When people today imagine the ‘Renaissance’, they typically think of the transitional period that ushered in the glorious modern era, and marked the end of what Petrarch termed the ‘Dark Ages’. However, the reality is far less definite than this perspective allows. Seb Falk, in his book, The Light Ages, argues that the Medieval period is really one of ‘scientific interest and inquiry’. The twelfth century, in particular, stands out with its very own ‘renaissance’.

How the Marxist notion of ‘historical materialism’ has developed is well illustrated by examining its conceptual engagement with cultural and intellectual history, which can be observed through at least two broad phases: what Anderson calls the ‘Classical Tradition’ and, later, what became known as ‘cultural Marxism’.

This paper covers a broad range of complex and related dynamics that collectively contributed to the conquests of Mexico and Peru by the Spanish. 

In his classic work, the Republic, Plato argues that, in the ideal political state, power should be entrusted into the hands of true philosophers. 

This paper examines how Spanish kings ensured the optimum reliability of their intelligence networks within Europe and with America.