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"Innocence Lost" examines how the matter of a number of cartoon drawings came to figure prominently on the international agenda. The book provides a description of the situation in the Middle East, including the background of the critical state of affairs in Iraq, which is best described as a state of civil war. With this as its point of departure, the book discusses the relationship between democratisation and Islamism, concluding that the present democratic process in the Middle East is apparently serving to strengthen the Islamists.Furthermore, it analyses the development of al-Qaida from being an organisation to becoming a global ideology enjoying widespread support and appealing to small local groups such as that behind the July 2005 London bombings. The book also analyses the war on terror as part of the global battle over values between a liberal and an Islamist interpretation of the concept of world order. The author poses the question of whether the world is heading towards a global civil war reminiscent of the protracted wars of religion of the late Middle Ages. ... Read more

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Since 1945, Denmark's policy towards Europe has become one of the most important issues, if not the most important issue, in Danish politics. Why is this? In what way is Denmark a special case with regard to European policy? What are the basic factors in the formation of Danish European policy, and how does the study of this policy contribute to the field of foreign policy analysis? These are some of the questions which this book attempts to answer. The aim is to provide the reader with a better understanding of Danish policy towards Europe, taking into account both historical and theoretical aspects. The contributors to the volume are experienced researchers in political science and history. They approach the main theme of Danish European policy from four different perspectives. A theoretical, a historical and cultural, a perspective focusing on policy determinants and a decision-making perspective. The book forms part of the Copenhagen Research Project on European Integration (CORE). ... Read more

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This is the first monograph of the Domitii Ahenobarbi and fills a gap in our knowledge of the Roman aristocracy. The study is more than a traditional genealogy and family history. It furnishes a collective biography of one Roman senatorial family and contributes to a new and more profound understanding of Roman political, religious, social and economic life by focusing on the activities of the protagonists on a wide front. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A History of Denmark by Palle Lauring
This is a history of Denmark written in English by a renowned Danish historian for an English audience.It is a complete one volume, very readable version of Danish history from land formation to modern day.Includes beautiful black and white photos throughout. ... Read more

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Johannes Kepler changed forever our understanding of the universe. Through his efforts to chart the orbits of the planets—elliptical, not circular—Kepler became one of the most important astronomers of all time.His contributions continued as he laid the groundwork for the discovery of gravitation, setting physics on the course of revelation it follows to this day. Yet if it hadn't been for the now lesser known Tycho Brahe, the Royal Court Mathematician at Prague, the man for whom Kepler worked, Kepler would be a mere footnote in today's science books. Brahe was the foremost astronomer of his era and one of the first great systematic empirical thinkers and earliest founders of the modern scientific method.His forty years of planetary observations—an unparalleled treasure of empirical data—contained the key to Kepler's monumental revelation of elliptical orbit. These observations, essential to Kepler's breakthrough, became available to Kepler only after Brahe's death. This groundbreaking history portrays the stormy collaboration of these two astronomers at the turn of the seventeenth century and their shattering discoveries that would mark the transition from medieval to modern science.

Yet that is only half the story. Based on recent forensic evidence (analyzed here for the first time) and original research into the medieval/renaissance history of alchemy, and buttressed by in-depth interviews with leading historians, scientists, and medical specialists, the authors have put together shocking and compelling evidence that Tycho Brahe did not die of natural causes, as has been believed for four hundred years, but was systematically poisoned—most likely by his former assistant, Johannes Kepler.

An epic of scientific discovery, HEAVENLY INTRIGUE is a tale of protean modern astronomy, personal ambition, the search for truth and beauty amid power politics, court intrigue, superstition, and the ever present quest to reach farther into the universe.

Customer Reviews (19)

very intriguing indeed
An interesting view behind the scenes of two extremely important scientists of the 16th/17th century. With lots of interesting quotes, although with a slight bias in favour of Tycho, against Kepler. Some rather complicated theories of Kepler are very well explained.

