Interwar period, 1919 - 1939

In this essay, I examine the public discourse about Oswald Spengler's ideas in Britain in the 1920s and 1930s, particularly the »cultural morphology« he developed in his two-volume work Der Untergang des Abendlandes (translated into English in the second half of the 1920s as Decline of the West). Previous work has suggested that Spengler’s work was greeted in Britain, overall, with measured scepticism, although there were some individual enthusiasts. Beyond such  generalisations, however, there has so far been no systematic analysis of Spengler's British public reception in the two decades following the publication of Der Untergang des Abendlandes. As signalled in my title, I focus on press sources. These provide insight into three questions: how were Spengler's ideas described? With what other concepts or characteristics were they associated? How were patterns in their reception related to the cultural and political context of inter-war Britain? There was a focus across the period on what can be labelled Spengler's »organicism«, »relativism« and »determinism«. Moreover, Spengler's reception was also shaped by topics that were not specifically methodological: his erudition, pessimism, Germanness, advocacy of »Prussianism« and associations with Nazism.

is is the first study to show how the Royal Navy’s ideas about the meaning and application of seapower shaped its policies in the interwar period. Drawing on a wide range of unpublished sources, the author challenges the accepted view that the intellectual shortcomings of Britain’s naval leaders resulted in poor strategic planning and an inability to meet the challenges of the Second World War.

This book provides the first comprehensive survey of the navy’s strategies for dealing with possible wars with Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Imperial Japan, and even the United States. It argues that the “Singapore Strategy” has been widely misunderstood, that there was in fact more than one strategy developed for war with Japan, that the navy’s war plans placed greater emphasis on maritime economic pressure than decisive sea battles, and that the influence of Alfred Thayer Mahan on the interwar navy has been greatly exaggerated.

The author also reveals how the “One Power Standard” did not fundamentally affect the outcome of the navy’s ongoing struggle with the Treasury for funds, how the service’s interest in “showing the flag” abroad was linked to its concerns over the health of the naval armaments industry at home, and how the navy reluctantly employed propaganda between the wars to revive its popularity with the British public.

The book argues that naval leaders possessed a more sophisticated and flexible understanding of the strengths and limitations of sea power than previous studies have recognized, and that Britain’s strategic position during the 1930s would have been stronger if their advice had been followed. The author concludes that the navy’s efforts to shape British grand strategy were largely unsuccessful, however, because civilian decision-makers often had different views about the role of sea power in the modern world.

Jednym z najważniejszych problemów społecznych, który do końca II Rzeczpospolitej nie został rozwiązany, była sprawa ubezpieczeń społecznych. W okresie zaborów na ziemiach polskich obowiązywały systemy ubezpieczeń społecznych państw zaborczych. Ubezpieczenia najlepiej były zorganizowane na terenach byłego zaboru pruskiego oraz Galicji, a najsłabiej na terenach zaboru rosyjskiego.

Society in the town of Nitra in the conditions of the new state regime after 1918: ethnological possibilities for studying the dynamic of urban memory

The author of this chapter reconstructs the situation in the town of Nitra after the change of political regime after 1918 on the basis of historical literature and archive sources, and at more than half a century’s distance seeks its reflection in the recollections of the town’s inhabitants.
The analysis is centred on the installation of the new regime and its impact on the national affiliation of the population (Slovak and Hungarian nationality and language), the economic characteristics of the town, social life, and the structure of the population in terms of property and social group. Each on the three sources of information analysed (historical literature, archive documents and material from the recollections of Nitra’s oldest citizens) represents a different angle of view and a different degree of source effectiveness for ethnological study of the social relationships of the town. All three give disparate descriptions of the consequences of regime change and life in Nitra. A clear account of “how it really was” after 1918 was not the goal of the study. The aim was to reveal and draw attention to the content and characteristics of the individual images of the town.
In historical literature dealing with the town’s past, at a greater or lesser distance in time from the period observed, the approach and selection of facts are subjected to more or less deliberate manipulation. The information gained by study of the archives of the town council and municipality in the 1918–1945 period is primarily marked by its chronological order and absence of subsequent selection or evaluation of the information retained. These archives transmit detailed and concrete data without specifying the circumstances and create a wide local context in which the everyday life of the town is conducted.
The recollections of the oldest inhabitants of Nitra are individually and subjectively framed pictures, which undergo conscious or unconscious selection and evaluation at the moment of testimony. One can, however, deduce from them direct and entirely pragmatic motivations for the actions of individuals and groups which the other sources either do not contain or give in a distorted form. The content, structure and form of recollections reveal an opinion of the social world which surrounds the individual. The search for the incidence of facts of this or that kind from the past, and perception of the form they assume in the inhabitants’ recollections, is at the same time an examination of their significance in the life of the town. The author therefore considers it not only an access route to examining the dynamic of memory, but also as one of the possibilities of acquiring knowledge of the social relationships in towns.

Mstislavas Dobužinskis (1875-1957) almost became the author of the official Lithuanian state coat of arms and the flag. Despite his considerable heraldic and vexillological legacy, today, undeservedly, he is forgotten. Dobužinskis is known now only to a small group of experts and those interested in the activities of the artist. The analysis of Dobužinskis’s heraldic and vexillological heritage, its scale and quality, demonstrates that he is one of the most prominent figures in the history of Lithuanian heraldry. Looking from today’s perspective, in many cases, the artist’s works (both state symbols and the works of applied heraldry) are not exemplary from the heraldic point of view. Nevertheless one can argue that in the context of the interwar period, they are probably the best attempts. One cannot overestimate Dobužinskis perfectionist striving to improve the designs, his relentless enthusiasm to dig deep into the history of the Lithuanian heraldry, to publish the results of the research, to seek additional knowledge, and to work diligently. His efforts appear even more significant given his multicultural origin and self-awareness. Today we can rejoice at the fact that we have a significant heraldic treasure of the interwar period, most of which is composed of Dobužinskis’s works, characterized by historical substantiation, originality, and interesting solutions.

Cet article a pour but d’étudier la réception en Occident d’un peintre inconnu originaire du Soudan français, actuel Mali, qui s’appelle Kalifala Sidibé (1900?-1930). Cette étude se base principalement sur les comptes-rendus de son exposition à Paris en 1929 et sur l’examen du discours sur la « peinture nègre » du point de vue de l’émergence d’un nouveau type d’artiste noir. D’abord, nous étudions les idées générales de l’époque sur l’absence du tableau en Afrique noire, notamment sur le plan historique. Et on analyse entre autres son image d’un noir « authentique », à travers ses caractéristiques communes avec le peintre du Congo belge, Albert Lubaki. D’autre part, nous étudions la différence entre l’intérêt pour les sculptures africaines et l’intérêt pour la « peinture nègre ». En fait, les tableaux de Sidibé furent appréciés par ses contemporains en Occident contrairement à l’« art nègre » considéré à l’époque comme un art disparu. Il s’agit aussi de l’émergence d’un nouveau genre artistique qui influença l’évolution des relations entre l’Occident et l’Afrique noire. Les divers avis concernant Sidibé disent que ses peintures furent reçues à la fois comme un prolongement de l’engouement pour le primitivisme de l’« art nègre » et comme un vecteur sur le plan politique et culturel dans un contexte d’évolution des idées sur le colonialisme, le mouvement des noirs et l’émergence d'une nouvelle génération d’ethnologue.

This paper sets out to investigate the representations of the Tallis house in Ian McEwan's Atonement (2001). The Tallises' country house, one of the main story settings, undergoes a significant transformation over time, assuming a different role and function in each part of the novel. Englishness, decadence, bucolic nostalgia and the idealised visions of England as a rural, pastoral idyll can be numbered among the ingredients that McEwan blends in the depiction of this mansion and of its surrounding estate: not only do they constitute an integral part of its foundations, but also of its evolution on both the fictional and historical levels, since they contribute to creating the myth that still characterises the famous stately homes of England.

Adam Tooze’s The Wages of Destruction has received a fair amount of scholarly attention since its publication in 2006, particularly among historians. What has received much less attention, however, are the many theoretical insights to be gleaned from Tooze’s history of the inner-workings of the Nazi war economy in the lead-up to the Second World War. This is particularly true of the numerous theoretical subjects and
themes covered by Tooze of direct relevance to Marxist theories and understandings of Nazism. From his analysis of the relationship between Nazi economic policies and
Hitler’s geopolitical objectives to the relations between capital and state to the specificitie of Nazism as a distinct ideological and cultural apparatus to the role of the Nazi regime in triggering the 1939 cataclysm – in all these ways, Tooze’s work speaks to a number of core issues at the heart of Marxist debates on Nazism, fascism, and the causes of the Second World War. This introduction outlines a number of these themes and more in Tooze’s work, contextualising them within extant Marxist debates on Nazism, before then going on to highlight some of the main arguments and criticisms
advanced in the symposium.

"El libro que me honro en prologar es uno de los más importantes que sobre la Guerra de España se han publicado en los últimos años. Esta afirmación puede sorprender a más de un lector. El período 1936- 1939 es, en efecto, el mejor estudiado en nuestra historia contemporánea. Ahora bien, no todos los libros que se publican sobre tan dramático episodio son de igual calidad o de parecidas ambiciones. El autor de esta obra ha apuntado muy alto y ha jugado muy fuerte. David Jorge, en esta su primera gran obra, se ha adentrado en territorio muy poco explorado monográficamente: el papel de la Sociedad de Naciones en la Guerra de España. Parece mentira que hasta ahora no se le hubiese otorgado la importancia que merece. Este libro defiende, documental y teóricamente, la crucial importancia de los factores externos, exógenos, para explicar tanto la derrota de la República como el triunfo de los sublevados. La no aplicación de los preceptos del Derecho Internacional asestó un golpe mortal al gobierno republicano. Su sustitución por una política de no intervención, que siempre funcionó a favor de Franco, acentuó tal letalidad. Debo recomendar a la atención de los amables lectores esta obra y a su autor, un historiador de las nuevas generaciones nacidas en democracia, que con habilidad, destreza y maestría ejemplifica hasta qué punto la antorcha de la investigación sobre la guerra española está pasando a buenas manos".

ÁNGEL VIÑAS

"En este libro de investigación profunda y exposición lúcida, David Jorge dice la verdad al poder. Demuestra cómo durante la Guerra de España (1936-1939) las democracias occidentales -Gran Bretaña, Francia y también los Estados Unidos- desplegaron una política de ´no intervención´ cuyos efectos aniquilaron la joven democracia española asediada por el fascismo internacional. Sumamente intervencionista en la práctica, y de dudosa legalidad, la ´no intervención´ fue promovida por las élites de estos tres países porque creyeron que era la estrategia más eficaz para sus propios intereses políticos, tanto internos como imperialistas. Pero al obrar así, estas mismas democracias occidentales coadyuvaron en la liquidación de la Sociedad de Naciones, ya gravemente dañada por una serie de fracasos anteriores de los que también fueron parcialmente responsables. Es más: al echar por tierra la política de seguridad colectiva, que fue el principio clave del que nació la Sociedad de Naciones, las democracias occidentales también destruían lo único que protegía a sus propios ciudadanos ante el nuevo conflicto mundial que se avecinaba".

HELEN GRAHAM

"Este impresionante libro va a marcar un auténtico hito en la historiografía sobre los aspectos internacionales y diplomáticos de la Guerra de España. Redactado en un estilo claro y contundente, el trabajo del Dr. David Jorge no sólo se distingue por el rigor de sus investigaciones, basadas todas en una sólida labor de archivo, sino también por su originalidad -propone marcos interpretativos innovadores que cambian el campo de forma sustancial- y por la valentía con la que desafía lecturas comúnmente aceptadas".

SEBASTIAAN FABER

The article features historical and legal aspect of formation and operation of Soviet central scholar institutions in the Red Army, which were involved in studying military history in the 1920-1930’s. A special attention is paid to problems of reorganizing structures of Soviet military-historical agencies during the interwar period and their activities for directing all military-theoretical work in the Military Department of the Soviet state.

В статье рассматривается историко-правовой аспект становления и функционирования советских центральных научных учреждений Красной армии, занимавшихся изучением военной истории в период 1920–1930-х годов. Основное внимание уделено вопросам реорганизации структур советских военно-исторических органов в межвоенный период и их деятельности по руководству всей военно-теоретической работой в Военном ведомстве советского государства.

Treaty of Lausanne was a final treaty concluding WWI. It was signed by representatives of Turkey (successor to the Ottoman Empire) on one side and by Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Greece, Romania, and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (Yugoslavia) on the other signed it. The treaty was signed at Lausanne, Switzerland, on July 24, 1923, after a seven-month conference. The treaty recognized the boundaries of the modern state of Turkey (except Hatay). Turkey made no claim to its former Arab provinces and recognized British possession of Cyprus and Italian possession of the Dodecanese.

Few navies have been immune from mutiny in the twentieth century, but the question of how and why naval discipline sometimes breaks down has received little scholarly attention. This book brings together a set of readable and up-to-date essays examining mutinies in the navies of Russia (the Potemkin mutiny, 1905), Brazil (1910), Austria-Hungary (1918), Germany (1918), France (1919), Australia (1919), Chile (1931), Great Britain (the Invergordon mutiny, 1931), the United States (the Port Chicago mutiny, 1944), India (1946), China (1949), and Canada (1949).

