Austria Under the Iron Ring, 1879-1893


Book Description

Scholars have scrutinized the diplomatic history of the great European states between 1871 and 1914 intensively and productively, but the review of internal developments within these states has not attracted as much attention. This is particularly true of Austria-Hungary if one excepts the large number of volumes, some of them first-rate, on the general subject of the "nationalities question." The full story of ministerial and legislative activity after 1867 awaits its delineators. At the University of Vienna some superior dissertations have illuminated certain aspects of Eduard von Taffe's personality and achievement as Austria's Minister-President between 1879 and 1893, but a full-scale appraisal has not appeared in any language. -- Preface.




Austria Under the Iron Ring, 1879-1893


Book Description

Scholars have scrutinized the diplomatic history of the great European states between 1871 and 1914 intensively and productively, but the review of internal developments within these states has not attracted as much attention. This is particularly true of Austria-Hungary if one excepts the large number of volumes, some of them first-rate, on the general subject of the "nationalities question." The full story of ministerial and legislative activity after 1867 awaits its delineators. At the University of Vienna some superior dissertations have illuminated certain aspects of Eduard von Taffe's personality and achievement as Austria's Minister-President between 1879 and 1893, but a full-scale appraisal has not appeared in any language. -- Preface.







The Rebirth of the Habsburg Army


Book Description

Friedrich Beck was the single most important figure in the transformation of the inept Habsburg military into the modern military state that would wage World War I. He correctly perceived that only an elite body of officers responsible for war planning and preparation could provide lasting security for the Austro-Hungarian empire. After firmly establishing the general staff as an institution, Beck led war planning to counter threats from Russia, Italy, and the Balkans; and spearheaded a vast rebuilding of the rail network. While his rise to power marked a return to the favorite system of military administration of the early Franz Joseph period, Beck proved himself a man with real military ability that revolutionized an army.




The Other Europe


Book Description

The Other Europe is a general history of Eastern Europe, from the earliest times to the end of World War II. Walters provides an informed and interpretively refreshing focus on this key region. Walters' objective is to acquaint the student and nonspecialist reader with the complex past of this politically and culturally important area. The general lack of knowledge about Eastern Europe is in part due to the vast diversity of its lands (language barriers themselves have daunted many scholars) and to the fact that, before the imposition of the Soviet template in 1944-45, what is now called Eastern Europe was not usually perceived as a distinct geopolitical entity. "The other Europe" as defined by Walters encompasses Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, and Albania. Today these countries form the strategic zone between Western Europe and the Soviet Union. Walters emphasizes the phenomenon of nationalism because of its varied manifestations in the region, and he examines the way each nation sees itself, its neighbors, and the world beyond. The Other Europe describes the major events—predominantly revolution and war—that have shaped these countries' national consciousnesses and their distinctive cultural heritages.




A Concise History of Austria


Book Description

For a small, prosperous country in the middle of Europe, modern Austria has a very large and complex history, extending far beyond its current borders. In a gripping narrative supported by beautiful illustrations, Steven Beller traces the remarkable career of Austria from German borderland to successful Alpine republic.




Political Radicalism in Late Imperial Vienna


Book Description

John Boyer offers a meticulously researched examination of the social and political atmosphere of late imperial Vienna. He traces the demise of Vienna's liberal culture and the burgeoning of a new radicalism, exemplified by the rise of Karl Lueger and the Christian Socialist Party during the latter half of the nineteenth century. This important study paves the way for new readings of fin de siecle Viennese politics and their broader European significance. "Offers a comprehensive, multicausal study of the rise of Christian Socialism in Vienna, that phenomenon which was experienced nowhere else in urban Central Europe and which culminated in the famous clash between the Austrian establishment and the colourful, domineering lead of the movement, Karl, Lueger."—R.J.W. Evans, History "Boyer's analysis is masterful in terms of research, exposition, and organization. His use of available economic data is judicious, and his sense of the social structure of late nineteenth-century Vienna is formidable."—William A. Jenks, American Historical Review "To understand Viennese and even imperial politics in the latter half of the nineteenth century, Boyer's book is absolutely essential.""—Robert Wegs, Review of Politics




The Rise of Christian Democracy in Europe


Book Description

Kalyvas also lays a foundation for a theory of the Christian Democratic phenomenon which would specify the conditions under which confessional parties succeed and would determine the impact of such parties, and the way they are formed, on politics and society.




Between Occultism and Nazism


Book Description

The relationship between Nazism and occultism has been an object of fascination and speculation for decades. Peter Staudenmaier’s Between Occultism and Nazism provides a detailed historical examination centered on the anthroposophist movement founded by Rudolf Steiner. Its surprising findings reveal a remarkable level of Nazi support for Waldorf schools, biodynamic farming, and other anthroposophist initiatives, even as Nazi officials attempted to suppress occult tendencies. The book also includes an analysis of anthroposophist involvement in the racial policies of Fascist Italy. Based on extensive archival research, this study offers rich material on controversial questions about the nature of esoteric spirituality and alternative cultural ideals and their political resonance.




The Pomp and Politics of Patriotism


Book Description

This book examines the promotion and reception of the image of Franz Joseph (Habsburg emperor from 1848 to 1916) as a symbol of common identity in the Austrian half of the Habsburg Monarchy (Cisleithania). In the second half of the nineteenth century and the first decades of the twentieth century the promotion of the cult of the emperor encouraged a Cisleithania-wide culture of imperial celebration. On Franz Joseph's birthdays and jubilees, cities produced special theater productions, torchlight parades, and ethnic/historical processions. Thousands of voluntary associations sponsored local festivities. Hundreds of thousands of villagers and townspeople set transparent portraits of Franz Joseph in illuminated windows. Publishers sold millions of commemorative books and pamphlets, and retailers offered busts, plaques, and mass-produced portraits of the emperor. The ability of the center to control the meaning of Habsburg patriotism was limited, however. This study concentrates on the official presentation of the imperial cult as well as on the use or rejection of the image of the emperor by regional social and nationalist factions. It analyzes both the production of the cult of the emperor and its reception, illuminating the tension between national and supra-national identity in an age of expanding political participation.