Scientist Assassins
Heavenly Intrigue, by Joshua and Anne-Lee Gilder, is a novel written with the assertion that scientist Johannes Kepler murdered scientist Tycho Brahe in the early seventeenth century.Before giving a myriad of forensic evidence to support this assertion, the authors offer a brief biography of each scientist that outlines both their personal and astronomical lives.Entwined in these facts are hints of Kepler's malevolent mental instability and his progressive hatred toward Brahe.Thus, the authors appear to have been motivated to write this novel as an attempt to reveal the true cause of Brahe's death and to label Kepler as not only a brilliant scientist, but a self-centered assassin.Aside from the darker, more hypothetical aspect of the novel, the authors describe each scientist's effect on posterity.Namely, Brahe instigated the methodology of science that develops theories after repeatedly gathering empirical data, while Kepler developed three planetary laws that redefined the structure of the solar system.Most importantly, both scientists opened avenues of ideas and questions that prompted Isaac Newton to discover the force of gravity.This novel is an ideal novel to read for a different perspective on two of history's most influential scientists.By intertwining their scientific achievements with historical background, it becomes easier to comprehend their lifestyles, motivations, and ambitions.

Intriguing scientific history
The Gilders have combined short biographies of both Brahe and Kepler to tell a story about early modern science, centered on their startling theory that Brahe was murdered by Kepler.

I haven't personally researched these individuals outside this book, so I don't feel fully qualified to comment on the rather sensational accusation which other reviewers here have dismissed so emphatically.But even from this one book, it's clear that Brahe, although a nobleman, didn't own land or substantial wealth which he could leave to his survivors.His income depended entirely on his professional skills and high reputation, which his children didn't share.So his death was an utter disaster for his family, rendering his wife an implausible suspect, notwithstanding the theories of some reviewers here.Kepler, who by winding up with control of Brahe's unique and immensely valuable body of astronomical observations was the greatest beneficiary of the scientist's death, is at least a plausible suspect.

Some writers have suggested that Brahe's death was an acidental overdose. (Alchemists of the period, and Brahe was one, did employ mercury in various elixirs.)But the Gilders' argument that Brahe owuldn't have accidentally administered the very large does of mercury that killed him I found quite persuasive.

It's unfortunate that the discussion of this book has centered so strongly on the controversy of whether Kepler was the killer, because there's a lot of other interesting material here, all of it skillfully told.The importance of Brahe's contribution to science, the remarkable ingenuity with which Brahe compiled observations actually more accurate than were possible with early telescopes, the analysis of why both Brahe and Kepler still took astrology quite seriously, and the remarkable methods which made it possible to demonstrate beyond serious dispute, 400 years after the fact, that Brahe died of mercury poisoning and not the traditionally supposed bladder or kidney failure, are all clearly described and make the book worth reading even if you can't accept the authors' murder theory.

Annoyingly Slanted.Not Science, But Speculation
When I borrowed a copy of this from the university library (thank God I didn't buy it), I was misled since it was the hardbound edition without the jacket, so all I saw was "Heavenly Intrigue."If I had seen the complete title, I wouldn't have bothered.The authors are truly of this generation, the CSI/forensic-wannabes (every cable channel has them now, very dismaying) who portray the facts from a mystery caper point of view, instead of looking at all the possible factors surrounding Brahe's death.Having read the other reviews, I find it just as compelling that it could have been Mrs. Brahe who had to euthanize him.And Brahe, although popular, had his own share of enemies, from religious extremists to possible other rivals.Maybe even kindergarten enemies, who knows? -- he did have a disfigured nose, a testament to his pugnacious nature.That should have been an obvious clue to the authors.As much as they try to give Kepler his due, they also paint him as a villain, on account of his mental troubles, his moods, etc.Well, I have news for the authors... most scientists have had their psychotic episodes:Newton suffered from depression (and by some accounts, a form of dementia) in his later years; Leibniz was worse off.Boltzmann wound up committing suicide.But the point of all this?Everyone, especially in those times, weren't quite right in the head.Hey, if you were living in war-ridden, plague-infested times, would you really be morally sound and civilized, the way we like to think of ourselves now??I don't think so!!!!!And what is the whole point of this forensic crap??Just to prove Brahe was murdered?To find a culprit, at any costs??To make Kepler the Fall Guy???The same has been said about some who have made important contributions in culture, science, and history, like Caravaggio or George Washington (both suspected and/or accused of murder in their lifetimes).The man lived miserably, and may not have been a saint.Despite Kepler's being obsessive a scientist (or philosopher, depending on your point of view) as he was... which scientist isn't?... he never quite expected to see the same kind of glory as Brahe did.Scientists then didn't enjoy the same prestige that we do now.

