This book focuses on the influence of taxation on society and the development of tax law itself. Comprising numerous figures and images, the book provides a mixture of historical facts as well as the incidental anecdotes from history of taxation.

In this work, Robert Payne brings life to the Crusades that founded vast kingdoms in Palestine nearly 1000 years ago. It is a story of battles and valour, greed and piety, folly and baseness that mark the first major clash of Christianity and Islam.

The Victorians called him "Bobby" after Sir Robert Peel, the Home Secretary who created the Metropolitan Police in 1829. The generations that followed came to regard the force in which he served as "the best police in the world." If 21st- century observers sometimes take a more jaundiced view of his efforts, the blue-helmeted, unarmed policeman remains an icon of Britishness, and a symbol of the relatively peaceful nature of our social evolution. In "The Great British Bobby," Clive Emsley traces the development of Britain's forces of law and order from the earliest watchmen and constables of the pre-modern period to the police service of today.

While Galileo suffered under house arrest at the hands of Pope Urban VIII, the Thirty Years War ruined Europe, and the Pilgrims struggled to survive in the New World, work began on what would become one of the Seven Wonders of the World: the Taj Mahal. Built by the Moghul emperor Shah Jahan as a memorial to his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal, its flawless symmetry and gleaming presence have for centuries dazzled everyone who has seen it, and the story of its creation is a fascinating blend of cultural and architectural heritage. Yet, as Diana & Michael Preston vividly convey in the first narrative history of the Taj, it also reflects the magnificent history of the Moghul Empire itself, for it turned out to mark the high point of the Empire's glory at the same time as it became a tipping point in Moghul fortunes.

The roots of the Moghul Empire lie with the legendary warriors Genghis Khan and Tamburlaine; at its height it contained 100 million people, from Afghanistan in the north and present-day Pakistan in the west, to Bengal in the east and southwards deep into central India.. With the storytelling skills that characterize their previous books, Diana & Michael Preston bring alive both the grand sweep of Moghul history and the details that make it memorable: the battles and dynastic rivalries that forged the Empire alongside an intimate chronicle of daily life within the imperial palace. A tale of overwhelming passion, the story of the Taj has the cadences of Greek tragedy and the ripe emotion of grand opera, and puts a memorable human face on the marble masterpiece.

When we think of plastic surgery, vending machines, computers and fast food, many of us assume that they are modern inventions. Amazingly, these were all invented hundreds, or even thousands, of years ago.

In What the Past Did for Us, presenter and enthusiast Adam Hart-Davis takes us on a journey into the ancient world, revealing an astonishing array of innovations that occurred long before many of us would ever have thought they had.

The Greeks are well-known for inventing the Olympics, but only a few of us are aware that they were responsible for building the first known computer, around 100 BC. The Romans-famous for their road building-also gave us double glazing and central heating. All in all we owe a huge debt to the ancients-from the Chinese who invented paper money and the wheelbarrow, to the early Britons who developed the first housing estate at Skara Brae, home to the world's oldest known lavatories.

Based on the television series What the Past Did for Us, this book will change the way that we look at the everyday inventions we take for granted and until now thought were from the modern age.

Our age is obsessed by the idea of conspiracy. We see it everywhere - from Pearl Harbour to 9/11, from the assassination of Kennedy to the death of Diana. Bookshop shelves threaten to collapse under the weight of texts devoted to proving myriad conspiracy theories true, while even quality newspapers and serious TV channels are prepared to give them credence. For David Aaronovitch, there came a time when he started to see a pattern. These theories used similar dodgy methods with which to insinuate their claims: they linked themselves to the supposed conspiracies of the past (it happened then so it can happen now); they carefully manipulated their evidence to hide its holes; they relied on the authority of dubious academic sources. Most importantly, they elevated their believers to membership of an elite - a group of people able to see beyond lies to a higher reality. But why believe something that entails stretching the bounds of probability so far? Surely it is more likely that men did actually land on the moon in 1969 than that thousands of people were enlisted to fabricate a deception that they did. In this entertaining and enlightening book - aimed to provide ammunition for those who have found themselves at the wrong end of a conversation about moon landings or twin towers - Aaronovitch carefully probes and explodes a dozen of the major conspiracy theories. In doing so, he looks at why people believe them, and makes an argument for a true scepticism: one based on a thorough knowledge of history and a strong dose of common sense.

