Catalan Identity and Banditry in the Ancient Regime

The authors examine how the concepts of nation, country, monarchy, and Spain, which have significantly different meanings today, were understood in the Modern Age. From here, they first examine the disputes that existed among the monarchist Hispanic forces in the Principality of Catalonia under the command of the viceroys and the Catalan powers, enshrined in law and served by the rise in banditry. These disputes gave rise, among other factors, to the growth in the so-called institutional patriotism.

«… Ricondurre in qualche modo il buon ordine e impedire nuovi scandali». La visita apostolica ai monasteri olivetani toscani del 1843

Between 1843 and 1845 Pope Gregory XVI entrusted the two Tuscan Olivetan monasteries, Monte Oliveto Maggiore in the Sienese area and San Bartolomeo in Florence, to the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Florence Ferdinando Minucci with the task of conducting an apostolical visit. At the same time, the Tuscan government, following the legislation of Pietro Leopoldo, instructed the Archbishop himself to conduct a visit to the same monasteries in the name and on behalf of the State. The essay analyses the story by cross-examining the ecclesiastical sources with those of the Government. An episode emerges that testifies to the persistence of dynamics typical of the ancient regime regarding the relations between State and Church in the context of the Restoration age.

Power of Initiative and Immunity of Local Government in Federal Nepal

Traditionally, it was considered that federal and state governments are the primary two components of the federal system. Provisions relating to local governments were left in the hand of state governments. The recent concept of federalism accepts the local governments as third and integral tier of the federal system. However, federalism and decentralization are used in different meaning. Federalism means the division of power within the center and federal units whereas decentralization considers devolution of power to the local units. The history of the local government begins with the ancient regime in Nepal, and it continues till at present. This article analyzes whether Nepal's local governments are exercising autonomous powers in the new federal system. It examines the local governments' status and positions in light of Clark's theory of autonomy. It concludes that the local governments have vested a significant level of powers of initiative and immunity to being needed for an autonomous institution.

La necesidad tiene cara de hereje

El presente artículo estudia el anticlericalismo como disidencia y crítica religiosa que se manifestó en Chile durante la década de 1820. Si bien Chile era considerado como una república católica, el análisis del anticlericalismo demuestra que fue una corriente de contestación importante que tuvo su difusión principalmente a través de la prensa y el teatro. A pesar de que el anticlericalismo no fue un movimiento organizado, la contestación religiosa que encabezó le permitió asumir una identidad política más o menos definida en torno a su potencial secularizador, la promoción de la tolerancia religiosa, la crítica hacia el antiguo régimen y la necesidad de reformar al clero en beneficio de la consolidación de las libertades individuales y del progreso nacional. Abstract This article studies anticlericalism as religious dissent and criticism manifested in Chile during the 1820s. Although Chile was regarded as a Catholic republic, the analysis of anticlericalism shows that it was an important stream of political criticism that had its dissemination mainly through the press and theater. Nevertheless anticlericalism was not an organized movement; this religious response was led in a way that allowed anticlericalism to assume a defined political identity because of its secularizing potential, the promotion of religious tolerance, criticism of the ancient regime and the necessity to carry out reforms to the clergy in benefit of individual freedoms and national progress.

Not So Exceptional

Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 presidential election stunned the political establishment as well as much of the academy, provoking scholars to search for answers to explain this unexpected result. His win is particularly striking considering that he is the antithesis of his successor, Barack Obama. As the nation’s first African American president, Obama embodies the triumph of the idea that “American exceptionalism” and commitment to the nation’s first principles can overcome America’s tragic history with respect to race. American exceptionalism premises itself on the idea that the United States, unlike Europe, lacks an “ancient regime” based on class hierarchy and aristocratic privilege. This article argues that this assumption is false: the United States does have an “ancient regime”—what I call white capitalist patriarchy. This “ancient regime,” unlike the ones in Europe, is based fundamentally on race and white supremacy. I argue that the perpetual cycles of racial progress followed by retrenchment throughout American history are best explained as evidence of the existence of this ancient regime and the reactionary political tradition to which it gives rise.