The nature of these incidents varied widely, but all represented a deliberate assault on naval or political authority. The objectives of the mutineers ranged from limited reforms of a purely naval nature to overtly political goals and, in rare cases, to outright revolution. The first twelve chapters in this book address the causes of a particular mutiny, its long-and short-term repercussions, and the course of the mutiny itself. Taking advantage of new research and new methodologies, the contributors provide something of value to both the specialist and non-specialist reader.

The volume concludes with an essay by the editors shedding important new light on the dynamics at work in the outbreak, development, and resolution of modern naval mutinies. It shows that mutinies in democratic, western states usually differed fundamentally from those in authoritarian regimes or less-developed societies. In the former, incidents were usually short-lived and non-violent. They tended to spread easily from ship to ship, but the mutineers' demands remained moderate and limited. In the latter, mutinies were less frequent, but were more often characterized by violence, escalating demands, and revolutionary intent.

Looking forward, the authors' conclude that the days when sailors might rebel against their immediate superiors to seize control of a warship are probably long gone. But as long as western states rely on broad and imprecise definitions, incidents will continue to occur that meet all of the legal criteria for mutiny, even if there is a reluctance to use the term. The potential for major naval mutinies probably remains, however, in non-democratic states like China and throughout the underdeveloped world.

The World War I marked dramatic changes in international political landscape as evidence by the catastrophic costs of the Great War and an increasing role of the U.S. in world stage. In the immediate aftermath of the war, the U.S and other victorious nations, established the League of Nations. The primary goal of the League was to prevent any future world wars, sustain world peace as well as promote international cooperation.
This article investigates the significance of the League of Nations, influenced by liberalism, on the development of international system during the interwar period. Labelled as “Utopianism” from the realist camps according to its failure to prevent the outbreak of the World War II; nevertheless, this article argues that the creation of the League reflects a significant breakthrough of the very first institutionalized international politics of the 20th century. More importantly, even the League’s actual performance was disappointing in preventing another devastating war, its legacies as well as the spirit of liberalism live on.

This study focuses on the issue of social exclusion in British tennis. It commences with a critique of current LTA policy, presenting exclusion as static, ahistorical and underpinned by false dichotomies of age and social class. Aspects of Norbert Elias’s theoretical approach are employed throughout as an analytical framework. Initially, the roots of exclusion in British tennis are sought through historical analysis. Aspects of the Civilising Process help direct attention towards wider social processes to explain the prevalence of exclusion, particularly in tennis clubs. Cost was a crucial factor in determining early access, but as tennis became more accessible to lower classes, codes of behavioural etiquette helped demarcate members along status lines. Into the mid-20th century, the globalisation, professionalisation and commercialisation of tennis pushed the LTA to adopt a more performance-oriented outlook, but this has come to oppose the more relaxed culture of tennis clubs. Thus, a power struggle emerged between these two institutions, and, underpinned by thirty interviews with leading figures in British tennis as well as extensive documentary analysis, the third section documents these developments from the 1980s. Crucially, tennis clubs remain largely amateur and voluntary-run organisations, yet are important locations for the implementation of the LTA’s demanding talent development objectives. These recent developments are understood with the help of Elias’s Game Models theory. The fourth section presents findings from a ten-month ethnographic study of social exclusion in a tennis club; a micro-analysis of club member relations underpinned by Elias’s Established-Outsider Relations theory. Overall findings suggest that social exclusion in British tennis is far more complex, multi-faceted and historically-rooted than what current LTA discourse presents. Differences in age and class are less central, and instead preconceived notions of social status based on longevity of membership, adherence to behavioural norms and playing standard are powerful determinants of inclusion.

Wielkie postaci historyczne oprócz grona zapatrzonych w nie zwolenników posiadają też zwykle nie mniej liczną grupę krytyków, a nawet wrogów. Dotyczy to wszystkich epok i wszystkich ważniejszych wodzów, władców i polityków -od Juliusza Cezara po Napoleona. Podobne zjawisko dotknęło także Józefa Piłsudskiego, a raczej jego wizerunku. Trudno jest opisać całą problematykę dotyczącą tego zagadnienia w formie krótkiego artykułu, dlatego niniejszą pracę należy traktować przede wszystkim jako pewnego rodzaju summę, zarys problematyki i próbę prześledzenia ewolucji wzorców (czy może raczej antywzorców) osobowych stojących w opozycji do kultu Marszałka, jaki stopniowo rodził się w jego otoczeniu i z czasem został przeniesiony na (niemal) całe społeczeństwo. Nie ukrywam także, że skupię się głównie na czarnej legendzie spod znaku endecji, którą traktuję, dzięki jej niewątpliwej trwałości, jako swojego rodzaju fenomen, a nawet wzorzec dla pozostałych krytyków Piłsudskiego, jak np. propagandy komunistycznej.