The early years of the 18th-century produced two great monuments: one, Christopher Wren's new cathedral of St Paul's, an enduring testament to principled craft and masterful construction, the other an empty fraud of such magnitude that its collapse threatened to overturn monarchies and governments. Its failure delayed the introduction of modern market economies by two generations. Yet the full scale of this monumental deceit was quietly covered up and hidden, its enduring legacy a poorly understood colloquialism: the South Sea Bubble.

Historische beschrijving van het menselijke verlangen naar het paradijs op aarde en van de wijzen waarop de mens dat trachtte te vestigen, vanaf de oude Grieken tot nu.

Typisch Nederland. Wat is nu precies 'typisch Nederland'? Die vraag heeft in de loop van de geschiedenis al velen beziggehouden. Nog niet zo lang geleden werd gedacht dat alleen bij boeren en vissers nog het authentieke leven was te zien. Maar de tijd staat ook op het platteland en langs de kust niet stil. Wat wij op en top Nederlands vinden, verandert voortdurend. Koffietijd om acht uur en het broodtrommeltje zijn even karakteristiek voor ons land als Koninginnedag en Sinterklaas. De auteurs van dit boek beschrijven telkens actuele, herkenbare voorbeelden, die vervolgens historisch worden uitgesponnen. Zo krijgt u een veelkleurig en verrassend beeld van 'typisch Nederlandse' zaken.

Historische en cultuurhistorische geschriften van de historicus Huizinga (1872-1945) geplaatst in een breed internationaal kader van Europese cultuurkritiek in de eerste helft van de twintigste eeuw.

Researcher and designer Caroline Nevejan focuses on the implications of technology on society. The artistic research explores new values for the (meta) design of participatory systems in which people accept responsibility for their words and deeds and negotiate trust and truth in a networked world. Artists are Kadir van Lohuizen, Debra Solomon, Ronald Ophuis, Zoro Feigl, Afaina de Jong, Chin-Lien Chen & Chris Vermaas, Anna Carlgren, Merlijn Twaalfhoven, Martin Butler, Karen Lancel & Hermen Maat, Jodi, Luna Maurer & Andreas Zangger and Angelo Vermeulen.

The Crimean War combines an extraordinary oral and visual account of the Crimean War -- including many photographs and accounts never previously published. The history is told from eyewitness accounts from people on all sides of the conflict (British, French, Russian and Turkish) -- in the forms of letters and diaries of soldiers, sailors, doctors, artists, nurses and reporters. And as the Crimean War was the first war to be photographed and to which war artists were assigned, the book is heavily illustrated with striking images of war. The combination of art and personal accounts makes for an incredibly fascinating and original perspective on the events.

Von Ammen, Quacksalbern oder Köhlern mag der ein oder andere schon gehört haben. Doch welche Arbeiten sich hinter Namen wie Sandmann, Rosstäuscher oder Beutetürke verbergen, weiß heute niemand mehr. Solchen verschwundenen Tätigkeiten forscht dieser wunderschön illustrierte Band nach. Mit detektivischem Spürsinn haben Michaela Vieser und Irmela Schautz in Archiven, auf Gemälden oder in Romanen ausgestorbene Berufe ausfindig gemacht und ihren gesellschaftlichen Hintergrund beleuchtet. Sie erzählen zum Beispiel, dass der Kaffeeriecher als Teil des preußischen Steuersystems in Häusern nach geschmuggeltem Kaffee schnüffelte, oder berichten vom Abtrittanbieter, der mit Eimern auf Messen eine schnelle Lösung für kleine und große Bedürfnisse anbot.

Overzicht van de activiteiten van militaire eenheden tijdens veldslagen en veldtochten.

