This chapter explores Aurangzeb’s princely career between his birth in 1618 and his accession to the Mughal throne in 1658. In it, close attention is paid to the decades-long efforts by Prince Aurangzeb to position himself for a successful bid to become the next Mughal emperor. This chapter examines the slow growth of Aurangzeb’s personal household, his networks of support, his efforts to gain military and administrative experience, his attempts to raise money for himself, and his campaign to build his own public image. This chapter draws heavily on his personal letters, a source that has been infrequently used by other historians because it comprises two massive volumes and is in highly stylized Persian.

This chapter examines a remarkable effort to memorialize ‘Alamgir in the decades after his death. This enterprise is noteworthy because it was unprecedented in Mughal history: no other emperor, not even ‘Alamgir’s much-admired great-grandfather Akbar (r. 1556–1605), was eulogized with the same intensity and for so many decades after his death. In its early stages this project was led by a small group of noble ‘Alamgir loyalists. In time, however, the effort extended to other parts of the rapidly disintegrating empire as well as, unexpectedly, to groups that had either been only nominally under Mughal rule or had actively opposed it. The end product was a trove of histories, administrative manuals, collections of orders and correspondence, and miniatures depicting ‘Alamgir. Although the participants’ motivations for eulogizing ‘Alamgir varied, the results point to a broad consensus about his greatness, among both Muslims and Hindus, across much of northern and central India that lasted until the late eighteenth century and the onset of British colonial rule.

The final two weeks of ‘Alamgir’s life is the focus of this chapter. It highlights various themes and characters (some important, others minor) to illustrate daily life at court at the end of his long reign while reflecting back on ‘Alamgir, his reign, and the Mughal Empire. There are sections devoted to the relationship between ‘Alamgir and his three surviving sons, the tensions between his sons and grandsons, the impoverishment of the Mughal nobility, biographies of some of his favorite nobles and last surviving wife (Udaipuri Mahal), conversion to Islam, and the ill-fated Mughal struggle against the Marathas. Other sections highlight ‘Alamgir’s physical and mental frailties, his extraordinary work ethic, his attentiveness to intelligence gathering, and the deep sense of personal failure and self-recrimination at the end of his life. Together these stories offer insights on ‘Alamgir, the court, and the empire on the cusp of a new era that everyone feared might be even less settled than the one drawing to a close.

This chapter is devoted to the imperial eunuchate and begins by looking at the place of eunuchs in the life of the empire prior to 1658. This is followed by an examination of the rising presence of eunuchs in Aurangzeb’s princely household and the central role eunuch loyalists played in helping ‘Alamgir consolidate his power post-1658. Despite ‘Alamgir’s concerns about the existence and trafficking of eunuchs, he also appreciated the strength and usefulness of the imperial eunuchate, and contributed to its growing power. This chapter also evaluates Khidmatgar Khan III, the most powerful eunuch in Mughal history and the head of the imperial eunuchate from the early 1690s to his death in 1704. Such power did not come without resistance from uncastrated men who were jealous of the eunuchate’s wealth and power. This included ‘Alamgir himself, who, despite heavy dependence on imperial eunuchs, tried to maintain some checks on them, even if these weakened toward the end of his life.

This chapter focuses on the development of Prince Aurangzeb’s princely harem and his evolving relationship, as emperor, with the imperial harem. In evaluating the former, attention is paid to his marriages, rivalries between his wives, and the ways his harem was buffeted by his shifting political fortunes. Post-accession, the focus shifts to Alamgir’s negotiations and relations with the imperial harem, his dependence on his sisters, the harem’s role in safeguarding the continuity of the dynasty and in healing old political wounds, the rise of dissent within the harem in the late 1670s and early 1680s, and the remarkable career of ‘Alamgir’s daughter Zinat al-Nisa. The final section looks at an extraordinary brief period in Mughal history when the imperial harem, for the only time in its history, was split, with one section in the Deccan with ‘Alamgir and the other in Shahjahanabad/Delhi, where it anchored imperial authority in the city, contributed to a lively cultural scene, and acted as a beacon for a possible return of the imperial court to northern India once ‘Alamgir had passed away.

This chapter uses the twin rubrics of “state” and “sovereignty” to understand many of the most important or controversial aspects of ‘Alamgir’s forty-nine-year reign. What emerges is a portrait of a ruler who was, by turns, determined to restore law and order, protect social hierarchies, coopt or crush anyone who opposed his efforts, replenish the imperial treasury, and strengthen Mughal rule. Although ‘Alamgir mostly positioned himself as a typical Mughal emperor in terms of his sovereign self-expression, his style of renunciate sovereignty (at once Timurid and Islamic) radiated into the court and empire in distinctive ways. Ultimately, his decision to invade the Deccan in the early 1680s proved to be his and the Mughal Empire’s undoing. Against a backdrop of political and military failure, ‘Alamgir nonetheless held on to his throne. This chapter ends by arguing that his emergence as a living saint–emperor (Zinda Pir ‘Alamgir) was a key factor in his political survival.

