The Rise of the Dutch Republic — Volume 14: 1568, part I

Motley, John Lothrop, 1814-1877Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 4.2

Word count: 114K words
Chapters: 12

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971, and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today. The Rise of the Dutch Republic — Volume 14: 1568, part I by John Lothrop Motley. Author: Motley, John Lothrop, 1814-1877. Language: English. Class: DH: History: General and Eastern Hemisphere: Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg. Release Date: Jan 1, 2004

Editor's review

This volume continues from Volume 13 into the first half of 1568, with the narrative shifting to the escalation of conflict and the realignment of the contending parties. Motley excels at advancing historical narrative through the words and deeds of individuals, interweaving political negotiations, military movements, and religious sentiment to create a strong sense of immediacy. As a segment of a nineteenth-century narrative history, its value lies not only in organizing events but also in exemplifying a far-reaching tradition of narrating the Dutch Revolt. The free Gutenberg electronic edition is convenient for searching names, places, and keywords, making it suitable for close reading or tracing historical sources. Note that this volume likewise depends on the context of the preceding and following volumes, and that the author's stance is pronounced; readers should maintain a critical reading and treat it as a sample for understanding nineteenth-century historiographical views rather than as the sole authoritative account.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Historical readers continuing through the multi-volume The Rise of the Dutch Republic
Researchers focused on the situation in the Netherlands and religious conflict in 1568
University students who need the original English historical sources for textual analysis
Readers interested in the narrative style of nineteenth-century historiography

Not a good fit for

Readers new to the history of the Dutch Revolt who need an introductory general history
Readers expecting modern scholarly annotation and a critical introduction
Readers unaccustomed to long English narratives who rely on Chinese translations

Reading tips

First review the situation at the end of Volume 13 to clarify the balance of forces in early 1568.
While reading, compile a brief table of figures and factions to reduce confusion from the multi-stranded narrative.
For key events, consult modern general histories to check Motley's emphases.
If citing for writing, note the edition source and distinguish the author's views from historical fact.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

How does Volume 14 connect with Volume 13 in content?

Volume 13 covers the second half of 1567, and Volume 14 enters the first half of 1568, with events and figures continuing in sequence. Skipping the previous volume may make the background of political negotiations and the relationships among figures feel discontinuous. Reading in order is recommended, or browse the end of the previous volume and a chronology of major events before starting this volume.

Is this book suitable as an introductory reader for Dutch history?

Not very suitable. It is the middle of a multi-volume narrative history that assumes prior context, and it was written in the nineteenth century, lacking modern scholarly guidance and corrective perspectives. Introductory readers should first read a contemporary general history, then read this book as a primary narrative text and material for the history of historiography.

What background knowledge should one prepare before reading?

It is advisable to understand the political structure of the Netherlands under sixteenth-century Spanish Habsburg rule, the basic outlines of the Reformation and the spread of Protestantism, and the conflicts between local privileges and central authority in the 1560s. With this background, one can better understand the motives for negotiations, alliances, and conflicts in this volume.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Motley, John Lothrop, 1814-1877 Author

John Lothrop Motley (1814–1877) was an American historian and diplomat, known for his historical works on Dutch independence and the Dutch Revolt. His major work, The Rise of the Dutch Republic, narrates in detail how the Dutch provinces threw off Spanish rule and established a republican government, combining rigorous scholarship with a strong narrative drive. His History of the United Netherlands continues the account of political and military developments from the death of William the Silent to the end of the sixteenth century. The collection here contains 103 of his works, mostly different volumes and editions of these general histories. Public information is limited, so biographical details are omitted; his works show a respect for primary sources and a talent for portraying major historical turning points, and they have had a lasting influence on the study of Dutch history in the English-speaking world.