In de overgang van de achttiende naar de negentiende eeuw bestond er onder de nieuwe stedelijke elite een groeiende belangstelling voor het ontginnen van woeste gronden. De wens zich in te zetten voor de ontwikkeling van de landbouw- en veeteelt voor het algemeen welzijn berustte veelal op idealistische motieven en het veronderstelde kennis van de materie. 0Naast een of meerdere boerenhoeven die op een ontginning werden gebouwd, werd in veel gevallen ook een stenen huis opgetrokken voor de pachtheer. Het stenen herenhuis bood de familie gelegenheid tot recreatie in de vrije natuur, weg uit de stedelijke omgeving. Een bescheiden voorbeeld van een dergelijke ontginningsonderneming is het kleine landgoed Sterrebos, onder Oud Herlaer, dat meer dan twee honderd jaar geleden werd aangelegd door Jacob Willem Halfwassenaer van Onsenoort.0Architectuurhistoricus Jan van der Vaart verdiepte zich in de ontginningspraktijk aan het begin van de negentiende eeuw en ontrafelde de twee eeuwen bouw en bewoningsgeschiedenis van het kleine buiten Sterrebos.0Het brede spectrum van zijn onderzoek leidde tot een ongekunsteld inkijkje in de verhoudingen binnen de kringen van de bestuurlijke elite, van de militaire bovenlaag in de stad, de opkomst van de gegoede burgerij in de negentiende eeuw en de rol van de lokale overheid aan het begin van de twintigste eeuw.

Naslagwerk met mythologische figuren uit de hele wereld.

Rechtsfilosoof en ethicus Cliteur gaat in zijn essays uit van dagelijkse voorvallen die ons confronteren met de culturele verschillen in opvatting in een pluriforme samenleving.

From John Locke to Sigmund Freud, philosophers and psychologists have long believed that we begin life as blank moral slates. Many of us take for granted that babies are born selfish and that it is the role of society—and especially parents—to transform them from little sociopaths into civilized beings. In Just Babies, Paul Bloom argues that humans are in fact hardwired with a sense of morality. Drawing on groundbreaking research at Yale, Bloom demonstrates that, even before they can speak or walk, babies judge the goodness and badness of others’ actions; feel empathy and compassion; act to soothe those in distress; and have a rudimentary sense of justice.

Still, this innate morality is limited, sometimes tragically. We are naturally hostile to strangers, prone to parochialism and bigotry. Bringing together insights from psychology, behavioral economics, evolutionary biology, and philosophy, Bloom explores how we have come to surpass these limitations. Along the way, he examines the morality of chimpanzees, violent psychopaths, religious extremists, and Ivy League professors, and explores our often puzzling moral feelings about sex, politics, religion, and race.

In his analysis of the morality of children and adults, Bloom rejects the fashionable view that our moral decisions are driven mainly by gut feelings and unconscious biases. Just as reason has driven our great scientific discoveries, he argues, it is reason and deliberation that makes possible our moral discoveries, such as the wrongness of slavery. Ultimately, it is through our imagination, our compassion, and our uniquely human capacity for rational thought that we can transcend the primitive sense of morality we were born with, becoming more than just babies.

Paul Bloom has a gift for bringing abstract ideas to life, moving seamlessly from Darwin, Herodotus, and Adam Smith to The Princess Bride, Hannibal Lecter, and Louis C.K. Vivid, witty, and intellectually probing, Just Babies offers a radical new perspective on our moral lives.

The ultimate guide for the student encountering anthropology for the first time, Anthropology: The Basics explains and explores key anthropological concepts including:

• what is anthropology?
• how can we distinguish cultural differences from physical ones?
• what is culture, anyway?
• how do anthropologists study culture?
• what are the key theories and approaches used today?
• How has the discipline changed over time?

This student-friendly text provides an overview of the fundamental principles of anthropology and is an invaluable guide for anyone wanting to learn more about this fascinating subject.

