Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
By the end of the sixteenth century, stories about the Revolt in the Low Countries (c. 1567-1648) had begun to spread throughout Europe. These stories had very different authors with very different intentions. Over time the plethora of sources and interpretations faded away, leaving us with opposing canonical narratives. The Dutch and Spanish national myths were forged on the basis of two visions of the conflict: as a liberation war against cruel Spanish oppressors and as a glorious episode in the history of the Spanish Empire. This volume delves into the early, seemingly anecdotal stories of the war to map the great variety and interconnection of the narratives. It asks such questions as how did the Jesuits write about the Revolt, what can we find in Italian chronicles and how did the war look from the perspective of a local nobleman or a Spanish commander?
Synopsis
The Revolt in the Low Countries is one of the major conflicts of early modern Europe. Though it is mostly seen as a war between the Dutch and the Spanish, in reality it was a complex civil war with international involvement. This book returns to the original war narratives of the period, re-establishing the multi-faceted character of the conflict.