This book traces the history of Madrid from prehistoric settlements to the present day, charting its rise to become the heart of one of the largest empires of the early modern world.
Excerpt:
Despite being at the epicentre of the Iberian Peninsula, the history of Madrid is not the history of Spain. The relationship between the capital city and its nation is inevitably symbiotic, enduring, deeply complex, webbed and braided across the centuries. Love and antagonism abound in this necessary coupling. Yet for all their closeness, the two entities do not always map onto each other. During the earliest periods of Spanish history, Madrid is absent, for it had not yet come into being, other than an anonymous grouping of shepherds and traders dwelling on the central Iberian tableland. The city that grew and the nation that came into being with it are in a constant dialogue, a dialogue that at times resembles a slanging match, a push and pull of mutual loathing and admiration, of repulsion and desire.
Who is this book for?
As Madrid played a relatively minor role during the Middle Ages, the book devotes approximately seventy pages to this period, including the city’s eventual elevation to the status of capital in 1561. Nonetheless, it offers a valuable and informative account for those interested in Madrid’s historical development, particularly for readers seeking to understand its transformation beyond the medieval era.
“If the cavalcade of names, places, and events can sometimes be a bit much to make sense of, the reader is advised to let himself be taken in by this remarkable account of this infinite city—good advice when visiting, too.” ~ review by Benjamin Riley in New Criterion
The Author
Luke Stegemann is a writer and cultural historian. His previous books include Amnesia Road: Landscape, violence and memory and The Beautiful Obscure. You cand follow him on X/Twitter and Instagram.
Madrid: A New Biography
By Luke Stegemann
Yale University Press
ISBN: 978-0-300-27633-6
This book traces the history of Madrid from prehistoric settlements to the present day, charting its rise to become the heart of one of the largest empires of the early modern world.
Excerpt:
Despite being at the epicentre of the Iberian Peninsula, the history of Madrid is not the history of Spain. The relationship between the capital city and its nation is inevitably symbiotic, enduring, deeply complex, webbed and braided across the centuries. Love and antagonism abound in this necessary coupling. Yet for all their closeness, the two entities do not always map onto each other. During the earliest periods of Spanish history, Madrid is absent, for it had not yet come into being, other than an anonymous grouping of shepherds and traders dwelling on the central Iberian tableland. The city that grew and the nation that came into being with it are in a constant dialogue, a dialogue that at times resembles a slanging match, a push and pull of mutual loathing and admiration, of repulsion and desire.
Who is this book for?
As Madrid played a relatively minor role during the Middle Ages, the book devotes approximately seventy pages to this period, including the city’s eventual elevation to the status of capital in 1561. Nonetheless, it offers a valuable and informative account for those interested in Madrid’s historical development, particularly for readers seeking to understand its transformation beyond the medieval era.
“If the cavalcade of names, places, and events can sometimes be a bit much to make sense of, the reader is advised to let himself be taken in by this remarkable account of this infinite city—good advice when visiting, too.” ~ review by Benjamin Riley in New Criterion
The Author
Luke Stegemann is a writer and cultural historian. His previous books include Amnesia Road: Landscape, violence and memory and The Beautiful Obscure. You cand follow him on X/Twitter and Instagram.
You can learn more about this book from the publisher’s website.
You can buy this book on Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | Amazon.co.uk
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