Feminists from 1848 to the present have rightly viewed the Seneca Falls convention as the birth of the women's rights movement in the United States and beyond. In The Road To Seneca Falls, Judith Wellman offers the first well documented, full-length account of this historic meeting in its contemporary context. The convention succeeded by uniting powerful elements of the antislavery movement, radical Quakers, and the campaign for legal reform under a common cause. Wellman shows that these three strands converged not only in Seneca Falls, but also in the life of women's rights pioneer Elizabeth Cady Stanton. It is this convergence, she argues, that foments one of the greatest rebellions of modern times. Rather than working heavy-handedly downward from their official "Declaration of Sentiments," Wellman works upward from richly detailed documentary evidence to construct a complex tapestry of causes that lay behind the convention, bringing the struggle to life. Her approach results in a satisfying combination of social, community, and reform history with individual and collective biographical elements. The Road to Seneca Falls challenges all of us to reflect on what it means to be an American trying to implement the belief that "all men and women are created equal," both then and now. A fascinating story in its own right, it is also a seminal piece of scholarship for anyone interested in history, politics, or gender.

Joseph Smale was a catalytic figure in the church life of los Angeles, leading many towards the 'Promised land' of Pentecostal blessing in 1905-1906; although his subsequent experiences led him to retreat from the burgeoning Pentecostal movement. Joseph Smale (1867-1926) was one of the central figures involved in the chain of events leading to the 1906 Azusa Street revival in los Angeles. This study presents the diverse influences which impacted Smale - formative years in Britain, growing up in Cornwall and Somerset amid a rhythm of Wesleyan revival; reformed theological training under the tutelage of C.H. Spurgeon in London; migration to the united States; plus hard experiences in the 'school of anxiety' - which were all precursors for Smale's influential role as champion of Pentecostal revival. Smale's leadership will resonate with every church leader who prays for revival and longs for more Holy Spirit power experimentally. Furthermore, his story is also educative for those contending with some of the more problematic and 'untidy' aspects of Pentecostal-Charismatic experience, involving painful power struggles, hurts, abuse of freedom, spiritual excesses and so on. Smale's 'Moses' designation and biography still have relevance for the church in the present day.

The seemingly inexorable decline of Christianity in Britain has long fascinated historians, sociologists and churchmen. They have also been exasperated by their failure to understand its origins or chart its progress. Sceptical both of traditional accounts and of their more recent rejection by revisionist writers, S. J. D. Green concentrates scholarly attention for the first time on the 'social history of the chapel' in a characteristic industrial-urban setting. He demonstrates just why so many churches were built in late Victorian Britain, who built them, who went to them, and why. He evaluates the 'associational ideal' during its period of greatest success, and explains the causes of its decline. In this way, Religion in the Age of Decline offers a fresh interpretation of the extent and the implications of the decline of religion in twentieth-century Britain.

This book offers a detailed analysis of the construction, reception and eventual decline of the cult of the Hungarian Communist Party Secretary, M ty s R kosi, one of the most striking examples of orchestrated adulation in the Soviet bloc. While his cult never approached the magnitude of that of Stalin, R kosi?s ambition to outshine the other ?best disciples? and become the best of the best was manifest in his diligence in promoting a Soviet-type following in Hungary. The main argument of Bal zs Apor is that the cult of personality is not just a curious aspect of communist dictatorship, it is an essential element of it. The monograph is primarily concerned with techniques and methods of cult construction, as well as the role various institutions played in the creation of mythical representations of political fi gures. Separate chapters present visual and non-visual methods of cult construction. The author engages with a wider international literature on Stalinist cults in an impressive manner. Apor uses the case of R kosi to explore how personality cults are created, how such cults are perceived, and how they are eventually unmade. The book addresses the success?generally questionable?of such projects, as well as their uncomfortable legacies.

"Authoritative, illuminating and easy to read. . . . Dr. Eyck, in his excellent book, has exposed the many fallacies of which Bismarck legend is compounded. His analysis is tragic and austere."--The Observer

This is the final volume in the Historical Directory of Trade Unions series. It provides a comprehensive list of all British unions that operated within the building, construction, chemical, dock, maritime, engineering, government, mining, quarry, and shipbuilding industries.

Brompton traces the life of a nineteenth century soldier who served in the British Army at the height of English rule. It interlocks with historical accuracy the story of Ireland, the formation of Englands Standing Army and life as it was in a Regiment. A mix of discipline, passion, struggle and personal triumphs. From Portugal to Australia to India with his regiment, William Smith endures campaign hardship, tragedy and tropical illness. He remarries and is repatriated back to Ireland, but his retirement coincides with Irelands crisis, the 1840s famine. Acceptance into the Royal New Zealand Fencible Corps offers a new life establishing the colony of New Zealand. His legacy to the country is found in the solid infrastructure that survives from Auckland and Onehungas humble beginnings and the meticulous genealogical research into Williams numerous descendants.