Questa pubblicazione si è avvalsa di un finanziamento Miur (Prin 2003) alla ricerca su Scritture femminili di storia e di memoria coordinata nazionalmente da Ilaria Porciani e svolta nell'ambito dell'Unità di ricerca di Firenze su Donne e nazione. Presenze, modelli e immagini, responsabile scientifica Simonetta Soldani. Progetto grafico : PHOTOGRAMMA/Luana Borgognoni e Marco Spadoni © 2006 ODRADEK edizioni s.r.l. via san Quintino 35, 00185 ROMA La notte del 20 o 21 giugno sul Rio de la Plata si videro due lune calanti. Un caso curioso. Tutti sanno che si possono vedere due lune crescenti la notte del 13 di quel mese… ma non la notte del 20. Comunque nel giugno di quell'anno si videro molte lune. Hugo Pratt, Y todo a media luz, «Corto Maltese», maggio 1986, p. 21. 7 1 Christophe Charle, La crise des sociétés impériales. Allemagne, France, Grande-Bretagne (1900-1940). Essai d'histoire sociale comparée, Parigi, Seuil, 2001, pp. 303-304. 2 Mario Missiroli, Il fascismo e la crisi italiana, in Il fascismo e i partiti politici italiani. Testimonianze del 1921-1923, a cura di Renzo De Felice, Bologna, Cappelli, 1966, p. 294. 3 Alberto Caracciolo, L'ingresso delle masse sulla scena europea, in Id. et al., Il trauma dell'inter-Charles Tilly, La formazione degli stati nazionali nell'Europa occidentale, Bologna, il Mulino, 1984, p. 232; Natalie Zemon Davis, I riti della violenza, in Ead., Le culture del popolo. Sapere, rituali e resistenze nella Francia del Cinquecento, Torino, Einaudi, 1980, pp. 210-258. 8 PACE PANE TERRA 6 Simonetta Soldani, Il ritorno della rivoluzione, in Storia contemporanea, Roma, Donzelli, 1997, p. 35. Sulla storia del concetto di rivoluzione si veda la recente sintesi di Gabriele Turi, Il nostro mondo. Dalle grandi rivoluzioni all'11 settembre, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2006, pp. 37-47; cfr. anche Bruno Bongiovanni e Gian Mario Bravo, Rivoluzione, in Alla ricerca della politica. Voci per un dizionario, a cura di Angelo d'Orsi, Torino, Bollati Boringhieri, 1995, pp. 217-246; Sissco, Rivoluzioni. Una discussione di fine Novecento, a cura di Daniela Luigia Caglioti ed Enrico Francia, Roma, Ministero per i beni e le attività culturali, 2001. 7 Cfr. Roberto Bianchi, Les mouvements contre la vie chère en Europe au lendemain de la Grande Guerre, in Le XXe siècle des guerres, a cura di Pietro Causarano et al., Parigi, Les Éditions de l'Atelier, 2004, pp. 237-245. 8 Eric J. Hobsbawm, Il secolo breve, Milano, Rizzoli, 1995, p. 18. 9 Charles S. Maier, La rifondazione dell'Europa borghese. Francia, Germania e Italia nel decennio successivo alla prima guerra mondiale, Bologna, il Mulino, 1999.

Во второй половине 1918 г. Туркестанская советская республика, отрезанная от Центральной части России белогвардейскими
войсками в силу своего важного стратегического положения, оказалась в поле внимания Дели и Лондона, с одной стороны,
и Стамбула и Берлина – с другой. Враждующие стороны отправили в Ташкент собственные дипломатические миссии,
которые должны были вступить в переговоры с туркестанским правительством и выяснить его планы, а также установить
контакты с подпольными элементами. В статье описывается работа обеих миссий, анализируется дипломатическая практика
и своеобразный протокол эпохи Гражданской войны в России.

Turkistan, Afghanistan, Civil War, Diplomatic mission, protocol, Bailey, Barakatullah, Kazim Bey

“Democracy in Black and White”: Wil Lou Gray,
Black Illiteracy, and Progress in
South Carolina, 1930–1938" p. 37-52

From her state supervisory position and through programs designed to provide educational opportunities for black adults, Gray, in the 1930s, used adult education as a portal to carry out a sustained and shrewd attack against the racism, illiteracy and political lethargy commonplace in South Carolina. Brought up in a white, upper-class household in South Carolina, Gray had been reared to accept the prevailing gender, class, and racial mores of her region. Yet Gray proffered a perspective on black life that defied the dominant regional narrative of black racial inferiority. Regional progress on race relations depended upon whites’ envisioning black people as fully human with similar potential. This paper examines projects led by Gray in the 1930s that reveal she was instrumental in this process. In 1931, with the assistance of northern academics and a Carnegie Foundation grant, she conducted an educational experiment, herein called the Seneca study, that proved there was little difference in the learning capacity of black and white adults in favorable environ- ments.2 In 1935 she led four thousand black men and women on a one-day pilgrimage to the State House, and from 1934 to 1937 she held opportunity schools for black adults – four-week residential camps for adult illiterates – at Voorhees Technical College in Denmark, South Carolina. In addition to the three R’s, the curriculum at these summer camps focused on African heritage and identity. In the context of Depression-era South Carolina, where race violence, poverty and illiteracy shaped the lives of many African Americans in the state, her work marked a radical departure from the status quo.

В статията се разглежда есето „Тайната. Окултни съждения на един непосветен в окултизма“ (1922) – слабо позната и неизследвана до този момент публикация на Гео Милев, която се появява за пръв път в редактирания от Николай Райнов вестник „Анхира“. Целта  е да се подскаже значимостта този текст за българската литературна история не само защото с него се представя по-различно лице на  българския класик, но и защото позволява да поставят в по-широка перспектива окултните основания на българския авангард от началото на 20-те години на ХХ век. „Тайната“ се разглежда в контекста на характерни публикации от „Анхира“, както и в контекста на някои преводни текстове от списанието на Гео Милев „Везни“.

The Independent Group of Slovenian Artists

At the start of the 1930s, a new generation of artists, educated at the Academy of Fine
Arts in Zagreb, stepped on the Slovenian art scene. The most prominent among them
were assembled in the Independent Group of Slovenian Artists, the Independents for
short, and their art left an indelible mark on that period in history.
In the broadest sense, the Independent Group was comprised of fourteen Slovenian
painters and sculptors, though all fourteen never appeared at the same exhibition
together. The members of the Group were: Zoran Didek, Boris Kalin, Zdenko Kalin,
Stane Kregar, France Mihelič, Zoran Mušič, Nikolaj Omersa, France Pavlovec, Nikolaj
Pirnat, Marij Pregelj, Karel Putrih, Maksim Sedej, Frančišek Smerdu, and Evgen Sajovic.
It must also be said that the activities of each individual artist were distinct and
that each one also exhibited their work outside of the Group, making their own impression on the Slovenian art scene.
In their aspiration for the broadest social recognition, the Independents utilised
various strategies. They were aware of the strength of the media and made good use
of them for the purposes of popularising their art. The name they selected for themselves
is also interesting and raises the question from what or whom the Independents
were or were striving to be independent. They wished to position themselves into
the continuity of Slovenian art and present their work as its organic development. At
the same time, their chosen name walled them off from innumerable matters and asserted their independence. We can learn something about the naming process from
the statements the members themselves made on various occasions about taking the
French as their model. Furthermore, they were not the first in the former Kingdom of
Yugoslavia to adopt such a name.
Sometimes, the Independents were criticised for being too closely connected with
Zagreb professors, namely, for their foreign influences (in addition to the influence
of the Zagreb professors, especially the influence of French art). In response, the artists
themselves consistently emphasised their search for a unique artistic expression,
which was, of course, a Slovenian artistic expression, in their opinion.
In the course of their work and promotion, the Independents used many strategies
to increase their visibility and presence in the media, ensuring a greater connection
with their audience and, in the final analysis, their survival. The Group’s successful
emergence on the art scene was due to their considerable individual artistic talents,
the quality art education they received at the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb, the
eagerness with which they worked, and their excellent organization. They succeeded
in their endeavour because they had managed, in a short amount of time, to position
themselves within Slovenian art as a group which, while somewhat lacking in homogeneity of artistic expression, nevertheless represented artistic quality. And all of this, placed in the context of the social circumstances at the end of the 1930s, also contributed to their popularity.
During and after the Second World War, different fates befell the Group members.
Today, each and every one of them is counted as a major figure in Slovenian art history,
not only when it comes to Slovenian but also Yugoslavian 20th century painting.
Despite the fact that former members helped shape Slovenian art in significant ways
even after the war, the activities of the Group itself have never been closely examined
in art history before. Hence, along with a number of their exhibitions, my paper attempts
to present the fundamental characteristics of the Group’s activities and the reception they received.
...
Klub neodvisnih likovnih umetnikov, kratko imenovan Neodvisni, je bila verjetno najbolje organizirana skupina umetnikov v tridesetih letih 20. stoletja na Slovenskem. V najširši sestavi jo je sestavljalo štirinajst kiparjev in slikarjev. Kot bolj ali manj enotna skupina so sodelovali na šestnajstih razstavah na Slovenskem in eni v Zagrebu. Uspešnost Neodvisnih je bila povezana z izrazito izstopajočim talentom nekaterih članov, kakovostno likovno izobrazbo, ki so jo člani večinoma dobili na akademiji v Zagrebu, željo po uveljavitvi in dobro organiziranostjo.