In closing, I will say that this book completely annoyed me, because it sought to reduce two of the most important scientific figures down to a scientific rivalry that went astray and resulted into yet another murder story.As storied and tumultuous their relationship was, there is no denying that both Brahe and Kepler's contributions helped usher in the modern era of science.Without them, Newton would not have had his Laws of Motion, Einstein would never have even thought of Relativity, and quantum mechanics may have never existed.Brahe and Kepler's story is so much more than that.Perhaps these so-called science writers (as well as those other investigative writers) should stop speculating -- like what the Da Vinci Code crowd likes to do -- and start thinking, really thinking about stuff that really matters, like the nature of everyday things and the universe.Life is not an endless cycle of Adam and Eve, and Cain and Abel but really a testament to the first seven days of Creation, and beyond, and how it works.And that is what scientists are primarily concerned about -- not about who's right or wrong.Ultimately, both Brahe and Kepler would have agreed as much.

Wrong Conclusion
I've researched this duo as well, extensively, from a scientific viewpoint, as one who works in a scientific field. The relationship between these two investigators is unique and well worth studying independently, away from the 'whodunnit' scenarios that this book creates.

The duo of Brahe/Kepler is an 'odd-couple'. For a few examples, of which there are countless dozens: Brahe was a showboat, he loved to party, cleanliness was his forte, kept up on his scientific discipline, whereas Kepler hated to bathe, seemed overly introverted, and was prone to reach out to spiritual/astrological notions about atronomical events.

The person most likely to kill Brahe was his devoted wife, whom he virtually ignored. She was the one who administered his medicine on his deathbed. Tycho suffered for days, the pain never went away. And so it was his wife who euthanised him.The author Joshua Gilder ignored the family's role in Tycho's death, as Tycho ignored his family during his life. With many children, all to maintain the observatory, we hear of not one child who was interested in the data he collected, or even suspicious of malfeasance. It's too bad, because in ignoring the role of Tycho Brahe's family, Gilder poorly scandalised a great scientific contributor, Johannes Kepler.

If you are interested in this topic, please conduct your own research, it will be worth it. Because the book is awful. ... Read more

Product Description
The Anatomy of Denmark is a concise, well illustrated history of the accomplishments and cultural heritage of the people living on what is now Danish territory since the Ice Age. The archaeology and history of the earlier period (up to AD 1200) is given as much weight as the more recent past, unlike standard history books which emphasize written texts and more modern times.

The book demonstrates the deep roots of a successful, well protected region through the ages. Strategically situated between two seas, as well as between larger Scandinavia and Central Europe, this populous beautiful country has always been both close to the centres of development and somewhat protected from foreign excesses. A particular talent for social organization, education, management and production has taken small Denmark out into the world ever since the Ice Age.

The Anatomy of Denmark is clearly written and lavishly furnished with illustrations and tables. It provides a brief, fact-packed introduction for anyone interested in this small thriving country archaeologist, historian, tourist and business visitor alike. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Experience this Nation's Heritage
We learn from Professor Randsborg the sources about Denmark's
antiquity all the way up to its highly modern present-day.

The exchange of ideas made Denmark over the centuries an able
participant in European affairs.The history of its accomplishments are extremely interesting.Danish ideas, writings,
and actions have been often-contradictory to be sure. Nevertheless,
the successes are many more than anything else.

Some are illuminated in this well written book!

Dag Stomberg
St. Andrews, Scotland ... Read more

Product Description
Redressing the belief held up until now that there was little or no diplomatic or political relationship between Scotland and Denmark-Norway, this book covers the period from the start of the British reign of James VI and I in 1603 to the restoration of Charles II in 1660. It follows the alliance through several challenging periods, including the ascension to the English throne of a Scottish king in 1603, the Scottish National Covenant in 1638, the English Civil War, and the Cromwellian period. By examining the complex issue of British identity within a multiple monarchy and by approaching the subject from the perspective of the House of Stuart, a better understanding of diplomatic links with Denmark-Norway emerges. ... Read more

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In the early years of the thirteenth century the Danish writer Saxo Grammaticus provided his people with a History of the Danes, an account of their glorious past from the legendary kings and heroes of Denmark to the historical present. It is one of the major sources for the heroic and mythological traditions of northern Europe, though the complex Latin style and the wide range of material brought together from different sources have limited its use. Here Hilda Ellis Davidson, a specialist in Scandinavian mythology, together with the translator Peter Fisher, provides a full English edition; each of the first nine books is preceded by an introductory summary, and a detailed commentary follows on the folklore and life and customs of twelfth-century Denmark - including the sources of Hamlet, of which Saxo gives the earliest known account. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent work
This is a work of underrated importance, translated and annotated in brilliant teamwork.