La utilización del beneficio del común como argumento para la defensa del bien privado durante la lucha contra la langosta en el partido de Villanueva de La Serena a finales del siglo XVIII

RESUMENDada la importancia de la agricultura en la economía del Antiguo Régimen, y el constante perjuicio que ésta sufría por la endémica manifestación de plagas de langosta, las comunidades afectadas solían adoptar distintas medidas para extinguir dicho mal o, cuanto menos, tratar de controlar su propagación. Sin embargo, las fuentes documentales también recogen variados casos en los que las acciones contra el insecto se vieron ralentizadas, limitadas, dificultadas e incluso impedidas por distintos motivos. Esta contribución se centra en el análisis de un caso concreto acaecido en tierras de La Serena (Extremadura), donde la respuesta asimétrica ejercida por los distintos sectores económicos ante las infestaciones manifiesta unos objetivos más lucrativos y privados que el enarbolado argumento del beneficio del común; empleado para justificar el uso de aquellas técnicas de extinción que resultasen más favorables para las expectativas económicas de cada uno de los grupos implicados.PALABRAS CLAVELangosta, plaga, Beneficio del común, siglo XVIII, La Serena (Extremadura). TITLEThe use of the benefi t of common as an argument for the defense of private property in the fi ght against locusts in the jurisdiction of Villanueva de La Serena at the late 18th centuryABSTRACTGiven the importance of agriculture in the Ancient Regime economy, and the constant damage it suffered due to the endemic manifestation of locust pests, the affected agrarian communities used to take different measures to extinguish that evil or, at least, have some control over its spread. However, the documentary sources also include several cases in which the actions against the insect were slowed down, limited, hindered and even prevented for various reasons. This contribution is focuses on the analysis of a specific case that occurred in the lands of La Serena (Extremadura), where the asymmetric response exerted by the differenteconomic sectors in front of infestations shows more lucrative and private objectives than the protective argument of the benefit of the common; reason used to justify the application of those locust extinction techniques that could be more favorable for the economic expectations of each one of the groups involved.KEY WORDSLocust, pest, benefit of the common, Eighteenth century, La Serena (Extremadura).

Letters, Expectations, and the Ancient Regime in Charlotte Smith’s The Old Manor House

This essay shows how Charlotte Smith used embedded letters and their framing narratives to convey a detailed, complex, and critical analysis of the dynamics of traditional English society that could not be more openly expressed in 1793. Special attention is paid to the initial encapsulating letter, and to Smith’s treatment of clandestine and unseen letters.

The 16th Venice Architecture Biennale celebrates the triumph of the ancient régime, but la lutte continue

In 1968 many intellectuals took to Piazza San Marco to express solidarity with the students of the Venice Academy of Fine Arts who were demonstrating against the Biennale and had been attacked for four hours by the police. In 2018 the same square was patrolled by armed troops deployed to 'protect the tourists' who occupied the city and there was no sign of protests against the Biennale. On the day of inauguration, the only voice of dissent was that of some citizens claiming their right 'to live here'. No trace of intellectuals. Many of the old protesters have made a comfortable career while the invited artists to the international exhibition have uncritically responded to the call of this year's Architecture Biennale, whose title is 'FREESPACE', without questioning the prevailing paradigm in which 'free' means 'space cleared from citizens and offered as a gift to financial investors'. Only a few national pavilions have adopted a more articulate attitude that might recall some of the May '68 aspirations. Retracing the events that transformed a public cultural institution into an enterprise at the service of the art market and a powerful agent of the gentrification and Disneyfication of Venice over the last 50 years, this article focuses on the role played by the Architecture Biennale in the process. It also highlights the few contributions that in 2018 challenged the dominant narrative by explicitly referring to the notion and practice of conflict.