The North Sea and culture in early modern history, 1550-1800

€39,00

In 1995 the interdisciplinary Research Group ‘The Republic and Europe, 1550-1800’ of the Faculty of Arts at Leiden University organized the international conference ‘The North Sea and Culture in Early Modern History’ in cooperation with representatives of the International Institute of Social History (IISG) in Amsterdam and the Faculty of Arts at Utrecht University. The central question of the conference was whether a cultural unity existed in the North Sea area in the Early Modern Period analogous to the one Ferdinand Braudel defined for the Mediterranean. Results pointing towards a North Sea culture can often be found in scientific literature dealing with subjects including the spread of protestant religion, migration patterns, the organization of civil and family life, law, eating habits, the spread of northern renaissance art and architecture, child education, and literacy, but the topic itself has never been a serious point of debate. Specialists from the countries surrounding the North Sea were confronted with this question, resulting in clear indications that the concept of a North Sea culture in the period from 1550 to 1800 is in fact valid. This book contains most of the papers presented during the conference; the conclusion summarizes the results and conclusions of two days of lively discussions on ‘North Sea Culture’.