Books in the Studies of the German Historical Institute, London series

This volume of essays explores the intermediate territory between the `law in the books' and the `law in action' from a historical perspective and on a comparative basis. Specialists from Britain, France, Germany, and the United States investigate the significance of private law in central areas of social conflict: rural production, family relations, work, housing, and debt.

Offering an approach to the history of the modern state, this text concentrates on the 18th century and on two cases, those of Britain and Germany. Using a comparative study, it deconstructs certain cliches about the two states and forces one to rethink how to study states in the early modern era.