In mid-1919, almost exactly a century ago, the British Government dispatched No. 47 Squadron of the Royal Air Force to South Russia to fight against the Bolsheviks. They were the only British military personnel sent explicitly to fight in the Russian Civil War.  As foreign outsiders looking in, they experienced the Russian Civil War from a unique perspective.  The Squadron, equipped with modern fighter and ground-attack planes, were sent to assist the White General Anton Denikin’s counter-revolution against the Bolshevik central government, pushing north towards Moscow from South Russia. These airmen were a mixture of decorated fighter aces, young pilots and ground crew, all of whom had fought in the First World War and volunteered to go to Russia. The volunteer contingent replaced enlisted personnel who were initially sent in 1918, as per the British government policy of not sending conscripted troops overseas after the end of the First World War.  47 Squadron was led by the formidable Major Raymond Collishaw, a Canadian RAF pilot with 60 victories over the Western Front, the 3rd ranking Commonwealth fighter ace in 1919. In concert with an RAF training mission and a detachment from the Tank Corps, the British Military Mission’s goal was to provide training and assistance in using their new technology to Denikin’s army. However, the Squadron took an active part in the fighting as soon as they were equipped. Forward elements arrived in April 1919, and soon after 47 Squadron began flying combat and reconnaissance missions over the front. They were able to attack ground targets with impunity and dominate the sky, achieving air superiority. The Squadron were very successful from June to November 1919, when Denikin was advancing. They were forced to withdraw in late October 1919, the Red Army broke through White lines at Orel and began a rout of the Volunteer Army, that lead to total collapse of the front and a frantic exodus southwards. This research essay reconstructs the key facets of their experience

Of the many reasons that led Italy to decide for war against Ethiopia in 1935, one stands out for its importance to contemporaries and for the oblivion to which it has been consigned by later commentators: Japan’s real and perceived economic, political, and even military intrusions into their spheres of influence, including Ethiopia.  One issue, minor in itself, came to symbolize—and personify—these threatening Japanese encroachments, the proposed marriage between Araya Abeba and Kuroda Masako. The idea fell apart with the growing Italo-Japanese rapprochement during the run-up to the Italo-Ethiopian War in 1935—Japan left Ethiopia at the marriage altar to elope with Italy.

A Holokauszt Emlékközpontban a numerus clausus törvény születésének 90. évfordulója alkalmából rendezett nemzetközi konferencián (Jogfosztás – 90 éve) tartott előadásom.

A numerus clausust egyesek a „nulladik zsidótörvény”-nek nevezik, ami szerintük megelőlegezte és már megszületésekor előrevetítette a későbbi zsidótörvényeket, s a holokausztot. Mások azonban azt hangsúlyozzák, hogy a törvény szövegében sem a „zsidó”, sem az „izraelita” szó, sem ezek szinonimái nem szerepelnek. Ebből pedig azt a következtetést vonják le, hogy e törvénycikkelyt nyilvánvalóan nem lehet az első antiszemita és fasiszta törvénynek nevezni.
Noha az említett két állítás egyértelműen ellentmond egymásnak, mégis mindkettő elhangozhat tanárok és tudós történészek szájából is – bár természetesen nem egyidejűleg. Valójában azonban mindkét beállítás hamis. Az első megközelítés vallói ugyanis a történeti determinizmus csapdájába esnek, a második álláspont hívei pedig a történeti kontextusból kiragadva, szervetlenül vizsgálják az egykori múlt egyes elemeit.

Előadásomban a „numerus clausus” fogalomtörténeti vizsgálatával mutatom be, hogy miként lett e kifejezés előbb a ma ismert fogalommá, majd e fogalom a koncepciózus múltértelmezők közreműködésével történetírói szimbólummá. Elsőként azt fogom nyomon követni, hogy a kifejezés miként vált a zsidó egyetemi hallgatók létszámának korlátozásáról szóló 1920. évi XXV. törvénycikkely szinonimájává – ahogyan azt a fentiekben magam is használtam. Ezután pedig azt veszem górcső alá, hogy az utókor mikor és milyen értelemben használta e fogalmat. Arra vagyok kíváncsi, hogy miként vált szimbolikus történetszemléleti és történetpolitikai sarokkővé, a Horthy-korszakhoz és a zsidósághoz való viszony jellegzetes indikátorává. Előadásomban tehát rá fogok mutatni, hogy miként lehetséges a bevezetőmben megfogalmazott két ellentmondó álláspont egyidejű – valójában egymást kölcsönösen feltételező – létezése a történeti közgondolkodás egyes szegmenseiben.

