Surge to Freedom

Surge to Freedom
Author: James F. Brown
Publisher: Duke University Press
Total Pages: 356
Release: 1991
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780822311454

In praise of Surge to Freedom: The End of Communist Rule in Eastern Europe: "Nobody has yet produced a more perceptive and inclusive work on the events of what is arguably the most important year of our lifetimes. This book is essential for anyone with an interest in Eastern Europe, radical social change, or post-bipolar global politics."--Joel M. Jenswold, Social Science Quarterly "Brown has been a close observer of the region for decades, and the breadth of his knowledge and the acuity of his judgments are evident throughout."--Michael Bernhard, Political Science Quarterly "There is no surer guide than Brown to an understanding of these events, and no one better qualified to describe the complex and daunting problems facing the new non-communist governments."--John C. Campbell, Foreign Affairs

Capitalism and Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe

Capitalism and Democracy in Central and Eastern Europe
Author: Grzegorz Ekiert
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 394
Release: 2003-09-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780521529853

This volume presents a shared effort to apply a general historical-institutionalist approach to the problem of assessing institutional change in the wake of communism's collapse in Europe. It brings together a number of leading senior and junior scholars with outstanding reputations as specialists in postcommunism and comparative politics to address central theoretical and empirical issues involved in the study of postcommunism. The authors address such questions as how historical 'legacies' of the communist regime be defined, how their impact can be measured in methodologically rigorous ways, and how the effects of temporal and spatial context can be taken into account in empirical research on the region. Taken as a whole, the volume makes an important contribution to the growing literature by utilizing the comparative historical method to study key problems of world politics.

Hopes and Shadows

Hopes and Shadows
Author: James F. Brown
Publisher: Duke University Press
Total Pages: 388
Release: 1994
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780822314646

After the exuberance that marked the revolutions of 1989, the countries of Eastern Europe have faced the breathtakingly ambitious task of remaking their societies. Simultaneously they have sought to build liberal democracies based on market economics, while confronting reassertions of claims for national independence long suppressed. Taking up where his previous book Surge to Freedom ended, J. F. Brown's Hopes and Shadows analyzes the results of the first four years of Eastern Europe's separation from communist rule and the prospects for the future. The forces at work in the midst of this revolution are examined from a perspective that is necessarily both historical and contemporary as the complex relationship between the tasks that face these countries and the legacy of their communist and pre-communist past shape the difficult present. As the usefulness of the designation "Eastern Europe" is itself questioned, Brown provides both regional and country-by-country analysis of the political situation. The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Poland are grouped together, as are Romania, Bulgaria, and Albania, to address questions such as the development of liberal democratic culture, the activation of democratic institutions and procedures, and the future of former communist bureaucracies. He considers the former Yugoslavia-now torn violently apart-largely as a separate case. The theoretical, political, social, financial, cultural, and psychological dimensions of the transition from socialism to a market economy are discussed in detail. The final aspect of this revolution, the failure of which most immediately threatens the entire process, is the attempt to build new and stable national statehoods. Brown explores the history and impact of the current reemergence of nationalism and the dangers it represents. A comprehensive and authoritative survey, J. F. Brown's analysis and presentation of the contemporary Eastern European political landscape will be essential reading for scholars and specialists and of great interest to general readers.

Revolution and Resistance in Eastern Europe

Revolution and Resistance in Eastern Europe
Author: Matthew Stibbe
Publisher: Berg Publishers
Total Pages: 232
Release: 2006-10-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781845202590

The history of Eastern Europe during the Cold War is one punctuated by protest and rebellion. Revolution and Resistance in Eastern Europe covers these flashpoints from the Stalin-Tito split of 1948 to the dramatic collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Covering East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Poland and Romania, the authors provide comprehensive critical analysis of the varying forms of dissent in the East European socialist states. They take a comparative approach and show how the different movements affected one another. Incorporating archival material only accessible since 1989, they discuss issues such as the diverse manifestations of non-conformity among different strata of the population, the complex relationship between Moscow and the national Communist Parties, the loosening of Soviet control after 1985, and everyday resistance to state authority. This book offers a firm grounding in the tumultuous decades of communist rule, which is essential to understanding the contemporary politics of Eastern Europe.

