The Dutch revolt is a pivotal event in European history that remains blurry and poorly understood by most people. Mr. Parker does an excellent job of clearly explaining the sequence of events as well as their context. A very readable style and a refreshingly objective perspective carry the story with just the right level of detail for the interested reader. I am very happy to have read this book and recommend it warmly to anybody interested in history.

This is the best history ever written about the Dutch Revolt - a series of upheavals from 1568 to 1648 - which led to the independent United Provinces. This was Europes first republic which survived until the French Revolution.

Geoffrey Parker's study of Philip II is a landmark. In this penetrating analysis, Parker has successfully distilled and tied together four decades of modern scholarship on strategy, decision making, and organization theory with an original evaluation of Philip of Spain's motivations, priorities, and execution. Gone are the nationalistic generalizations and the structural excuses. Structural and institutional factors get coverage, but the real story is in the man at the top, who had to make the decisions, good and bad.

Parker starts with a discussion on the strategic culture surrounding Philip, to include his "strategic inheritence" from his father, Charles V, the massive information network over which Philip presided (and the irresistable temptation to micro-manage), and the 'messianic imperialism' context that was of Philip's own making.

Messianic imperialism is the backbone for the rest of the book, which deals with the formation and the execution of grand strategy. Parker clearly evaluates Philip's strategy v. the Dutch and the English. For reasons that he explained early in his preface, the Mediterranean theater gets shorter coverage, but it is clear that the Med. concerns were never far from Philip's mind. The French Huguenots also don't get as detailed treatment as they could have gotten, but Parker's summation of the results of Philip's policy towards France is still satisfying.

Parker makes many allusions to strategic and policy issues of the recent past, and it is clear that Philip's problems were not all the different in scope, if not in scale, than those faced by political and military leaders today. Philip's inability to discipline himself to focus on one event to see it through to completion, his inabiltiy to keep himself from micromanaging decisions from over 600 miles away, and his inability to see past his divine mission to perceive reality will all strike familiar chords.

Bottom line: Great history, great interpretation, great analysis. It has got to be a classic in the field.

Some people still insist military tactics apply to business. Once I took a public relations course, and our textbook was Clausewitz's treaty on war. If you want to avoid mistakes, to design a sound and practical strategy for whatever your business, then read Geoffrey Parker. In this book, Philip II is judged through the lenses of planning, and most importantly, of results and achievements. Why did Philip failed in his great enterprise? To make decisions is not only a matter of information -Philip was well informed of affairs- but of judgement, passion, and careful coordination with those who execute decisions.

This is one of those magnificent books for the specialist that stay below the radar of a general readership in History. The short narrative of the attack on the fortress of Maastricht is the stuff of martial legends, and worth the price of the book. G. Parker has become the foremost historian in English of Spain in 16th & 17th Century and specifically of the 30 Years War. This splendid monograph is the gold on the background of the Tercio's banners.

Which home does not have Dickens on their shelves? We have sought to have our children learn from the great thinkers of all times and truly Dickens is one the greatest! This collection is a must. Not only is it Dickens, but Alex Jennings is fantastic as he reads with such life and vigor! It is nice and relaxing to let him do the reading...his example challenges the children to want to read LIKE him! Plus, you will find that you can expose your children to the great works of literature while you are busy on the go! We have used these tapes during the holidays for A Christmas Carol as we were busily taking care of all the "have-to-do's." Dickens added spice to our holidays. Plus, in this collection you also get to enter into the world of little Oliver Twist...my children wanted to adopt him! David Copperfield quickly became another part of our lives as well! Do not miss this classic collection...it will become part of your family as you introduce them to the great thoughts of one of the greatest thinkers of all times!

This book is the "bible" for evolutionary biologists interested in sibling rivalry, and a valuable resource for those interested in parent-offspring conflict. The writing style is engaging and very entertaining for a scientific book, although the math may be difficult for some. A definite must-read for anyone in this area, or for those who are generally interested in Hamiltonian fitness and its impacts.

I'd have to say givverish ishcadoo. incantyou! Iscadooo!!zie! Poew. Danielewski! Julian Casabnlcannaankas a fanstical named named boy if ever like Danielewski! Kazooski! Borges Joycie Georgia Peoria! B Michael Payner in the osKer

If you've ever thought history was even slightly boring, try thinking of the myriad alternative human universes that could have been born -- indeed, that had to be avoided -- along the way to where we are. If the Armada had not been defeated ... if Lee had won the civil war ... the possibilites are endless, and if you don't experience little shudders of horror or nostalgic loss when listening to this collection, you haven't been listening hard enough.

