Civil Wars, Revolutions and Counterrevolutions in Finland, Spain, and Greece (1918-1949): A Comparative Analysis

Abstract

Much has been written on the different civil wars of the interwar period in Europe-there is a veritable flood of books about the Spanish Civil War, and fewer, but still numerous books, about the Finnish, Russian, Irish an Greek Civil Wars. Surprisingly, there are no comparative analyses of these events. For students of comparative macro sociology, Finland, Spain or Greece were small countries with little or no influence on the political and economic world system. For most historians, history is singular by nature and this focus does not lend itself to comparisons. The research I am presenting here reflects my interests in theoretical and comparative work and my view that there is a need to explore the connection between history and social theory. Such a perspective ought to be grounded in rigorous empirical analysis and be accompanied by an awareness of the pitfalls and methodological difficulties entailed in any comparison. This research is also closely related to ongoing debates con cerning breakdowns of democracy, revolutionary alternatives, and fascism. From a symbolic and cultural point of view, the Finnish Civil War was the first national war of the period, with red and white sides. For the socialists, the Civil War was a battle for the preservation of democracy and, at the same time, a revolutionary war. For "the Whites," on the other hand, it was a war of liberation, a fight to rid the country of evil influences of Bolshevism in order to establish Finland's independence1. The Spanish Civil War was not only a battle among Spaniards or between revolution and counterrevolution, but also was a battlefield between forces of democ racy on one side and reactionary and fascist forces on the other. The Greek Civil War, finally, has been considered as one of the first major battles of the cold war. Red and white; fascism and democracy; capitalism and communism: