London: A Short History of the Greatest City in the Western World (Audiobook) | Date: 15 April 2011, 02:03
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No city has had as powerful and as enduring an impact on Western civilization as London. [b]Throughout its vast and riveting history, London
[/b][list][*]was the capital of a powerful empire that covered one-fifth of the world's landmass and one-quarter of its population;
[*]was the headquarters of a constitutional monarchy with more elements of democracy and popular participation than any Western country before the United States;
[*]was the economic center of Europe both during and after the Industrial Revolution, serving as its financial center, its banking center, and its largest port;
[*]spearheaded innovative modern solutions (including public institutions and municipal police forces) to universal human ills such as crime, disease, and poverty;
[*]was the site of historical political movements that led to wider government reform, including the fight for women's suffrage;
[*]was the home to some of history's greatest individuals, including William Shakespeare, Queen Victoria, and Winston Churchill; and
[*]served as the last bastion of freedom in Europe against the onslaught of the Nazis in World War II.
[/list]London's greatness continues to this day. The city stands as a global metropolitan center and continues to be synonymous with important developments in international business, culture, and politics.
But why London? What made the city the perfect environment for all these great political, social, and cultural developments? How did this city endure sweeping historical revolutions and disasters without crumbling? And what about its citizens—what exactly defines a Londoner, both in the past and today?
[b]London: A Short History of the Greatest City in the Western World[/b] is your opportunity to find the answers to these and other questions about this magnificent metropolis. In 24 fascinating lectures, Oxford-trained historian and award-winning Professor Robert Bucholz of Loyola University Chicago takes you through London's history, from its birth as a Roman outpost in the 1st century C.E. to its current status as a 21st-century global village. An encyclopedic view of a city like no other, this course will take you back to London as it was lived and felt throughout history.
If you've been to London before, prepare to discover a wealth of new insights into the city you thought you knew. And if you haven't—prepare to be captivated by a city whose sights, history, people, and spirit serve as an amazing window into Western history.
[b]Explore London's Role in Epic Historical Moments
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The cultural flowering of the English Renaissance; the horrors of the Great Plague; the turmoil of the English civil war; the epic conflict of World Wars I and II—by playing crucial roles in these and other historical events, London helped lay the foundation for the modern world.
[b]London: A Short History[/b] examines these and other epic chapters in British and world history through the lens of this amazing capital. Every lecture explores how these definitive historical moments affected the evolution of the city and the lives of both iconic and everyday Londoners.
Your focus is always on the enduring themes of the city's story, including its steady growth, its cultural diversity, and its ability to survive even in the face of overwhelming hardships.
[b]Walk through London's Streets[/b]
What makes London: A Short History unique from other historical studies of great cities is that it takes you deep into the streets of London during formative periods in its history. While broad cultural, political, and demographic trends are important parts of the city's story, Professor Bucholz also continuously emphasizes the importance of understanding and experiencing the sights and sounds of London as it was lived by its residents.
At important moments throughout the course, you zoom in on the streets of London in a series of "walking tour" lectures. In these imaginative lectures, you travel through various parts of the city, guided by a Londoner who is both an icon of Western civilization and a representative of the period's culture and customs. You experience
[list][*]medieval London with poet Geoffrey Chaucer;
[*]Elizabethan London with playwright William Shakespeare;
[*]17th-century London with diarist and socialite Samuel Pepys;
[*]18th-century London with writer Samuel Johnson; and
[*]Victorian London with novelist Charles Dickens.
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In addition, the course closes with Professor Bucholz's personalized tour of late 20th- and early 21st-century London.
In each of these tours, you follow your particular guide through daily life in historical London, noting important landmarks and learning the secret histories behind places such as Westminster Abbey, Fleet Street, Piccadilly Circus, and London Bridge. With each new tour, your understanding of London's evolution increases exponentially.
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