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Several themes underpin each chapter, bubbling up nicely in Ruff's conclusion. State power did slowly grow throughout the period, bringing more activities under centralised laws and directly challenging organised crime, rioters and unemployed soldiers, but this was not in opposition to public wishes. Indeed, the central tenet of Violence is that the government controls actually lagged behind the practical activities of ordinary european citizens.

From 1500 – 1800 public thought and character changed – usually trickling down from elites and aristocrats – becoming more humane, liberal and balanced. The state was not a cause, just a delayed mirror. Indeed, the brutality of execution and legal torture, as well as the inherent misogny of civil and religious law, also fell victim to the growing civility of the people. Ruff's conclusion is too quick to cite a 'civilising' effect given the modern debates on what exactly civilising means, but the evidence is clear.

Of course, there are problems. Ruff is good at arguing persuasively for one point and then progressing with the opposite, while he tends to skim when offering his own conclusions, risking insufficient support.

His examples may be excellent, but he often simply cites them as being indicative of the situation, whereas I'd have preferred more evidence and explanation. Meanwhile, the author's highbrow style just isn't as accessible to general readers as the chatty, popular tone of books such as Stalingrad; Violence in Modern Europe certainly isn't intended as a bestseller, but it could frustrate students up to post-graduate level.

Overall, Ruff's synthesis is a bold attempt on a subject which normally ends up being esoteric. His examples are varied and numerous - including songs and illustrations - while his text follows violence into all corners of life, producing a work full of social, economic and cultural detail. Some sections might make difficult reading (especially for the nervous) and Ruff's undoubted scholarship suffers from the lack of reinforcement and he is rarely entirely convincing. However, the discussions are still persuasive and debate is definitely encouraged. The masterful handling of previous historiography, coupled with the author's excellent grasp of the subject, make Violence in Modern Europe a key volume for students, and other interested readers, on a variety of subjects.

For anyone studying violence, it's their new starting point.