Contents

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents vii
3. List of Figures viii
4. Acknowledgments ix
5. Note on Conventions xii
6. Characters xiii
7. Introduction: The Posts of the World 1
8. 1.The Tassis Family Firm: PostmasterGenerals of Information War 19
9. 2.The Arrest of a Postmaster: InformationSovereignty in the Italian Wars 47
10. 3.Deadly Letters: Brigandage, Plague,and Confessionalization 74
11. 4.The Postmistress and the Spy:Networking the Italian Road 99
12. 5.Breaking Records: Commercializationand Control on the Transalpine Roads 126
13. 6.The Sinews of Society: Coach Traveland the Postal Guide in theSeventeenth Century 154
14. 7. High Towers and Black Chambers:Twin Legends of Postal Service 180
15. Conclusion: Reinventing Revolutions 205
16. Glossary 215
17. Abbreviations 217
18. Notes 219
19. Bibliography 283
20. Index 307