Dynasties: A Global History of Power, 1300–1800For thousands of years, societies have fallen under the reign of a single leader, ruling as chief, king, or emperor. In this fascinating global history of medieval and early modern dynastic power, Jeroen Duindam charts the rise and fall of dynasties, the rituals of rulership, and the contested presence of women on the throne. From European, African, Mughal, Ming-Qing and Safavid dynasties to the Ottoman Empire, Tokugawa Japan and Chosŏn Korea, he reveals the tension between the ideals of kingship and the lives of actual rulers, the rich variety of arrangements for succession, the households or courts which catered to rulers' daily needs, and the relationship between the court and the territories under its control. The book integrates numerous African examples, sets dynasties within longer-term developments such as the rise of the state, and examines whether the tensions inherent in dynastic power led inexorably to cycles of ascent and decline. |
Contents
Introduction | 1 |
time and place | 7 |
Beyond great debates and grand narratives | 14 |
position versus person | 21 |
reproduction and succession | 87 |
spaces groups balances | 156 |
connections and interactions | 227 |
Rankings and rewards | 237 |
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administrative advisors African Akbar Asante Asia Asian audiences Cambridge centre century ceremonies Chinese clan Confucian connected conquest consorts context courtiers culture Dahomey daimyo descent Duindam dynastic dynastic power early modern elites empress eunuchs Europe European examples favourites female Forbidden City French grand vizier groups Habsburg harem hierarchy History honour household ideals imperial China inner court Islamic Japan Japanese Journal Kaempfer Kangxi Kangxi emperor king king’s kingdom kingship London Louis XIV male Manchu marriage matrilineal Mehmed Mehmed IV military Ming Ming dynasty monarchy Mongol moral mother Mughal Mughal empire Murad III nobles numerous office-holders organised Ottoman empire outer court Paris pattern political polygyny practice present princes princesses Qianlong Qing Qizilbash queen rank regions reign religious ritual role royal rule rulers rulership Safavid servants Shah shogun social sons Studies succession successors sultan throne tion titles Tokugawa Topkapı palace traditions underlines women