The Catholic Church of early modern Europe intended the sacrament of matrimony to represent a lifelong commitment; and it allowed few grounds for the dissolution of an unhappy marriage. One was nonconsummation owing to the sexual impotency of one of the partners. Even then; an annulment was granted only after a church court had conducted a lengthy investigation of the case; soliciting testimony from numerous witnesses as well as from the aggrieved couple; and had subjected the allegedly impotent spouse (and sometimes both spouses) to an intimate physical examination. Edward J. Behrend-Martinez has studied the transcripts of eighty-three impotency trials conducted by the ecclesiastical court of Calahorra (La Rioja); a Spanish diocese with urban and rural parishes; both Basque and Castilian. From these records; he draws a detailed; fascinating portrait of private life and public sexuality in early modern Europe. These trials were far more than a salacious inquiry into the intimate details of other people’s lives. The church valued marital sex as a cornerstone of stable society; intended not only for procreation but also for maintaining domestic harmony. Every couple’s sex life; however private in practice or intention; was a matter of public and ecclesiastical concern. Unfit for Marriage offers vivid accounts of marital sex and the role that property; gender; and personal preference played in marriage in early modern Europe. It is essential reading for anyone interested in social history; sexuality; gender studies; canon law; legal history; and the history of divorce in western Europe.
#363001 in Books Richard Moe 2001-04-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x 1.20 x 6.00l; 1.23 #File Name: 0873514068367 pagesThe Last Full Measure The Life and Death of the First Minnesota Volunteers
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. The BestBy Grand Junction JoeI've been reading military history for over 40 years and this; quite frankly; is the best unit history I've ever read. Richard Moe brings the First Minnesota Volunteer Regiment to life through extensive use of letters; newspaper stories; official announcements; and other sources. He provides excellent photographs too.The First Minnesota was the first Union regiment offered to President Lincoln for service and fought at the First Battle of Bull Run; Antietam; and Gettysburg. They were one of the only Union regiments to withdraw in order at Bull Run and were honored for their steadfast performance at Antietam. In both engagements; the First Minnesota took significant losses without breaking.At Gettysburg; the First Minnesota was nearly while annihilated blocking Rebel units from turning the Union flank on the 2nd day of the Battle of Gettysburg. The First Minnesota conducted a bayonet charge on a Rebel unit 6 times their size and suffered over 80% casualties in 15 minutes. This charge stopped the Rebel breakthrough long enough for Union reserves to be brought up to plug the gap and stabilize the line. The survivors of the First Minnesota found themselves on the receiving end of Picket's charge on the following day; suffering even more losses while conducting yet another bayonet charge against superior numbers. This unit deserved the best an author could give them and Richard Moe has come through for them with flying colors.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. These men gave everything.By jwizEven though this is the history of the 1st Minnesota from the fall of Fort Sumter through the battle at Gettysburg; it builds to a conclusion on the gallant attack late on the second day at Gettysburg to stop Confederate attack on unmanned portion of the Union line on Cemetery Ridge that would have likely resulted in a serious penetration of Meade's line. I was in combat in VIetnam and to share their thoughts before going into the breach; it brought back some troubling memories. These men did not question the order to charge. They did what they needed to do; knowing the result was not going to be good; Richard Moe captured the moment and the essence of these men and their sacrifice. This regimental history needs to be on everyone's Civil War bookshelf.9 of 9 people found the following review helpful. Our Pride!By GioDevotion to history isn't as strong in the Upper Midwest as in the Old South. Perhaps oblivion is nobler and less risky than living out a myth; but there are few if any "re-enactors" among my Swedish kinfolk in the Land of Lakes. Of course; the earliest settlers in my clan came to Minnesota in 1872. The Minnesota First Volunteer Regiment; nevertheless; has a good claim on being the most heroic single regiment on either side in the whole war; and Mr Moe documents the history of their heroism most eloquently.Another review complains that Moe use too many quotes; to much primary source material. I totally disagree. The use of letters; journals; and bits from local newspapers is the strength of this book; the part that carries both conviction and immediacy. Comparison to the Ken Burns TV documentary is apt; and I feel that this book; The Last Full Measure; is stronger both in impact and in scholarship.We're modest; diffident people; we Minnesotans. You won't find many statues of soldiers in our town squares. Truth is; we don't have so many town squares to show them off in. Kids plow through elementary school in Minnesota thinking of the Civil War as a faraway conflict hardly more intimate to us than the Boer War. I remember being surprised; in college; to learn that there'd been a Souix War in my birth-county; in the 1860s. History was what happened in other places. I wonder... Is our blissful ignorance a handicap or the source of our comparatively lawful and peaceful community? Our grudges stay at home.Anyhow; as we say in Freeborn County; this here tale of young men fighting for what they care about makes pretty good reading.
