Offering the first comparative survey of public houses in pre-industrial Europe and drawing on a vast range of primary sources, this study establishes inns and taverns as principal communication sites in local communities. Contested and continuously renegotiated, they catered for basic human needs as well as infinite forms of social exchange.

'Beat Kümin has written a sophisticated, nuanced study of public houses...This is an admirable study.' - Marc R. Foster, Humanities and Social Sciences Net Online

'...a readable, informative, and richly illustrated account of details ranging from floor plans to dinner menus, punctuated with nineteen color plates and thirty-one black-and-white images, a rare treat in today's scholarly market. The result is an impressive overview that recognizes the early modern public house as the primary site of social exchange and makes a convincing argument for its market-orientated versatility.' - B. Ann Tlusty, Renaissance Quarterly

'Overall, this is an excellent volume (with splendid and beautiful illustrations) which one hopes will accelerate study of the social history of the drink industry at a time when many European countries are staggering under the contemporary burden of alcoholism.' - Peter Clark, English Historical Review

'Beat Kümin has written a highly readable social history of the public house that combines analysis of specific cases (Berne, Bavaria) with a general overview... he resists the temptation to provide simple answers to his complex questions, and this is one of the strengths of his book... Reading Kümin's excellent book is great fun and makes us want more field research.' - Martin Scheutz, German Historical Institute London Bulletin

'...Drinking Matters is a well-crafted, clearly structured, and very clever book thatis, moreover, a delight to read....[it] will no doubt be of great value to research and teaching alike.' - Journal of Modern History

'...this is a very pleasant book indeed...For nonacademics with even a passing interest in the hospitality trade, it provides an informative and tasteful overview. At the end of the day, what can one say? Guten Appetit!' - Central European History

Autorentext
BEAT KÜMIN was born and educated in Switzerland. Following research fellowships at Magdalene College, Cambridge, and the University of Bern, he is now Associate Professor in History at Warwick University, UK. Publications include The Shaping of a Community: The Rise and Reformation if the English Parish (1996), the co-edited collection The World of the Tavern in Early Modern Europe (2002) and Local Communities in Pre-Industrial Europe (forthcoming with Palgrave).

Inhalt
Preface Abbreviations and measures Glossary Introduction PART I: THE CONTEXT OF PUBLIC DRINKING Settings Types of drinking establishments Agents and interests PART II: FUNCTIONS OF THE EARLY MODERN PUBLIC HOUSE Subsistence Communication PART III: PUBLIC HOUSES IN EARLY MODERN SOCIETY Interpretations Interactions Conclusions