1.Peter Robert Campbell, “Rethinking the Origins of the French Revolution”.
There has always been debating about the origins and nature of the French Revolution. Many scholars assumed that the nature of the revolution reflected its origins, but that was not the case, the crisis and collapse has a largely different set of origins from the revolutionary reconstruction of society after the regime fell. This article considers the last two generations of research on the question of the origins of the Revolution. From the 1950s an orthodox view of the revolution as class struggle was undermined by a series of redefinitions of key terms: bourgeoisie, capitalism, nobility, Enlightenment and most recently the state and politics. At the same time developments in sociological theory and epistemology created new sets of questions. The author argues that an analysis of the nature of crisis in the socio-political system of the baroque state can help us to integrate the new work in cultural history in more precise ways, suggesting a new agenda for further research.
2.CHEN Kaipeng, “The Aristocratic Sports in Early Modern England”.
The sports undertaking were booming in early modern England with the change of social environment and values. Deeply influenced by humanism, the aristocracy paid much attention to sports, regarded it as an indispensable part of elite education, and endowed it with rich social and cultural connotations. The English aristocracy had a long-term monopoly of some elegance sports by right of their strong economic strength and prominent status. Using the social platform of sport, they actively adjusted the relationship with the monarch and expanded social networks in order to secure their superiority in society.
3.PEI Xingchao, “The Statute of Treasons of 1352 and the Operation of the Kingship in England”.
The Statute of Treasons of 1352, being promulgated by the parliament in the reign of Edward Ⅲ , was the first statute treason law. It was a well-designed act. On the one hand, it regulated the crime of treason, which would lay the king under an obligation not to interpret the treason cases at his own will; on the other hand, it guaranteed the supremacy and the inviolability of kingship. Although the statute could not completely prevent the king abusing the crime of treason, to a certain extent, it limited the king’s prerogatives, and safeguarded the person and property of the subjects. And in the process of trial in cases of treason, as a whole the king still had room to move. He could sometimes turn the laws of treason to his own advantage by interpreting them, but he dared not go openly against them. Facing the ancient precedents and realpolitik, he had to observe the law seemingly well. In the long run, it deepened the tradition of the rule of law of “king is under the law” in Magna Carta.
4.JIANG Qizhou, “On the Property Rights of Urban Real Property Market in Medieval England”.
After Norman Conquest, compared with the development of rural land market, urban real property market in Medieval England arose more quickly with a higher level due to their charter privileges especially the burgage tenure and some other related borough customs. Following their individual confirmation of property rights, burgesses gained the rights of transaction, lease, devise and so forth which formed the core rights of transfer over their urban real properties. With the fulfillment and development of these property rights, the rights of tenure, seisin, use, management and so on rolled into one gradually, burgesses possessed nearly complete property rights over their urban real properties. At the same time, the burgess’s real property has been privatized under the law, which was the property foundation for the urban real property market.
5.HA Quan’an, “Land Reforms in the Middle East Countries during the mid-20th Century”.
The feudalist land ownership was the economic basis of the traditional society. The changes of land ownership were an important land mark in the process of social transformation and modernization. In the mid-20th century, the Nile valley, the Crescent area, Iranian and Anatolia plateau all witnessed unprecedented land reforms. The Egyptian, Iraqi, Syrian, Iranian and Turkish governments issued land reform acts successively, clearly stipulating the top limit of private land property, and what was above the limit should be procured by the state which in return would be sold to the peasants who were in need of land; in the meanwhile, the peasants who got benefit from the land reform were required to join the agricultural cooperative dominated by the government. The land reform from top to bottom led to the land right transfer and the radical changes in real estate structure, and hastened the breakup of the feudalist land ownership and the extensive development of small-peasant economy, and thus became a strong lever and activator for speeding up social transformation in the rural areas.
6.ZHU Junyi, “The Political Intention of Historical Narrations about the Merovingian ‘Do-nothing Kings’”.
Some historians who supported the Carolingians in the political stands portrayed the image of the Merovingian “do-nothing kings” in their historical narrations. They vilified the kings in order to justify the rationality of the Carolingians’ usurpation. The descriptions about the Merovingian “do-nothing kings” only reflected the general development trends and the final result, but the historical narrations were mixed with the authors’ political inclinations and political intentions. The descriptions were not exact historical facts.
7.WEN Lipeng, “An Economic Explanation of Price fluctuation in Pre-industrial Society in Europe”.
Traditionally, it is considered that Postan’s demographic hypothesis can not explain the overall price fluctuation in pre-industrial society, and that it is incompatible with the quantity theory of money. The author does not agree with this. This article contends that fluctuation of per capita income caused by demographic changes can result in changes of the endogenous money supply and in changes of velocity of money circulation in pre-industrial society, and it ultimately results in the overall price fluctuation. Through this mechanism, Postan’s demographic hypothesis and the quantity theory of money can be integrated. Therefore, Postan’s demographic hypothesis can explain the special law of price fluctuation in pre-industrial society. Postan’s demographic hypothesis is actually a kind of endogenous money supply mechanism in pre-industrial society.
8.LIU Jing, “On Jewish Resettlement in England in the 17th Century”.
In the middle of 17th century, under the influence of mercantilism, British industry and commerce entered a new development period. So England calls for talents in finance and foreign trade. The Jews repeatedly suffered persecutions in history but their economic strength and influence enhanced greatly in the modern society. At that time, England committed to develop foreign trade, readmission of the Jews would benefit it to expand the market and establish oversea colonies. However, the British merchants worried that the Jewish businessmen might bring commercial and financial shocks to them, they fight against the resettlement of the Jews in England, which led to the game between the government and the British merchants. In this game, Cromwell has played an important role in the readmission of the Jews.
9.FU Zheng, “On the Missionary Activities of London Missionary Society in China from the 19th to the 20th Century”.
At the turn of 18th and 19th century, many British protestant Missionary Societies were set up, which began to send missionaries to Asia, Africa and Latin American to spread Christianity. London Missionary Society (LMS) was the first one to send protestant missionaries to China and became one of the five major British Missionary Societies. Besides direct preaching, LMS had also sent more than 100 missionaries to get involved in educational, medical and literal activities in China for more than 100 years. This paper tries to introduce the organization features, management pattern and preach methods of London Missionary Society so that the basic features of British Missionary Society concerning the mission policies as well as educational, medical and cultural activities are analyzed. London Missionary Society reflects the rise and decline of modern British Missionary Societies in China.
10.LIU Jinghua, “From Civic Awareness to National Consciousness”.
11.LIU Changyu, “Review: Assyrian Taxes and Corvee System, by GUO Honggeng”.
