Today, the Flemish physician, alchemist and philosopher Jan Baptista Van Helmont (1579-1644) is mostly remembered as one of the founders of modern chemistry and medicine. However, Van Helmont saw himself rather differently: he firmly believed he had been called to articulate a ‘Christian Philosophy’ that would bring together Christian thought and natural philosophy in a harmonious synthesis. His ‘Christian Philosophy’ would be purged of the Aristotelian ‘heathenism’ he felt Scholasticism had been tainted with. Instead, it would convey a unitary view of God, Nature and Man that was in accord with Christian doctrine. The main purpose of this thesis is to understand how Van Helmont attempted to construct this new Christian Philosophy. The thesis will argue that the inspiration for this project lay in the medical alchemy developed by Theophrastus Paracelsus (1493-1541) following medieval precedents. Paracelsus and many of his followers expressed the view that alchemy can act as the Christian key to Nature, and therefore an alliance of alchemical philosophy and Christianity was not only possible, but natural. Van Helmont concurred with this perspective, seeking to ground his Christian Philosophy in both orthodox Christian thought and medical alchemy. His religious ideas drew chiefly upon Biblical and Patristic sources as well as on German medieval mysticism. Van Helmont sought to complement this approach with an alchemical view that emphasised the hidden presence of God in Nature, as well as the role of the alchemist in unveiling this presence in the form of powerful medicine. Indeed, in Van Helmont’s thought Christianity and alchemy were dynamically entwined to such an extent that their discourses were not clearly separate. Van Helmont firmly believed the source of all things was God, and hence both the Book of Grace and the Book of Nature had their common origin in the light of the Holy Spirit.

This study is an examination of the hero image in the work of G.A. Henty (1832-1902) and George MacDonald (1824-1905) and a reassessment of the hitherto oppositional critiques of their writing. The argument driving the reassessment is that their writing is not oppositional but is complementary and that the ideology embedded in their work is communicated through the character of the hero through genre and through their interpretation of their historical period. The central hypothesis is that the reflexive characteristics of the hero image demonstrate a complete identity commensurate with the hero figure of the Victorian ideal. This hypothesis is demonstrated through the analysis of chosen texts from the work of Henty and MacDonald categorised by critics as written for children and by the application of ethical, genre and new historic theory. The relationship between the expansion of the British Empire and youthful heroism is established through investigation of the Victorian political, social and religious milieu, the construct of the child and the construct of the hero. The connection between the exotic geographical space of empire and the unknown psychological space is conducted through examination of the representation of the ‘other' in the work of Henty and MacDonald. The study demonstrates that Henty’s work is more complex than the stereotypically linear, masculine, imperialistic critique of his stories as historical realism allows and that MacDonald’s work displays more evidence of historical embedding and ideological interpellation than the critical focus on his work as fantasy and fairy tale considers. The contribution of this study to existing research on Henty and MacDonald is firstly by an examination of the ideology embedded in the construct of the hero figure as this construct impacted Victorian culture and secondly by reassessing the existing criticism of their work. Greater understanding of the effect of this heroic ideal on nineteenth century society leads to a greater understanding of the implications for subsequent cultures including that of the twenty first century. This aspect is examined in relation to the current reprinting programmes for Henty and MacDonald and is proposed as a subject for continued research.

<p>Piracy around the Malay Peninsula during the 19th century was extraordinarily prevalent and resulted in the death and loss of liberty for an untold number of people. This essay examines the connections between the piracy of this era and the political economies of the Straits Settlements and the Malay states in the region. Malays pirates often had the support of local rulers who required the goods and slaves brought back by pirates to reinforce their own political and socio-economic positions. The piratical system supported by the rulers was a component of the overall Malay economic system known as kerajaan economics, which helped maintain the status quo for Malay states. This system came under threat once Great Britain and the Netherlands worked to suppress piracy in the region and helped persuade the Malay elite to phase out state-sanctioned piracy. Some people living in Malaya took advantage of the characteristics of British and Malay political economies to engage in acts of piracy regardless of the policies of the British and Malay governments. This study of piracy enables us to understand better the experiences of people of various backgrounds living in 19th-century Malaya, along with how piracy influenced their worldviews.

