 to the 1590s- Sources on types of religious violence during the early years of the wars- A detailed examination of the massacre of Saint Bartholomew- And the breakdown of royal authority in the 1580s and its restoration by Henry IV.Each section is accompanied by a commentary which guides the reader through the documents translated.

Literary Texts and the Roman Historian looks at literary texts from the Roman Empire which depict actual events. It examines the ways in which these texts were created, disseminated and read.Beside covering the major Roman historical authors such as Livy and Tacitus, he also considers the contributions of authors in other genres like:* Cicero* Lucian* Aulus Gellius.Literary Texts and the Roman Historian provides an accessible and concise introduction to the complexities of Roman historiography.

Literary Texts and the Roman Historian looks at literary texts from the Roman Empire which depict actual events. It examines the ways in which these texts were created, disseminated and read.Beside covering the major Roman historical authors such as Livy and Tacitus, he also considers the contributions of authors in other genres like:* Cicero* Lucian* Aulus Gellius.Literary Texts and the Roman Historian provides an accessible and concise introduction to the complexities of Roman historiography.

The Roman Empire at Bay is the only one volume history of the critical years 180-395 AD, which saw the transformation of the Roman Empire from a unitary state centred on Rome, into a new polity with two capitals and a new religion—Christianity. The book integrates social and intellectual history into the narrative, looking to explore the relationship between contingent events and deeper structure. It also covers an amazingly dramatic narrative from the civil wars after the death of Commodus through the conversion of Constantine to the arrival of the Goths in the Roman Empire, setting in motion the final collapse of the western empire.The new edition takes account of important new scholarship in questions of Roman identity, on economy and society as well as work on the age of Constantine, which has advanced significantly in the last decade, while recent archaeological and art historical work is more fully drawn into the narrative. At its core, the central question that drives The Roman Empire at Bay remains, what did it mean to be a Roman and how did that meaning change as the empire changed? Updated for a new generation of students, this book remains a crucial tool in the study of this period.

The Roman Empire at Bay is the only one volume history of the critical years 180-395 AD, which saw the transformation of the Roman Empire from a unitary state centred on Rome, into a new polity with two capitals and a new religion—Christianity. The book integrates social and intellectual history into the narrative, looking to explore the relationship between contingent events and deeper structure. It also covers an amazingly dramatic narrative from the civil wars after the death of Commodus through the conversion of Constantine to the arrival of the Goths in the Roman Empire, setting in motion the final collapse of the western empire.The new edition takes account of important new scholarship in questions of Roman identity, on economy and society as well as work on the age of Constantine, which has advanced significantly in the last decade, while recent archaeological and art historical work is more fully drawn into the narrative. At its core, the central question that drives The Roman Empire at Bay remains, what did it mean to be a Roman and how did that meaning change as the empire changed? Updated for a new generation of students, this book remains a crucial tool in the study of this period.

This authoritative, highly readable textbook offers a complete survey of the history of Rome from its origins, through the Republic and Empire, to the period of its decline and fall, ending with the emergence of Mohammed in the 6th century. Written by a historian with an international reputation, the book incorporates the most recent scholarship and archaeological evidence. It describes the key events in Roman history, and offers fascinating insights into Roman life and culture as they changed and developed over the centuries.

Praised for its beautiful visuals, use of primary sources, and coverage into the early medieval period, Ancient Rome, Third Edition now includes a more student-friendly approach. With new chapter-opening maps, new family trees, more subheadings, and even more color images, the text is certain to increase student engagement. A new People of Ancient Rome online resource offers the best guidance for understanding the context of primary sources.

Few studies of the history of provincial France have hitherto spanned the conventional medieval/early-modern divide, and David Potter's detailed examination of war and government in Picardy, a region of France hitherto neglected by historians, has much to say about the development of French absolutism. Picardy emerged as a province after the campaigns of 1470-1477, and its experience of the first period of absolutism provides an enlightening contrast with that of other, more outlying provinces: the Picard nobility was notable for the extent of its participation in the army, the court and the government of France. David Potter provides a detailed analysis of the organisation of French military power in the province, and its impact during the period of the Habsburg-Valois wars. The work concludes with Picardy about to enter a difficult period of civil war.

