Postwar Europe Research Articles

‘We treat each other as equal partners’ the understanding of companionate marriage in postwar Poland

ABSTRACT This paper aims to describe a model of companionate marriage developed in postwar Poland. It traces the evolution of ideas around marriage and gender roles from the interwar to the postwar period. The paper focuses on popular understandings of gender and marriage, and takes advantage of a collection of original personal narratives written in the 1960s. A comparison between memoirs written by authors married in the interwar and postwar period reveals that understandings of gender roles and relations between husband and wife changed. The postwar period saw the emergence of a new ideal of marriage, based on sharing and equality. To describe this new model, the author draws on the concept of companionate marriage. The paper discusses the features of companionship in postwar state-socialist Poland, in order to connect the debate on marital relations under state socialism to broader discussion on the modernization of marriage in postwar Europe.

Planning in cold-war Italy

ABSTRACT Planning ideas and practices were established and spread quickly in different situations in post-war Europe. No matter the definition of this obscure and manifold concept, the utopia of rationality inherent in the planning was founded on the conviction that the economy could be anticipated and guided according to collective interest and economic development. The cold war, therefore, was a time of a broad affirmation of planning which, disseminated internationally by a class of experts and technicians, was the key instrument agreed on, both scientifically and politically, to promote growth in backward areas and underdeveloped countries. The Italian case, having been thoroughly studied and discussed at a domestic level but not always sufficiently appraised in international studies, may be able to contribute a useful element to the overall picture, precisely due to the key role played by this country, and southern Europe, in the Atlantic and Mediterranean balances.

Yiddish, or Jewish German? The Holocaust, the Goethe-Institut, and Germany’s Neglected Obligation to Peace and the Common European Cultural Heritage

The vast majority of Holocaust victims and survivors were Ashkenazim. Their main language was Yiddish. Yiddish is very close to German, the main difference being that the former is written in Hebrew letters, while the latter in Latin ones. Postwar Europe’s moral foundation is Holocaust remembrance. But this remembrance to be effective, it must be active in the absence of Holocaust survivors. A way to ensure that could be the novel school and university subject of Yiddish for reading purposes. As a result, researchers and interested Europeans would start reading documents and books in Yiddish again. Germany’s premiere cultural organization, Goethe-Institut, is uniquely well-placed and morally obligated to facilitate the relaunch, popularization and cultivation of the skill to read Yiddish-language sources and publications for both the sake of research and for pleasure.

MEDICAL DISCOURSE IN THE NOVEL BY YU. O. DOMBROVSKY THE MONKEY COMES FOR ITS SKULL

The article explores the poetics of Yu. O. Dombrovsky's novel The Monkey Comes for its Skull (1943–1959) through the prism of medical discourse, which occupies a prominent place in the structure of the work. Every appeal of the novel’s characters to medical discourse indicates a situation of communicative shift, the breakdown of connections between words and things. Thus, “medicalization” becomes one of the symptoms of the new paradoxical reality of occupied and post-war Europe. Contrary to the Enlightenment paradigm, a medical view of the motives of human actions does not reveal the truth, but on the contrary, leads away from it. For Dombrovsky's work, ancient Stoic philosophy with its understanding of wisdom as therapy of the soul, the completeness of self-control and absolute spiritual freedom is also important. Sooner or later, each of the characters has to remain one-on-one with his own conscience and moral dilemmas, while auxiliary discursive practices cease to be an effective means of social camouflage. The ideological composition of the work corresponds to a specific narrative technique and motive structure, which is characterized by the use of genre techniques of detective and spy novels. In general, the novel The Monkey Comes for Its Skull offers the reader an alternative to “new prose,” with its demonstrative rejection of fictionality, its accent on documentary, factography. Dombrovsky prefers to overcome the “literariness” of literature from within the prevailing genre and aesthetic conventions, synthesizing and transforming various types of discourses, including medical ones.

Czechoslovakia and Soviet Foreign Policy

Although not addressed in his study of Soviet foreign policy in postwar Europe, Norman Naimark believes the Czechoslovak coup of February 1948 would make an ideal subject for a future monograph.

Resource allocation in the Covid-19 health crisis: are Covid-19 preventive measures consistent with the Rule of Rescue?