Venice and Rome was not always on good terms, which the interdict crisis of 1606 and 1607 clearly manifests. Interdicts had been placed on Venice before, but the one of 1606 set about a veritable flood of pamphlets and tracts, either in favour or against the interdict of Pope Paul V (1605–1621).   One of these tracts, which was written in favour of the Papal interdict, was the Nuova Risposta di Giovanni Filoteo di Asti, alla lettera di un theologo incognito scritta ad un sacerdote suo amico, sopra le censure, &amp; interdetto di Papa Paolo V, contro la Signoria di Venetia, which I intend to analyse in this thesis. The Nuova Risposta was a text born out of the Guerra delle scritture. It was published in 1606 in Bologna and in Ferrara, both locations were, at that period of time, a part of the Papal States. This text manifests the troublesome relations between the Venetian government and the Papal Court in Rome, but also the importance of adhering to a historiographical framework in which the author Antonio Possevino elaborates on Papal claim to superiority in spiritual and in temporal matters.

This thesis seeks to show that there were alchemical writings associated with women from Italy, France, the Swiss Cantons and England which originated in the period 1560 to 1616, and that these writings were read, translated, circulated, and referred to, at least up to 1660. The main evidence is provided by case studies: a printed book of secrets by Isabella Cortese (Venice, 1561); a sequence of late sixteenth and early seventeenth century manuscripts associated with Madame de la Martinville and Quercitan’s daughter (Jeanne du Port); and material, including an alchemical receipt book, associated with Lady Margaret Clifford (1560-1616). Supporting evidence suggests these women represent a wider participation of women in philosophical and practical alchemy, and adds to the evidence for evaluating women's participation in early modern philosophy and science. Women apparently read and wrote about alchemy, and assisted its diffusion through their work as editors, compilers, translators and patrons. The thesis compares writings from different genres and languages, and addresses issues such as the problem of defining alchemy, complexities of textual interpretation, and the difficulty of ascertaining women’s authorship or symbolic representation. Through a comparative process, the thesis discusses possible reasons for representations of women's alchemical practice based in key cultural themes: Paracelsian ideas, ambiguous readings of texts, women’s education, spiritual practice and household work, and their liaison with male experts and European networks. The underlying association of the alchemical metaphor of knowledge, that the material world could be returned to a perfected heavenly state, is interpreted with varying sophistication. The thesis considers how these women accommodated gender to alchemical philosophy. It suggests that there was scope for ambiguous interpretation, both of alchemical texts and of shared injunctions for early modern women and medieval alchemist monks to be silent, chaste, and obedient. Women may have used alchemy as an area in which to resist passivity and demonstrate their agency.

In the late 20th century, historical research on the 1632 Battle of Lützen, a major engagement of the Thirty Years War (1618-1648), came to a dead end after 150 years of mostly unfruitful discussions. This thesis examines the battle’s military material culture, including historical accounts and physical evidence in the form of archaeological finds from the battlefield to provide new insight into the battle’s events, but also to develop a methodology which allows a comparison between two very different sources: the eyewitness account and the ‘lead bullet.’ To achieve this aim, the development of 17th century firearms is highlighted through an assessment of historical sources and existing weapons and by an evaluation of various collections of ‘lead bullets’ from Lützen and other archaeological sites, thus providing a working baseline for interpreting bullet distribution patterns on the battlefield. The validity of bullet distribution patterns is also dependant on the deposit process during the battle and metal detector survey methodologies, which also provides vital information for battlefield surveys in general. In an overarching methodology, statements from battle eyewitnesses are evaluated and compared to bullet distribution patterns, in conjunction with the historic landscape, equipment and tactics. Together, these ultimately lead to a better understanding of the battle and its historic narrative, by asking why reported events actually did not happen at Lützen. This last element is also important for understand the reliability of early modern battle accounts in general. Overall, a more general aim of this case study has been to provide a better insight into the wider potentials of early modern battle research in Europe.