We live in a time when the very idea of objective truth is mocked and discounted by the US President. Discredited conspiracy theories and ideologies have resurfaced, proven science is once more up for debate, and Russian propaganda floods our screens. The wisdom of the crowd has usurped research and expertise, and we are each left clinging to the beliefs that best confirm our biases. How did truth become an endangered species? This decline began decades ago, and in The Death of Truth, former New York Times critic Michiko Kakutani takes a penetrating look at the cultural forces that contributed to this gathering storm. In social media and literature, television, academia, and political campaigns, Kakutani identifies the trends - originating on both the right and the left - that have combined to elevate subjectivity over factuality, science, and common values. And she returns us to the words of the great critics of authoritarianism, writers like George Orwell and Hannah Arendt, whose work is newly and eerily relevant. With remarkable erudition and insight, Kakutani offers a provocative diagnosis of our current condition and presents a path forward for our truth-challenged times.

For well over a century the Wagner clan has run the Bayreuth Festival and played host to many of the greatest and ghastliest figures in the arts and politics. Drawn from extensive interviews with members of the family, Jonathan Carr presents a portrait of the Wagners and their circle.

Justice is simultaneously a practical and an ideal concept: when we think of justice, we refer to its day-to-day administration, involving police, lawyers, judges, and politicians--but we also refer to a larger ideal, a set of basic values that guide our attempts to live together and balance competing interests, obligations, and freedoms. If we lose sight of the practical, the ideal will fail--but if we forget the ideal, the practical becomes pointless.

On Rules is the culmination of decades of thinking about and working within the law as both an ideal and a realm of practical action. Gherardo Colombo brings to his rich philosophical analysis of the culture of justice thirty years of experience in the Italian judiciary, which saw him head up numerous important and sensitive commissions and inquiries. His exploration of the concept and application of rules of justice is powerful and clear: if we don't root our experience in a fundamental respect for rules, we cannot have a functioning, just society.

The modern state is hugely important in our everyday lives. It takes nearly half our income in taxes. It registers our births, marriages and deaths. It educates our children and pays our pensions. It has a unique power to compel, in some cases exercising the ultimate sanction of preserving life or ordering death. Yet most of us would struggle to say exactly what the state is.
The Modern Stateoffers a clear, comprehensive and provoking introduction to one of the most important phenomena of contemporary life. Topics covered include:
* the nation state and its historical context
* state and economy
* state and societies
* state and citizens
* international relations
* the future of the state

In Egypte worden de politieke en religieuze tegenstellingen steeds groter. Vooral tussen moslims en christenen. Als Amal (13) ontdekt dat haar moeder interesse heeft in het christelijke geloof, is ze bang voor de gevolgen. Vanaf ca. 12 jaar.

De levens van enkele moslims in Pakistan nemen mede door het opkomend fundamentalisme uiteenlopende wendingen.

De Nederlandse politiek in een notendop" helpt de lezer de parlementaire democratie beter te begrijpen. De auteurs beschrijven het ontstaan van het systeem, de ontwikkeling van de politieke partijen en de dagelijkse gang van zaken in politiek Den Haag. Daarbij wisselen historische en actuele hoofdstukken elkaar af. Op deze manier is politiek niet saai, maar juist heel boeiend.

In dit boek gaat arabist Jan Jaap de Ruiter (1959), verbonden aan de Universiteit van Tilburg, in op het PVV-gedachtegoed zoals verwoord door PVV-Kamerlid Martin Bosma in zijn 'De schijn-élite van de valse munters' dat in 2010 verscheen. Helder analyserend legt De Ruiter uit dat het PVV-denken sterk zwart-wit is en zich op een vijftal thema's richt: het christendom, de islam, de joden en Israël, de linkse partijen en immigratie en multiculturaliteit. Daarnaast besteedt De Ruiter aandacht aan de wording van de PVV als politieke beweging en de manier waarop Martin Bosma omgaat met cijfers en feiten. Deze publicatie sluit af met een verhaal waarin De Ruiter zijn zorg uit over wat er gebeurt als uitsluiting in een samenleving regel wordt.