The Wine and the Soldiers

This book is a social and economic history of Hungary in the late eighteenth century, written in the form of a microhistory. Through microanalyses of a miller’s recruitment into the army, the life of a vagrant farm labourer, the illicit sale of wine by a postmaster, a violent conflict between two squires, and two murder cases, it addresses a range of important themes, including the relationship between peasant communities and their lords, and the presence of the army in the everyday lives of common people.

These micro-level analyses combine to create a coherent account of Hungary from the 1760s to the end of the century. They reveal significant capital accumulation in the agrarian sector, the omnipresence of both the army and wine in everyday life, and the crucial role played by the local communities of the oppressed population in sustaining the ancien régime. In this way, microhistory offers a novel framework for national history.

The Wine and the Soldiers: A Microhistory of Hungary, 1761–1799 is intended primarily for historians and postgraduate students interested in Hungarian history and, more broadly, in early modern Europe. It may also appeal to readers interested in an innovative methodological approach demonstrating how microhistory can illuminate the major historical questions of late eighteenth-century Hungary—issues more commonly explored through macro-level historical scholarship.