This thesis is an exploration of the complex relationship between academic, popular and museum histories. A central theme to the research is that nostalgia currently keeps these categories of history quite separate from one another, as academic historians are critical of the use of nostalgia in presenting the past, whereas popular histories are often steeped in nostalgia, as are historical narratives presented in museums. I argue that nostalgia and nostalgic sources should not be viewed as problematic by historians, but embraced simply as another type of historical source. Popular histories, rich in nostalgia, and often reliant on memories should also be considered more favourably by academics as they serve to engage people with historical narratives as both contributors and consumers. The inclusion of nostalgic sources, such as memoirs and oral histories, in historical narratives can also result in the production of new or relative histories, which enrich the historical past presented to us, and open up fresh debates on well covered topics. Nor is nostalgia problematic in museums as it helps visitors relate to, and understand, the stories presented to them. Nostalgia can also motivate people to donate objects to museums, and therefore to have an active role in how the past is represented within museums. Once again this serves to produce a more complex narrative for the visitor that can broaden our understanding of the past. These ideas are presented through two case studies of agricultural change in Lincolnshire between 1850 and 1980, and a case study of museums in the county. The historical narratives were produced using a range of primary and secondary sources, including oral histories and memoirs. The inclusion of non- ii traditional sources aided in the production of new accounts of changes in the labour patterns of women and children, and of increased mechanisation during the period. Both chapters reposition agricultural modernity in history, demonstrating that the shift from traditional to modern practices did not occur immediately after World War Two, but over a period of 30 years from the 1930s to the 1960s. The museological case study explores how the past is represented in museums and the factors that shape this. Museums in Lincolnshire were surveyed, and professionals working in them were interviewed, to ascertain how they present historical narratives around agricultural changes, and how nostalgia relates to this. It was found that nostalgia had very little impact on how the past was presented in the museums, but the processes of donation and collection, the lack of specialist knowledge in the sector, and external political factors had a significant impact on the presentation of the past in these institutions. The thesis argues that those involved with academic, popular, and museum histories should work collaboratively to explore ways of incorporating nostalgic sources into historical narratives to develop new interpretations of the past. They should also work in partnership to move away from the traditional museological ‘nostalgia debate’ to resolve the issues that currently affect how the past is presented in museums.

This diploma thesis focuses on the methods of RWCT (Reading and Writing for Critical Thinking) programme and their possible use in lower secondary school history teaching. The principles and key methods of this programme are explored in the theoretical part of the thesis. Special attention is paid to the principles of the E-U-R learning cycle (evocation - realization of meaning - reflection) and the correspondence of RWCT to the Czech national curriculum outlined in the Framework Education Programme for Elementary Education (RVP ZV) in order to show that the RWCT programme corresponds to and further develops all competencies distinguished by RVP ZV. The practical part if the thesis contains methodology and resources for ten history lessons all of which are focused on the period of the 1960s. The lessons follow the learning cycle E-U-R and take advantage of the RWCT programme methodology. The aim of this diploma thesis is to serve as a practical guide for teachers who are looking for some inspiration on how to teach the period of the 1960s. However, other teachers can find it useful for its outline of various methods. KEYWORDS RWCT, Framework Education Programme for Elementary Education (RVP ZV), E-U-R learning cycle (evocation - realization of meaning - reflection), modern history, 1960s, lower...

李尤猛. / 論文(藝術碩士) -- 香港中文大學硏究院藝術學部, 1995. / 參考文獻: leaves 31-39. / Li Youmeng. / Chapter (一） --- 西方當代藝術走向的啓示 --- p.1 / Chapter (二） --- 在夾縫中求存的本世紀初具象繪畫 --- p.3 / Chapter (三） --- 具象繪畫的回歸機遇和空間 --- p.7 / Chapter (四） --- 在當代具象繪畫中重建藝術的意義和價値 --- p.12 / Chapter (I) --- 具象繪晝´ؤ´ؤ内容的確立 --- p.15 / Chapter (II) --- 具象繪畫一一形式的選定 --- p.20 / Chapter (III) --- 内容與形式表裏相輔相成 --- p.24 / Chapter (五） --- 結語 --- p.26 / Chapter (六） --- 註釋 --- p.28 / Chapter (七） --- 參考書目 --- p.31 / Chapter (I ) --- 期刊 --- p.31 / Chapter (II) --- 書籍 --- p.34 / Chapter (甲） --- 中文參考書目 --- p.34 / Chapter (乙） --- 英文參考畲目 --- p.37 / Chapter (八） --- 附圖 --- p.40

This dissertation is an attempt to describe and analyse the history of the relationship between the imperial centre and a minor peripheral area, but also the first step towards a more complete understanding of the history of the areas of Kozani, Serfice, and Velvendos during the 18th century, on the basis of both Ottoman and Greek primary sources, in an attempt to replace the old and, rather obsolete, nationalist narratives prevalent in the writings of the local amateur historians. Through the examination of the tax-farming system, on the one hand, and the timar system, on the other, in the areas under study, this dissertation addresses the developments that occurred at a local level in a period of Ottoman history marked by great changes and experimentation with new fiscal practices. It is also the aim of this dissertation to prove that the centre was represented locally by the local magnates and notables, who, by serving the interests of the absentee Istanbul-based élite, acted as representatives of the centre in their localities, and formed factions which vied for supremacy and served their respective interests at a local level. Thus, it supports the idea that the centre made the local notables, for as long as local notables made the centre in their given society and locality.