Postscript

Probably the best shorthand account of the effect of the printing press on early modern civilization comes from Fernand Braudel: ‘It enlarged and invigorated everything.’1 Of course, different products of the printing press enlarged and invigorated things in different ways. One commonplace set of products, studied in this book, diffused information about political occurrences to readers in urban areas on a regular basis. These products almost certainly helped bring about important changes in political and social relations. The contributors to this book have shown that their emergence and diffusion occurred everywhere at different rates, with corresponding variations in their impact and long-term effects.