Conclusions

Summary

New approaches to the history of print have allowed historians of early modern Europe to re-evaluate major shifts in religious, intellectual, cultural and political life across Europe in the period 1635–1795. Precise and detailed study of the context of different types of print (books, pamphlets, newspapers and flysheets), combined with quantitative analysis and a study of texts as material objects, can transform our understanding of early modern political culture. Analyses of new styles and genres of writing give a fresh perspective on the intended readership. This book uses a resolutely comparative approach in order to re-examine what was being disseminated in print and how. By also mapping the transmission of texts across cultural and linguistic divides, it notes how far new forms of political discourse varied depending on the particular perspectives of authors, readers and regulatory authorities, as well as the cultural adaptability of translators and sponsors.