Habsburgs

In The Habsburgs, Martyn Rady tells the epic story of a dynasty and the world they built - and then lost - over nearly a millennium. From modest origins, the Habsburgs grew in power to gain control of the Holy Roman Empire in the fifteenth century. Then, in just a few decades, their possessions rapidly expanded to take in a large part of Europe stretching from Hungary to Spain, and parts of the New World and the Far East. The Habsburgs continued to dominate Central Europe throughout the First World War.

Historians often depict the Habsburgs as leaders of a ramshackle empire. But Rady reveals their enduring power, driven by the belief that they were destined to rule the world as defenders of the Roman Catholic Church, guarantors of peace and patrons of learning. The Habsburgs is the definitive history of a remarkable dynasty that forever changed Europe and the world.

“This is probably the best book ever written on the Habsburgs in any language, certainly the best I have ever read ... a brilliant achievement. Lucid, comprehensive and witty, it is not merely a pleasure to read but a complete education. Students, scholars and the general reader will never find a better guide to Habsburg history. No one will ever again know as much about the subject as Rady.”

Martyn Rady has written a splendid account of the grandest old dynasty of Europe: the Habsburgs. With wit and firm opinion, he takes the reader on something akin to a tour of the Wunderkammer of the dynasty's many-centuries-long career. Including vampires, an empress's waist size, and cocaine-laced health drinks, Rady's narrative glitters with apt quotes and telling, often ironic details. -- Steven Beller, author of THE HABSBURG MONARCHY 1815-1918 A tour de force. Thorough, accessible, and resolutely erudite, this is the volume that this vitally important subject so desperately needed. Martyn Rady should be congratulated. -- Roger Moorhouse, author of POLAND 1939: THE OUTBREAK OF WORLD WAR II This is a first global history of Europe's most famous and durable dynasty, chronicling its exploits with great panache over nearly a millennium of rule across wide swathes of the continent and beyond. Martyn Rady writes incisively and judiciously, drawing on much recent international scholarship in a range of languages to illustrate multiple facets of Habsburg governance in theory and practice. At the same time his text is accessible and entertaining, his ready wit providing a delectable counterpoint to the notorious humourlessness of so many of the dynasts he examines. -- Robert Evans, Regius Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Oxford The Habsburgs - ambitious, illustrious, and at times incestuous - were once Europe's foremost royal family. Rady tells their story with verve and authority, casting a curious eye over their eccentricities and peccadilloes while all the time revealing their extraordinary influence and global vision. A fascinating read! -- Alexander Watson, author of THE FORTRESS and RING OF STEEL The Habsburgs is gripping, colorful, and dramatic but also concise, scholarly, and magisterial. Martyn Rady recounts the story of Europe's greatest dynasty that ruled an empire, on which the sun never set, from Peru to the Philippines. Revealing a key player in world history for almost a thousand years, The Habsburgs is a chronicle of high politics and family intimacy involving religion, murder, incest, madness, suicide, assassination. History on an epic scale! -- Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of THE ROMANOVS and JERUSALEM: THE BIOGRAPHY

Martyn Rady is Masaryk Professor of Central European History at University College London. He has written several major works on the history of Hungary, from the medieval period to the twentieth century, but has also written on topics as diverse as the Hussites, vampirism and the Emperor Charles V. He has honorary doctorates from the K?roli University in Budapest and the Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu in Romania.

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