The Covid-19 pandemic has led to a health crisis of a scale unprecedented in post-war Europe. In response, a large amount of healthcare resources have been redirected to Covid-19 preventive measures, for instance population-wide vaccination campaigns, large-scale SARS-CoV-2 testing, and the large-scale distribution of protective equipment (e.g., N95 respirators) to high-risk groups and hospitals and nursing homes. Despite the importance of these measures in epidemiological and economic terms, health economists and medical ethicists have been relatively silent about the ethical rationales underlying the large-scale allocation of healthcare resources to these measures. The present paper seeks to encourage this debate by demonstrating how the resource allocation to Covid-19 preventive measures can be understood through the paradigm of the Rule of Rescue, without claiming that the Rule of Rescue is the sole rationale of resource allocation in the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mapping the Margins: National Borders, Transnational Networks and Images of Coherence in Interwar Italy and Yugoslavia

This article analyses the relationship between charted (drawn) maps and mental maps of the contested border-region between Italy and Yugoslavia following the First World War. Drawing upon graphic and verbal depictions of tourist routes, railways, supply chains, demographics, topographic features and telephone and telegraph lines, the article analyses representations of an unstable border at a moment of peak uncertainty. In so doing, it reveals the centrality of architects, engineers, tourist bureaus, artists and cartographers in forging an imaginary geography that correlated with emerging political divisions in post-war Europe. On both sides of the contested border, cartography was utilised to change the way people conceived political geography. Maps, the article argues, both revealed existing mental maps and helped to shape new ones.

The Idea of the Yugoslav–Bulgarian Federation at the End of the Second World War

The article analyses the issue of Yugoslav–Bulgarian unification within the broader idea of a Balkan (con)federation from the aspects of internal and external stakeholders. The author describes the key interwar factors and events impacting the formation of states in postwar South-east Europe and, building on this, identifies the primary motives for/against the idea of a Balkan (con)federation with respect to the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, the Bulgarian Communist Party (BCP), the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union. In the second part, the role of this idea during the period of Yugoslav and Bulgarian rapprochement immediately after the war is analysed and the major events determining the dramatic turnaround in the Bulgarian–Yugoslav relationship in 1948, when the idea was abandoned, are presented. It is argued that the Yugoslav side tried to take advantage of the (con)federal idea to manoeuvre between the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom, which on the other hand were never very keen on a Yugoslav–Bulgarian state. The BCP showed somewhat greater interest, primarily due to the Macedonian issue. Bulgaria had to follow Moscow’s policy almost entirely, hoping this would lead to Soviet support in obtaining anti-fascist ally status and resolving internal problems with the Bulgarian opposition. From this perspective, promoting the (con)federative alliance with Yugoslavia was the Bulgarian communists’ strategy for accomplishing the nationalistic aim of not completely losing Macedonia. Provided Bulgaria would be an equal part of the dual federation, the BCP had no problem even ceding Pirin Macedonia to the unified socialist Republic of Macedonia.

The Legacy of the Numerus Clausus One Hundred Years On

The Legacy of the Numerus Clausus One Hundred Years On

L'Espagne Républicaine: French Policy and Spanish Republicanism in Liberated France

L'Espagne Républicaine: French Policy and Spanish Republicanism in Liberated France

Arnold Schoenberg's A Survivor from Warsaw in Postwar Europe

Arnold Schoenberg's A Survivor from Warsaw in Postwar Europe

Soccer, the Saarland, and statehood: win, loss, and cultural reunification in post-war Europe

Football proved to be one of the few areas that fueled West Germany’s ambition to reintegrate Saarland into the fractured post-war republic. Denied participation with the German football federation in the wake of the Second World War, yet unwilling to don French colors, Saarland’s national football team (Saarländische Fußballnationalmannschaft) epitomised the uneasy space embodied by its citizens. Unable to compete in the 1950 World Cup – despite FIFA recognition – Saarland focused instead on dominating the lower French leagues and creating their own tournament. Despite two losses to eventual champions West Germany in the qualifying round of the 1954 World Cup, Saarland’s footballers and their supporters left no doubt as to their cultural and political desire to reunite with the nation that had been denied to them. Studying Saarland and its football team this way, this paper juxtaposes sport, politics, and nationalism within the context of post-WWII German history.

Notes on Contributors

Notes on Contributors

Mūzikas nacionālā rakstura un 20. gadsimta modernisma attiecību problemātika. Pēckara latviešu trimdas komponistu jaunrades piemērs

The Latvian composers who arrived in post-war West Europe (Jānis Mediņš, Tālivaldis Ķeniņš, Alberts Jērums, Volfgangs Dārziņš, and others) encountered the musical stylings and aesthetics of the respective lands. These stylings and aesthetics varied considerably from the national romanticism dominant in Latvia in the interwar period. Those who wanted to show their creativity outside the Latvian refugee society had to adapt to West European music innovations. The aim of the article is to explore this process. The mentioned adaptation also quickly raised the question of whether the peculiarities of the Latvian national music and the modernism of the 20th century could be combined. This issue was widely debated in periodicals, and each of the mentioned Latvian composers encountered it in their creative practice. The compositions of the mentioned composers show different variants of combining musical style innovations and national peculiarities, which attracted the attention of Western society and are also an inspiration nowadays.