This volume assembles hitherto unpublished English writings in French on France, and especially its nobility, during the 1580s, a key period for understanding the final crisis of the War of Religion. They contain information on the political dispositions of the leading royal officials and on the lineage 'alliances' and the properties of a vast number of French noblemen in the provinces. Robert Cecil, son of Elizabeth's minister Burghley, was certainly involved in their composition, which seems to have been written by those involved in English missions to France in the early 1580s. The texts are accompanied by full annotation, which explains the complexities of the many individuals and families discussed. The introduction discusses the authorship of the documents and the assumptions of their writers as well as the context of foreign news reporting in the period.

Few studies of the history of provincial France have hitherto spanned the conventional medieval/early-modern divide, and David Potter's detailed examination of war and government in Picardy, a region of France hitherto neglected by historians, has much to say about the development of French absolutism. Picardy emerged as a province after the campaigns of 1470-1477, and its experience of the first period of absolutism provides an enlightening contrast with that of other, more outlying provinces: the Picard nobility was notable for the extent of its participation in the army, the court and the government of France. David Potter provides a detailed analysis of the organisation of French military power in the province, and its impact during the period of the Habsburg-Valois wars. The work concludes with Picardy about to enter a difficult period of civil war.

Covering the work of non-governmental organizations in trying to change the environmental policies of governments and business organizations, this study looks at field research in Asia and Africa, and relates it to theoretical issues in the academic field.

In 1760 no polity in the world was democratic in any way we would now recognize. In 1995 there were democratic states on every continent and in every region. The struggle to create, sustain, and entrench democratic political systems is one of the central narratives of modernity. Democratization is the first textbook comprehensively to survey, explore and engage with this story. In Part I, the introduction to the book as a whole, an overview and elaboration is offered of the key explanatory models of democratization; this section also refines the description of a regime's democratic status and explores the models and strategies of comparative analysis used in the book. While each of the subsequent twenty chapters can stand on their own, they have all been framed by a shared engagement with and discussion of the dynamics of democratization set out here. Part II surveys the course of democratization in the West from 1760 to 1989, examining both the early breakthroughs of the French and American Revolutions and the inter-war crisis of European democracy. The post-war era is covered by discussions of the impact of World War II, the democratic revolutions in Southern Europe and the struggle of the American Civil Rights movement. Part III examines the experience of Latin America and Asia. The Latin American case is covered in two chapters stretching from the 1930's to the 1990's. In the Asia section the comparative trajectories of Asia's two giants - China and India - are contrasted with the experience of East Asia's original tigers (Taiwan and South Korea) and more recent industrializing states (Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia). In Part IV the relative weakness of democratization in Africa and the Middle East is interrogated. Surveys of the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa are complemented by individual case studies (Israel-Palestine and South Africa) and a synoptic examination of the relationship between Islamic culture, society and democracy. In Part V, the democratic revolutions of 1989 and their aftermath are examined in chapters on Eastern Europe and Russia. The enmeshment of these processes of democratization with nationalist struggles are highlighted in a study of former Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia while the particular course of the remaining socialist states is examined in a chapter on Vietnam. Finally, the conclusion both reviews the regional variations in democratization and considers the pressing question of how democracies once created can be sustained. Democratization will provide students and teachers with an invaluable and engaging resource for examining the complex fate of democratic politics across the world.

With coverage of the major theories and concepts alongside diagnostic tools and a practical framework for implementation, Leading Cultural Change will help the reader analyse and diagnose their current organizational culture, become aware of the key challenges and how to overcome them and learn how to adapt their leadership style, ensuring they are fit to lead a cultural change programme. Taking in core topics such as change context, language and dialogue as a key cultural process and the change team process, it uses a longitudinal case study of Cordia, a public sector organization transitioning into an LLP, to enhance learning and understanding. Leading Cultural Change is a unique text, rooted in behavioural sciences, which explores the topic as an organizational necessity to achieving sustained competitive advantage.

With coverage of the major theories and concepts alongside diagnostic tools and a practical framework for implementation, Leading Cultural Change will help the reader analyse and diagnose their current organizational culture, become aware of the key challenges and how to overcome them and learn how to adapt their leadership style, ensuring they are fit to lead a cultural change programme. Taking in core topics such as change context, language and dialogue as a key cultural process and the change team process, it uses a longitudinal case study of Cordia, a public sector organization transitioning into an LLP, to enhance learning and understanding. Leading Cultural Change is a unique text, rooted in behavioural sciences, which explores the topic as an organizational necessity to achieving sustained competitive advantage.

Incorporating the latest research, The Victor's Crown offers an analysis of how competitive sport emerged in Greece during the eighth century BC, and then how the great festival cycle of Classical Greece came into being during the sixth century BC. Special attention is paid to violent sports of boxing, wrestling and pancration. We meet the great athletes of the past and discover what it was that made them so great. It shows how the rise of the Roman Empire transformed the sporting world by popularizing new forms of entertainment (chiefly chariot racing, gladiatorial combat and beast hunts). David Potter vividly brings to life the experiences of being fan and competitor, and extrapolates skilfully to the modern day, creating not just a history of ancient sport, but also an examination of the social and cultural roles sport has played throughout history.

A significant driver of disengagement amongst employees is a lack of psychological safety generated from weak and underdeveloped intra- and interpersonal skills on the part of managers. Addressing the issue head on, this book enables leaders to lead with conscious awareness to build and sustain psychologically safe cultures through which team members may positively engage with work in a far more meaningful and purposeful way.All too often, leadership-follower relationships are purely transactional and focus on errors and problems, resulting in an impoverished transactional leadership culture. These dynamics result in weak rapport, low levels of emotional intelligence on the part of line managers and, subsequently, employee disengagement. This book unpacks these drivers in detail and builds a model that can be used as the basis of personal development and as a large-scale intervention into the leadership culture of an organisation. This model is very accessible and can be used in a structured training programme through a series of action learning workshops based upon coaching relationships and mutual dialogue.The book is ideal reading for HRM managers, change leaders, learning and development managers, students of management and leadership, and line managers in organisations who are involved in leadership roles.

A significant driver of disengagement amongst employees is a lack of psychological safety generated from weak and underdeveloped intra- and interpersonal skills on the part of managers. Addressing the issue head on, this book enables leaders to lead with conscious awareness to build and sustain psychologically safe cultures through which team members may positively engage with work in a far more meaningful and purposeful way.All too often, leadership-follower relationships are purely transactional and focus on errors and problems, resulting in an impoverished transactional leadership culture. These dynamics result in weak rapport, low levels of emotional intelligence on the part of line managers and, subsequently, employee disengagement. This book unpacks these drivers in detail and builds a model that can be used as the basis of personal development and as a large-scale intervention into the leadership culture of an organisation. This model is very accessible and can be used in a structured training programme through a series of action learning workshops based upon coaching relationships and mutual dialogue.The book is ideal reading for HRM managers, change leaders, learning and development managers, students of management and leadership, and line managers in organisations who are involved in leadership roles.

This edition fills a notable gap in our knowledge of Anglo-French relations in the early Elizabethan period. During the 1560s, the reports of French ambassadors are only preserved in fragments and it was until recently believed that nothing survived of the reports of Michel de Seure, ambassador from February 1560 to February 1562. Collected here, these shed light on the difficulties of negotiating with Elizabeth I, her preoccupations in 1560-1 and French opinions on her policy. Appendices include documents detailing de Seure's dealings with the Scottish regent, Mary of Guise, and his formulation of propaganda in response to Elizabeth's declarations concerning Scotland and France. This title sets de Seure's time in England in the context of his career as a whole, which included time serving as a naval commander in Scotland and the Mediterranean, negotiating with the Turks and the Order of Malta, and a period as ambassador in Portugal.