The Legacies of Communism in Eastern Europe

The Legacies of Communism in Eastern Europe
Author: Zoltan D. Barany
Publisher:
Total Pages: 360
Release: 1995
Genre: Political Science
ISBN:

The political scientists Zoltan Barany and Ivan Volgyes bring together a distinguished group of contributors to examine the legacies of communism in Eastern Europe. The authors identify what is distinctive and lasting about the influence of the Communist period and the extent to which this Communist experience may have left unsolvable problems. The volume pays special attention to the impact of the Communist legacies on four areas: politics, society, the economy, and the environment. Contributors are Zoltan Barany, Ivan Volgyes, Thomas A. Baylis, Elez Biberaj, Jane L. Curry, Barbara Jancar-Webster, Andrzej Korbonski, Bennett Kovrig, Daniel N. Nelson, Robin Alison Remington, Luan Troxel, and Sharon L. Wolchik.

Eastern Europe 1945-1969

Eastern Europe 1945-1969
Author: Ben Fowkes
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 189
Release: 2014-05-12
Genre: History
ISBN: 1317881753

Here is an essential short guide to the history of Eastern Europe under the early decades of communist rule. The study explores the communists attempt to transpose a uniform economic and social system across the region copied from the Soviet model. Dr Fowkes shows how this did not always succeed and he reveals the local variations which became more pronounced after the death of Stalin. The book includes detailed analysis of the dramatic events in Poland and Hungary and in the assessment section there is a useful summary of the strengths and weaknesses of the communist model in its heyday. It is an illuminating study, full of maps and photographs as well as over 30 documents (most previously unavailable in English) which brings this complex subject alive. and helps us to understand the special conditions the people of the region have faced in catching up with the West both in terms of material prosperity and more recently in the establishment of democratic political systems.

Revolution and Resistance in Eastern Europe

Revolution and Resistance in Eastern Europe
Author: Kevin McDermott
Publisher: Berg
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2006-10-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 1847883249

The history of Eastern Europe during the Cold War is one punctuated by protest and rebellion. Revolution and Resistance in Eastern Europe covers these flashpoints from the Stalin-Tito split of 1948 to the dramatic collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Covering East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Poland and Romania, the authors provide comprehensive critical analysis of the varying forms of dissent in the East European socialist states. They take a comparative approach and show how the different movements affected one another. Incorporating archival material only accessible since 1989, they discuss issues such as the diverse manifestations of non-conformity among different strata of the population, the complex relationship between Moscow and the national Communist Parties, the loosening of Soviet control after 1985, and everyday resistance to state authority. This book offers a firm grounding in the tumultuous decades of communist rule, which is essential to understanding the contemporary politics of Eastern Europe.

The Collectivization of Agriculture in Communist Eastern Europe

The Collectivization of Agriculture in Communist Eastern Europe
Author: Constantin Iordachi
Publisher: Central European University Press
Total Pages: 571
Release: 2014-03-31
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 615522563X

ÿThis book explores the interrelated campaigns of agricultural collectivization in the USSR and in the communist dictatorships established in Soviet-dominated Eastern Europe. Despite the profound, long-term societal impact of collectivization, the subject has remained relatively underresearched. The volume combines detailed studies of collectivization in individual Eastern European states with issueoriented comparative perspectives at regional level. Based on novel primary sources, it proposes a reappraisal of the theoretical underpinnings and research agenda of studies on collectivization in Eastern Europe.The contributions provide up-to-date overviews of recent research in the field and promote new approaches to the topic, combining historical comparisons with studies of transnational transfers and entanglements.

Comrades No More

Comrades No More
Author: Renee De Nevers
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 324
Release: 2003-06-20
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9780262262415

In 1989, Soviet control over Eastern Europe ended when the communist regimes of the Warsaw Pact collapsed. These momentous and largely bloodless events set the stage for the end of the Cold War and ushered in a new era in international politics. Why did communism collapse relatively peacefully in Eastern Europe? Why did these changes occur in 1989, after more than four decades of communist rule? Why did this upheaval happen almost simultaneously in most of the Warsaw Pact? In Comrades No More, Renee de Nevers examines how internal and external factors interacted in the collapse of East European communism. She argues that Gorbachev's reforms in the Soviet Union were necessary to start the process of political change in Eastern Europe, but domestic factors in each communist state determined when and how each country abandoned communism. A "demonstration effect" emerged as Hungary and Poland introduced reforms and showed that Moscow would not intervene to prevent political and economic changes.De Nevers analyzes the process of change in Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, the German Democratic Republic, Czechoslovakia, and Romania. She traces the pattern of reform in each country and shows how these patterns influenced their postcommunist political evolution.