Examining Spain's unique role in the larger history of Western Europe, Payne reinterprets key aspects of the country's history. In A.D. 412, the barbarian Visigothic leader Ataulf crossed the Pyrenees and ruled Spain, first in the name of the Roman emperor and then independently. Professor Payne has written a thorough, in-depth and surprisingly readable overview of Spanish history and how this history is and has been written. A Beautiful Destruction: The cost of living is too high. Payne walks us through his perspective, as a scholar, of the Spanish national history. Turning to the twentieth century, Payne discusses the Second Republic and the Spanish Civil War. ISBN 978-0-299-25024-9 (pbk: alk. History . Examining Spain's unique role in the larger history of Western Europe, Payne reinterprets key aspects of the country's history. It is by a very academic historian of modern (Fascist) Spain, and is written in a style more akin to that of a journal article than a long history for public consumption (he frequently discusses individuals that even a well-educated non-specialist would not know, with little or no introduction, as though he were talking about Oprah or David Beckham). Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. We’d love your help. In most cases, items shipped from Amazon.com may be returned for a full refund. Their country was a European power. Launch Research Feed. I found this approach to be a welcome one, and as I am an autodictat concerning many historical matters in the same way that the author is about Spanish history, my ability to relate to the author's approach and his idiosyncratic blend of amateur and professional history as well as his early adoption of the practice of oral history in understanding the Spanish Civil War. This Mercury Fountain In Spain Has A Unique History Behind It. Read more. The Emerald Tablet 101: a modern, practical guide, plain and simple (The Ancient Eg... After a number of books on various aspects of Spain (The Collapse of the Spanish Republic; Franco and Hitler; The Spanish Civil War, The Soviet Union, and Communism), Payne now wants to tell the whole story of the country that so fascinates him. Fascism in Spain 1923-1977, 2000; The Spanish Civil War, the Soviet Union, and Communism 1931-1939, 2004; The Collapse of the Spanish Republic, 1933-1936, 2006; Franco and Hitler: Spain, Germany, and World War II, 2008; Spain: A Unique History, 2011; The Spanish Civil War, 2012; Franco: A Personal and Political Biography, 2014 Is Spain a fully Western country? Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2011. Who were the first "Spaniards"? Turning to the twentieth century, Payne discusses the Second Republic and the Spanish Civil War. A little conceit which would be easily forgiven if the work that followed told the grand story of Spain in all its glory. He discusses the formation of Spain from many diverse and ill unified regions and shows how the current, modern state continues to behave as such while its analogs, Great Briton, France, Germany, and forged a (more) centralized identity. It was interesting to read what a foreign historian thinks about your country's history, but the author is clearly biased and writes things that are simply not true. Spain, originally inhabited by Celts, Iberians, and Basques, became a part of the Roman Empire in 206 B.C., when it was conquered by Scipio Africanus. Spain, A Unique History; Stanley Payne. A Castle in Spain. Start by marking “Spain: A Unique History” as Want to Read: Error rating book. A thoughtful HISTORICAL analysis significant omission to me Spanish enigmas subject more than the other history at the of. 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