I wouldn't rave forever like the dude from Providence about it. Some of the rivers are left unnamed on some of the maps as if they were not essentially formative during various times in history. With that caveat out of the way, I must have inspected 20 or 30 atlases seeking the most comprehensive historical atlas to help me through Gibbons' Decline and Fall... This is by far the best of the lot.

Note that the latest (1999, 5th) edition is called the "Hammond Atlas of World History," and is available at Amazon.com. There is no mention of "Time" anymore, causing possible confusion. It is superb.

In this day and age, where I find so many of us suffering from "historical amnesia", this book is an excellent reference to why our world is the way it is today. If you've ever wondered why that country's border is over here instead of over there, if you've ever wondered what all the fuss was about in what was Yugoslavia, if you've ever why some languages are so alike and why some languages sound like fusions of others, if you are not one of those people who believe the world came into creation after you were born, this book is for you.

The next time you see "Gladiator", "Titanic", or any period film, look at this book and see what the world looked like then. It will give you a tremendous perspective that goes beyond the scope of the films. Who were those barbarians that Maximus was fighting and where did all those other gladiator slaves come from ? It's all here.

As a student I found this book to be helpful and articulate. It has a lot of ground to cover--Ancient Greece to the present day--and does a remarkable job of conveying what happened and why. Though it is occasionally dry, I found myself engaged throughout. My only complaint is that it maybe could have benefited from being a bit longer. Brevity is certainly a virtue, but when your topic is as large as this one, I think a longer book is justified. It's definately nice to have around as a reference book too.

The book accomplishes its goal amazingly well with clear graphics, lucid text, and wonderful accuracy . Easily the best in its field, the book gives you a profound understanding and knowledge of the european wars. The chapters are well written and up-to-date. The bibliographies are clearly stated to give the reader further information on a given topic. This is history of war at its finest.

Geoffrey Parker has assembled some of the best working military historians for this volume, so that each chapter is up-to-date, well written, and reliable. Unlike many illustrated histories, this one gives at least some endnote references, and includes excellent short bibliographies for each chapter. The illustrations are also outstanding. About as good a history of warfare as could be produced within its word limits. --Professor Clifford J. Rogers

Geoffrey Parker wrote tight, leaving nothing extra or unneeded in "Philip II" which I rate a very concise story of the man behind the king. Parker drew from good research and could have included other aspects which may and may not have been true but he chose the journalistic route which leaves the reader with a stronger sense of knowing King Philip II, one of the most influential monarchs in the world. Parker's text gives thought to the effects of Philip's daily habits and events in his life which still have an effect in Spain and parts of the then Spanish Empire. Parker's effort reads well and should be included on the list of any serious follower of old or modern Spain, or of any countries effected by its empire. I read through it in four brisk sittings. Mike McIlvain

I am shocked there are not more books about the personal life of this interesting person in history. This book gives a very good picture of Philip II and the forces that shaped him and the religion that governed every aspect of his life, loves and holy causes. Because of his long reign, and dealings with all the important persons of the 16th century, his personal attitudes shaped so much by his childhood, influenced the political, social and religious tide of that time. The conquests of lands in the name of God, influences the geography and history of today

I picked up this book by chance from my father's personal library and found it to be a wonderfully written work on the life of Philip II.

An aspect I like about this book is that the author -- Geoffrey Parker (who at one point taught at Christ's College) -- tries to give as much of an objective account as he can, recognizing that the life of Philip II has been distorted by historians who have had a Protestant bias (and therefore portrayed Philip II as an inflexible tyrant) and who otherwise have not appreciated the cultural contributions of Spain because of what he describes as the "Black Legend" (wherein the Spanish are believed to be "tainted" with Jewish and Moorish blood).

Mr. Parker appears to exonerate Philip II of many simple-minded charges, and portrays him as a very competent and astute ruler with a strong intellectual curiosity who devoted his life to the Catholic Church. Philip II was somewhat of a connoisseur on art, who enjoyed the works of Bosch and Titian, but who happened to overlook the genius of El Greco. Another interesting detail in the book is Philip II's enthusiasm for hunting.

The book gives a good overview on Philip II's numerous wives and children (he was married 4 times and some of his children were stillborn). It also allows one to understand the period under which the Netherlands was ruled by the Spanish as well as of the "taming" of the New World, as well as the aftermath of the Armada disaster.

King Philip II preferred a very centralized government. He was an indefatigable ruler who did an incredible amount of paperwork.

Philip II is portrayed as an enlightened ruler who at times showed incredible mercy to his subjects. He even dressed like the common man and did not require subjects to bow down to him as did other monarchs. This was the quintessence of "Spanish nobility."