Saxo Grammaticus's work, "The History of the Danes" attempts to trace Danish culture from its origins through the middle ages.Book 9 ends in the time of Gorm the Old, during the Viking age.Because written records were largely unknown, this is drawn in large part from oral tradition and from other early histories based on such traditions.Following the approach of his day, he traces the culture to the near east, presumably suggesting, like Snorri, that the gods came from Troy.He further euhemerizes them to portray them in a more Christian way.The result is thus unreliable history mixed with myth and legend, and thus Saxo's works have often been set aside.

This being said, I found that I learned a great deal about Norse mythology, legend, and more from reading his work.In particular there were some expressions I hadn't seen elsewhere that did a lot to clarify the text of the Old Norwegian Rune Poem.

This translation covers the portion most of interest to individuals studying Norse myth and legend, is translated well and is annotated by Hilda Davidson.The annotations take more than a third of the book and are often interesting to read as she links the portions of the work to other existing sources.

On the whole, this is THE translation to get.Highly recommended.

Latter-Day Nordic Gods and Heroes Rejoice!
The Danish monk Saxo lived from about 1150 to after 1216.His erudition and command of Latin got him appointed as scribe to the archbishop of Lund(site of Copenhagen), during which time he wrote the sixteen books of theGesta Danorum.This 'Deeds of the Danes' stands proudly beside Gregory'sHistory of the Franks, the Venerable Bede's History of the English Churchand Nation, and the other medieval histories of the European nations.Evenmore important, it stands beside the Eddas as a main source for scholars ofGermanic mythology.

This two volume edition, books one through nine, istranslated by Peter Fisher and edited by H. R. Ellis-Davidson, eminentscholar and Grand-Dame of Nordic Scholarship.A scholar's sorce book to besure, one volume text, the other notes and bibliography, this translationis, unlike earlier translations, very readable.

That out of the way, whoshould buy this work and why?

Saxo was indeed a man of God, but in hisbreast throbbed the heart of the Germanic/Nordic warrior-aristocracy in itstruest form.The modern reader senses that, on occasion, he may haveforgotten both his vows and that he was working for the archbishop.

Bookone begins in mythological pre-time with a legendary account of a King Dan,possibly of Greek (Danai) origin , who saved the Danes from the EmperorAugustus.Book nine ends with the life and times of the historical KingGorm III, shortly before Saxo's own time.

Dan's progeny, their retinuesand adversaries, include the widest range of boldest heroes, most dastardlyscoundrels, moralists, deviants, and about any other type imaginable. Perhaps the best known of these figures is the Amleth (book 3), who feignsmadness in order to visit vengeance on the uncle who murdered his fatherand became his step-father.This material came to Shakespeare by way of acontemporary French author.

One of my personal favorites has to beStarkather, whom Saxo presents to us with some license, but in a mostremarkable way.

Starkather, according to the somewhat garbled report,has been condemned by Thor to live three lifetimes, each separated by anact of treachery or betrayal.Books six and seven tell of the old heroduring his last lifetime and his long overdue death.He comes on as aleftover from a previous, more heroic time, before the Danish royalty hadsuccumbed to the decadent, courtly (French via 'Teuton') mannerisms thathad swept over Saxo's Europe."Frothi was succeeded by his son, Ingel... (who)abandoned the patterns of his forbears and surrendered himselfwholly to the baits of wanton extravagance. At variance with all that wasgood and upright, he grasped at vice instead of sound morality, severed thecords of restraint, neglected a sovereign's duties and became a vile slaveto riotous living."Further, "(h)is idea of greatness was tocollect fatteners of fowls, scullions, frying-pans, all kinds of factoriesfor the palate and various connoisseurs in the art of roasting and spicingmeats."A true warrior-king, we learn later, should be pleased to eathis rancid meat uncooked with his troops in the field.Ingel's main viceis, of course, that he hasn't avenged the death of his father.