Основания и предпосылки имагологии

The article examines the conceptual foundations and scientific, sociocultural and philosophical prerequisites of imagology, the field of interdisciplinary research in humanitaristics, the subject of which is the image of the “Other” (foreign country, people, culture, etc.). It is shown that the imagology appeared as a response to the crisis of comparatives of the mid-20th century, with a special role in the formation of its methodology played by the German comparatist scientist H. Dyserinck and his Aachen School. The article analyzes the influence on the formation of the imagology of post-structuralist and constructivist ideological-thematic complex (auto-reference of language, discursive history, construction of social reality, etc.), linguistic and cultural turn in the West in the 1960s. Shown is that, extrapolated to national issues, this set of ideas and approaches has led to a transition from the essentialist concept of the nation to the concept of a nation as an “imaginary community” or an intellectual construct. A fundamental difference in approaches to the study of an image of the “Other” in traditional comparativism and imagology, which arises from a different understanding of the nation, has been distinguished. It is concluded that the imagology studies the image of the “Other” primarily in its manipulative, socio-ideological function, i.e., as an important tool for the formation and transformation of national and cultural identity. The article identifies ideological, socio-political factors that prepared the birth of the imagology and ensured its development in western Humanities (fear of possible recurrences of extreme nationalism and fascism in post-war Europe, the EU project, which set the task of forming a pan-European identity). It is concluded that the imagology, on the one hand, has actualized an important field of scientific research — the study of the image of the “Other”, but, on the other hand, in the broader cultural and historical perspective, marked a departure not only from the traditions of comparativism and historical poetics, but also from the humanist tradition of the European culture, becoming part of a manipulative dominant strategy in the West. To the culture of “incorporation” into a “foreign word” in order to understand it, preserve it and to ensure a genuine dialogue of cultures, the imagology has contrasted the social engineering and the technology of active “designing” a new identity.

Great Britain in 1801: before the Signing of the Peace of Amiens (According to Reports of the Priest of the Russian Embassy in London, Yakov Smirnov)

In the Archive of Foreign Policy of the Russian Empire (AVPRI) reports are stored of the priest of the Russian Embassy in London Ya. I. Smirnov (1754—1840) in the State Collegium of Foreign Affairs (GKID) during the first half of 1801, giving new information to learn not only activities of the British government in a specified period of time and the formulation of Cabinet policy towards Russia and other countries, but the peculiarities of domestic life, and the circumstances of the stay there left during the break in relations in the years 1800—1801 Russian subjects, both civilians and military sailors. Smirnov’s reports to St. Petersburg proved to the representatives of the highest authorities that neither Russia nor any other country would be able to talk to Great Britain from a position of strength. It would be better for continental monarchies if it were their ally. But in this case, if we keep in mind the stable nature of the Anglo-French antagonism of the late 18th — early 19th centuries, London would require entry into the war on its side. Understanding this and relying on information received including from Smirnov, Alexander I in 1804 he proposed to Prime-Minister William Pitt the Younger an Alliance based not on immediate benefits, but on the principles of re-establishing (on a new basis) a “balance of power” in post-war Europe that guarantees peace and stability for all States, large and small. As for the peculiarities of the development of Anglo-Russian relations in the first half of 1801, it is worth paying attention to the fact that Smirnov in November 1800 reported to St. Petersburg about the existence of a “General plan” of the British to counteract the countries that signed the Convention on armed neutrality (“Northern League”). Subsequently, he informed the Russian authorities in detail and accurately about all the movements of the British squadrons. Knowing this, we can correct the established statement in Russian historiography that the measures taken by the British in relation to the ships of the countries participating in the hostile coalition were absolutely treacherous and unexpected for them. On the other hand, the priest insisted on showing his high-ranking recipients that during the most difficult period of the Anglo-Russian breakup, Russian goods are traded on the London stock exchange, even without raising the price. This was to prove that the British were interested in maintaining mutually beneficial trade and would never break with Russia themselves. Economic relations will become a solid basis for the political union of the two countries during the reign of Alexander I.