Dante traces the question of happiness to our nature, knowledge of which is available.His decision to persist in rational inquiry is not arbitrary as rests on such knowledge. At the heart of Paradiso Dante speaks with his ancestor Cacciaguida about Florentine politics and nobility because the needed self-knowledge is gained through reflection on political life. From the contemplative unity characteristic of the previous Heaven to the political conflict in Mars is an ascent.

The key discussion concerns how candidly Dante’s poem should express the truth. The literary question points to the political problem of posed by the enduring tensions among human goods, and these tensions disclose the conflicts inherent in an embodied mind. Among beings that desire and reason, that are “mortal” and aware of their mortality, there is decisive inequality, inequality regarding the willingness and ability to discern truth.The scope of this difference defies the possibility that good can be understood by deduction from a principle or law, making it a matter for inquiry. The life devoted to this inquiry, as indicated in these central Cantos, is available here and now and grounds every genuinely common good. Dante calls his epic of self-reflection a “comedy.”

This chapter examines the vocational odyssey of the second-generation humanist Giovanni Conversini, as he attempts to match his father’s lofty social status in his pursuit of a literary and teaching career. It focuses on his autobiographical account of his numerous occupations and two marriages (Rationarium vite); his attempt to gain an appointment with his uncle, a cardinal in the Papal Court (Dialogue Between Giovanni and a Letter); his experience in the Paduan court (De primo eius introitus ad aulam); and his major theoretical statement on life choice (Dragmalogia de eligibili vite genere).

Chapter 3 explores in detail the households between which Tivinat was carrying the correspondence: of Henry Norris, the English ambassador, in the suburbs of Paris and of Odet de Coligny, the cardinal of Châtillon, in the outskirts of London. Discusses Norris’s experience as ambassador and the challenges of this role, not least the interception of couriers, as well as the difficulty of negotiating between the French and English courts at a time of turbulent diplomatic relations. Establishes the importance of his household as a hub of Protestant activity. Châtillon’s life and career are examined as context for his experience of exile in England and his role as diplomat at Elizabeth’s court from 1568 to 1571. Establishes the importance of his contribution as Huguenot representative, facilitating a Protestant network of ministers and agents across Europe, as well as the links of this network with the two households and the correspondence carried by Tivinat. The role of other prominent figures in exile with Châtillon are also explored.

This chapter explains the origins of the Estates General, in practice from the 1484 meeting, and how deputies were chosen, how the meetings of the Estate General operated, and why kings convoked them in its 1560, 1561, 1576, 1588–1589, and 1614 meetings. It also explains the differences between the Estates General and meetings of provincial estates and bailiwick assemblies.

During the period of Sasanian dominion (224–651 ce) the inhabitants of the Empire of Ērānšahr (“Realm of the Iranians”) were subject to a well-developed and efficient legal system, which was in force in all the provinces of the vast empire during the five centuries of this dynasty’s rule and remained relevant far into the Muslim era after the Arab conquest of Iran in the seventh century. In the age that the chapter deals with, Iranian law had already developed across many centuries from its simple beginnings in a pastoral society in the first millennium bce, during which the first Zoroastrian precepts were formulated and customs established, to its most sophisticated known form in the legal system of the Sasanian state. Within this timespan, jurisprudence evolved into an advanced and complex discipline, which remained firmly based on Zoroastrian tenets, but became largely detached from theology particularly in the legal practice of the state courts in the Sasanian era.

This chapter is organized into four sections. First, using Wu Shixing as a focal point, it examines the role of merit nobles as envoys of the throne in missions to provincial courts and in offerings to the souls of the imperial house’s deceased members. Second, it briefly reviews the heightened prominence of military affairs during the reign of Zhengde (1505–21), including important changes to the organization of the Capital Garrisons, which was where Wu Shixing and other merit nobles held posts. Third, it considers the military laborscape of the early sixteenth century, with particular attention to how the Ming court addressed issues of ability and difference in the suppression of a series of large-scale rebellions. Fourth, this chapter returns to debates at the Ming court surrounding the education and training of merit nobles like Wu Shixing.

Focusing on the same period as the two previous chapters, Chapter 4 examines a multiplicity of collective identities shared by most residents. Municipal citizenship was based on the defence of citizens against non-citizens, most especially the regional nobility. That defence consisted primarily of the ma armada (‘armed band’), which granted to Perpignan’s consuls the right to lead punitive expeditions against those who had injured citizens. Perpignan sought to extend the ma armada as part of an aggressive campaign against the regional nobility, and it maintained the ma armada against all comers, including monarchs. At the same time, Perpignan showed a growing willingness to be Catalonian, modelling its institutions after those of other Catalonian municipalities and accepting Barcelona’s leadership. And the royal state set the stage for its later triumph through the construction of urban fortifications. Garrisoned citadels enabled royal states to project their power against municipalities in ways that had not been possible before, and that rendered townspeople royal subjects first, municipal citizens second.

Naval warfare changed out of all recognition from the late sixteenth century onwards through the rapid development of large square-rigged warships carrying heavy broadside gun batteries. A whole series of developments followed, with a long (if far from smooth) evolution in ships, equipment, strategy, and tactics continuing down to the last sailing navies of the early nineteenth century. It was clearly no accident that this naval revolution coincided with a great age of global European empires, which would have been impossible to create or maintain without effective naval power. Galleys and other oared craft became largely obsolete, except for some amphibious operations in the Mediterranean and for use in shallow waters around the innumerable Baltic islands. The crushing Dutch victory over a Spanish fleet at the battle of the Downs (1639) marked the first occasion when the full power of broadside gunnery became evident. Then the three Anglo-Dutch wars between the 1650s and 1670s saw a series of savage and bloody engagements between the fleets of two nations that were coming to be known as the Maritime Powers. The combination of imperial and trading ambitions, new financial arrangements, and relatively open societies enabled first the Dutch, and then the British, to develop naval power to new heights, in turn allowing them to punch well above their weight on the international stage. Under Louis XIV, France did mount a serious challenge to the Dutch and English, and for a time possessed the largest navy in the Western world. However, by the 1690s the French, and more gradually the Dutch, were finding the costs of maintaining this level of power at sea, as well as on land, to be too great.

The Roman senatorial elite laid claim to all roles of prominence in society. The very notion of nobilitas made prominence an all-inclusive virtue, in office-holding as much as in other public arenas. Indeed, scrutinizing an inherent tension between annual roles as embodied by the honores and more durable, sometimes life long, roles of prominence, Hans Beck argues that the aristocracy’s integrated claim to leadership wielded significant stabilizing impact upon Roman society. L. Quinctius Flamininus was expelled from the senate in 184 BCE but maintained his other social rules, his public standing, and his overall notability. In the century and a half that followed, Beck detects a gradual erosion of inclusive ideals of prominence. The crisis of the Republic is thus understood as a disintegration of social roles. In the era of the great extraordinary commands, the performance of prestige duties of the collective became less and less important. Augustus’ ostentatious unification of these under his watchful guard as princeps propelled a change in role behaviour that could easily be portrayed as a restitution of the Republican outlook.

Returning to the Iberian Peninsula, this chapter considers how colonial experiences influenced early modern views of horse breeding. King Philip II’s survey of horse breeding in Spain and his efforts to develop a new royal “race” (raza) of horses provide two valuable case studies of contemporary debates about improving horse breeds. Knowledge and expertise gained from active horse breeding often contradicted ideal values of lineage or blood purity. These cases acknowledge limits to the control implied in selectively breeding domesticated animals and demonstrate an early modern understanding of the contructedness of horse breeds. In a larger sense, these findings offer a nuanced reading of how raza and casta in animal husbandry relate to histories of racial terminology and classifications of difference in the Spanish empire.

Eighteenth-century Paris was the site of multiple sexual cultures ranging from permissive to conservative. All these sexual cultures operated within a set of prescriptive legal, religious, and moralistic discourses that prohibited sex outside of marriage while often supporting sexual pleasure within it. Many Parisians ignored these prescriptions, often with impunity. The police concerned themselves with public sex and intervened in private affairs only when asked to do so. Paris was home to a diverse permissive sexual culture. It was comprised of a portion of the financial, social, political, and intellectual elite, often identified as libertines, for whom sex outside marriage was both widespread and widely accepted. It also included men who had sex with each other as part of Paris’s extensive sodomitical subculture, though there is little evidence of a modern homosexual identity. Prostitution was endemic in Paris, encompassing numerous forms of transactional sex that translated into a sort of hierarchy, with women kept as mistresses by men of the elite at the top and those catering to marginal men at the bottom. We know least about the sex lives of other ordinary people, though evidence suggests many had sex outside of marriage and many cared deeply for their spouses.

Hungary was by far the largest constituent part of the Habsburg Monarchy, and a considerable European state in its own right. The relationship between the Habsburg ruler and Hungary’s assertive, noble-dominated estates was characterized by a traditional duality between “crown” and “country” which limited the monarch’s ability to raise taxes and mobilize resources. Maria Theresia (1740–1780) skillfully managed this system, while her radical son, Joseph II (1780–90) openly challenged it. He introduced a blizzard of reforms in pursuit of an efficient and unified Habsburg state. His uncompromising reform drive provoked resistance, verging on open revolt by the end of his reign. This chapter argues that effective resistance to Josephist absolutism originated in a group of disillusioned Hungarian officeholders and that these cannot simply be dismissed as dyed in the wool conservatives. Under the new ruler, Leopold II (1790–2) a compromise was reached: the traditional duality was restored and the bulk of the Josephist reform programme was jettisoned. Nonetheless, three key reforms were incorporated which helped to unify the Hungarian élite and made the country, and ultimately the Habsburg Monarchy, better able to face the challenge of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.