We readabout Starkather's agreeing to stand by a Prince Helgi, who has agreed tomeet nine adversaries on the field the day after his wedding night. Starkather stands guard by the bridal chamber.At dawn he finds Helgislumbering peacefully in the arms of his bride.Reluctant to awaken theprince, he rides out onto the snow-covered plain to meet the opponents. When the nine find him he is covered with snow up to his shoulder blades,apparently half naked because he had removed his cloak to pluck fleas. They ask him if he wants to take them on individually or all together. "Whenever a sorry pack of curs snarls at me ... I usually send themscampering off all together, not one by one."Spaghetti-westernscript writers, look and learn!

The old Starkather dispatches all nine,but not before he is wounded so severely that his innards are hanging out. A man on a cart stops to tend to the badly bloodied hero.When the latterlearns that the man is a bailiff, "he was not content with rejectinghim, but crushed him with abuse."Two more passersby stop, but arealso rejected when our hero learns that the first has married a maidservantand is currently engaged in the process of buying her freedom.Be helpedby one who has "accepted a slave's embrace"?The second, a slaveherself, is sent "home (to) offer her teats to her squalling daughter,for he considered it utterly degrading to accept relief from a wretch ofthe lowest order."

Finally a farmer's son comes by in a wagon. His interview reveals that he has "a praiseworthy calling, in whichfolk sought their subsistence by a trade of honest labour and certainlyrealised no profit unless it were gained the sweat of their brows." How can you not love this guy?

Starkather's tirades are easilyrecognizable as Saxo's own scorn and derision, hurled at the courtlydecadence of his contemporary Danish aristocracy.

This translation wasfirst published in 1979 but has been unavailable in the American market formost of the past two decades.Buy this book and read it!We need more ofthese authentic histories. ... Read more

Product Description
In October of 1943, the Danish resistance rescued almost all of the Jews in Copenhagen from roundups by the occupying Nazis. In the years since, Jews have become deeply engaged in a Danish culture that presents very few barriers of anti-Semitism or prejudice. This telling ethnographic study explores the questions that such inclusion raises for the Danish Jews, and what their answers can tell us about the meaning of religion, ethnicity, and community in modern society.

Social scientists have long argued that modernity poses challenges to traditional ethnic communities, by breaking down the networks of locality, kinship, religion and occupation that have held such communities together. For Danish Jews, inclusion into the larger society has led to increasing fragmentation, as the community has split into a bewlidering array of religious, social, and political factions. The community's persistent vitality in the face of such fragmentation, and the ongoing importance of Jewishness to the self-identity of its members, points to a new understanding of the meaning of ethnic community in contemporary society.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Engaging, compelling, well written
This description of contemporary Jewish life and identity in Denmark is extremely well written, thoughtful, and powerful. The author explores various aspects of Jewish life (religious, communal, social, international, etc.) and charts the various sub-groups within Copenhagen's fractured Jewish community. These discussions are deftly embedded in historical context -- the author describes the various waves of Jewish immigration to Denmark over the past few centuries, and of course also places his analysis within the shadow of the 1943 rescue of Danish Jewry from the Nazis.

The entire book is nuanced and sensitive. The author allows his informants to speak for themselves and tell their own stories, but also shares plenty of his own observations and insights. The book is peppered with many interesting anecdotes and stories, some poignant, some disturbing, others humorous.

The author seems hopeful that Jewish life in Denmark will persist well into the future -- I am not so sure. I'm not sure I buy the whole "symbolic ethnicity" stuff.

Anyone interested in contemporary Jewish identity, contemporary Denmark, or good ethnographic analyses of communities, will find this book incredibly enriching and rewarding. ... Read more

Product Description
The Danish West Indies - the islands of St Thomas, St John, and St Croix - were a traditional Caribbean colony, characterised by sugar production, trade, and shipping. The colony was under the Danish flag from 1671 until 1917, since which time the islands have been known as the United States Virgin Islands. The archival sources for the history of the three islands are first and foremost in the Danish National Archives. These records are exceptionally comprehensive and their research potential is enormously rich, as the Danes have been meticulous in documenting almost everything that happened in the colony and in preserving the records. The Danish archival sources are therefore unique historical resources today.The book is a thorough guide to the vast Danish West Indian material in Denmark, including detailed catalogues of the archives of the most important colonial offices in Copenhagen. It also includes a valuable bibliographical essay on the literature on the history of the Danish West Indies. ... Read more