EU Constitutional Models in 3D: Differentiation, Dominance and Democracy

A key question facing the distinctly differentiated EU is the following: under what conditions is differentiation conducive to democracy, and under what conditions is differentiation pathological and associated with dominance? The purpose of this research paper is to address that question with reference to establishing the most appropriate constitutional model for the EU. Such a constitutional model must on the one hand enable us to make sense of the EU, and on the other hand help us to establish the conditions under which differentiation is conducive to democracy, as well as the conditions under which it is not. The focus here is on what we may term the differentiation-democracy configuration: how the principles of democracy and differentiation are entrenched and combined in the institutional-structural arrangements that are normally embedded in the constitution. I first specify a set of EU-related challenges that any effort at devising a constitutional model for the EU will have to confront. Thereafter, I develop a set of benchmarks or criteria for assessing each model in order to explicate how the model understands democracy and differentiation, and to show how the phenomena that these terms designate are related. This unpacking exercise yields four differentiation-democracy dimensions (decisional or law-making differentiation; competence-based functional differentiation; territorial differentiation; and citizens’ rights and incorporation differentiation). Thereafter, I undertake a brief reality-check by asking how these four dimensions are configured in post-war Europe. That provides us with a set of ‘stubborn facts’, not the least pertaining to who sets the terms for today’s European differentiation-democracy configuration(s) and what these terms are. All constitutional models must relate to those facts if they are to work for the EU. The last section specifies and assesses three constitutional models, a cosmopolitan, an intergovernmental and a federal model.

Sweden and the Petsamo-Kirkenes Offensive, October 1944 — January 1945

The article deals with the problems of war and post-war Europe and the role of Sweden in the European relations in this period. The Petsamo-Kirkenes offensive and the Soviet Union military advance into northern Norway revealed the new situation when Sweden’s neutrality began to shift from adaption to Germany towards a more pro-allied stance. In these circumstances the Swedish neutrality was under the severe test: some of the cabinet ministers worried that this opportunistic shift in neutrality policy would affect the country’s international image after the war. Yet the reality imposed its conditions. This applied to the Sweden’s efforts to get Finland out of the war, reception of refugees from Finnish and Norwegian territories, ferrying wounded German soldiers across their territory. As the USSR had more military success in Lapland and Northern Norway in Swedish political and military circles increased fears about the future of the country and the post-war order. After the war, the Defense Staff stated, two antagonistic, global alliances would dominate the international system and it would be difficult for small powers like Sweden to remain neutral or independent in this environment. For Sweden to join any of the two great power blocs would obviously entail major risks. The creation of a Scandinavian defensive alliance was considered as an alternative to neutrality. Thus, it was the Petsamo-Kirkenes offensive and the advance of the USSR to the West that caused serious reflections in the political life of Sweden about the future, about how a small country should act and survive in the conditions of the continuing ideological conflict of the great powers.

Alliance-Building in Post-War Europe: Lessons for Russia

Although great powers may forge ad hoc coalitions to attain their short-term goals, this does not diminish the role of long-term strategic alliances. The alliance theory has long become a separate strand of IR. However, most scholars have focused more on external rather than internal threats to account for alliance choices. The authors review the existing literature on the formation of alliances and, shifting the focus to the struggle for power between internal political actors, propose a theory that explains the formation of asymmetric alliances. By extending support to friendly political groups, great powers can build alliances with those countries where the elites are facing formidable opponents. On the contrary, leaders who rule unchallenged have little incentive to rely on external patrons. The article examines the cases of postwar Italy and Yugoslavia to test the proposed hypotheses. The conclusions drawn from the analysis help formulate recommendations that can be used by Russia in its current strategic environment.

The human side of austerity: health spending and outcomes during the Greek crisis

SUMMARY The Greek crisis was the deepest in post-war Europe. Public spending on health, that had grown extremely fast in the first decade of the 2000s, was cut by almost 40% between 2010 and 2016, also an unparalleled figure in post-war Europe. Although some of the cuts were mitigated by a system of clawback on the private pharmaceutical industry and by increased household out of pocket expenditure, the provision of health services was also greatly impacted by the spread of long-term unemployment, which in the employment-based Greek system left possibly millions of individuals without access to health services, until universal coverage was effectively restored in 2016. In this paper I aim at establishing the basic facts about the health crisis. Although care must be exercised in not presenting a simplistic, uniformly bleak picture, I show that several indicators point to a substantial deterioration in the health outcomes of the Greek population during the critical years of loss of universal coverage until 2016, in particular for the more vulnerable sectors of the population.