This book provides an authoritative account of the first significant overseas diplomatic missions and forays made by Indian civil servants. It recounts the key events in the formative decades of Indian foreign policy and looks at the prominent figures who were at the centre of this decisive period of change.

The book explores the history and evolution of the civil and foreign services in India during the last leg of British rule and the following era of post-independence Nehruvian politics. Rich in archival material, it looks at official files, correspondences and diaries documenting the terms served by the pioneers of Indian diplomacy, Girja Shankar Bajpai, K.P.S. Menon and Subimal Dutt, in Africa, China, the USSR and other countries and their relationship with the Indian political leadership. The book also analyses and pieces together the activities, strategies, worldviews and contributions of the first administrators and diplomats who shaped India’s approach to foreign policy and its relationship with other political powers.

An essential read for researchers and academics, this book will be a useful resource for students of international relations, foreign policy, political science and modern Indian history, especially those interested in the history of Indian foreign affairs. It will also be of great use to general readers who are interested in the history of politics and diplomacy in India and South Asia.

One of the most disputable questions about history of Latvia is related to lack of military resistance in 1939 and 1940. There are two main views – one opinion represents those who thinks, that main blame is given to President of Latvia Mr. Karlis Ulmanis, who stopped the period of democracy of Latvia in 1934. The second opinion represents that K. Ulmanis was trying to prevent Latvia from huge carnage. Unfortunately, there is given a little attention of military strength and capabilities of Latvian army – opinion we know is based on Latvian ex officers and historians abroad, without researches, based in archival sources.
This article is attempted to explain military situation in Latvian army before next military conflict in late 1930ties. For that reason author explains terms modern war and next war as they were understood in this period.  According this comprehension the staff planned and realized the state defense, having regard to possibilities of military budget. Increasing military threats in the end of 1930.ties, greater attention was given to modernization of armed forces. Base of military equipment was created after Latvian war of liberation. There was huge diversity in weapon systems, so in middle of 1920.ties most of them was unified and based on British. Sadly, most of them gradually became outdated. Modernization of arms and equipment begins only few years before occupation. Under difficult conditions 4 main sectors – anti-tank, anti-air, mobility and communications were developed using procurement from abroad, local production and local military inventions.
Second objective was to develop military strategies and tactics, which could help to fill those gaps which lack of equipment created. Basic unit in Latvian army was joint arm division.  Small arms tactics basically were taken from Germany, but large unit tactics from France. General Hugo Rozenšteins changed it adopting and adapting Czechoslovak military ideas. Meanwhile junior commanders were additional trained, because general staff realized that in next war huge responsibility will be given directly to lower commanders. They prepared for mobile warfare, siege tactics in forests and villages, anti-air and anti-tank tactics. For this purpose unit structure was adopted.

The aim of the article is to present the initiating of the ghetto benches at Polish universities in comparison to the situation of Jewish students which changed after 1935. Since then, there has been unprecedented student occurrences that paralyzed life of the university and led to many concessions from the authorities who wanted to restore peace and order. Student riots which started in autumn 1935 were ‘part of the wave of political activity in the society’. Researchers link them with the campaign undertaken by the rejuvenated leadership of The National Democrats (Endecja) and directed against the government camp weakened after Pilsudski's death. The Nationalists planned to use the increase of the anti-Semitic and anti-government sentiments in the society to strengthen their position in the political arena. Moreover after boycotting parliamentary elections in 1935, universities became their very crucial field of work which they intended to make a domain of their influence and students were supposed to be an important, social base of The National Democrats.
On the wave of anti-Jewish occurrences in autumn 1933 took place the first attempt at settling Jewish students in certain place in an auditorium. However, the actual campaign to initiate the ghetto benches at universities has started in autumn 1935. For the first time an order to isolate the Jewish students was issued by the academic authorities in the Technical University of Lviv on 9 and 11 December 1935. And though it was lifted right away, it became a precedent for other universities. Using violence, the young Nationalists stepped up efforts to bring the project to the university authorities as fait accompli. Excesses at the Technical University of Lviv found a great response at Warsaw University (since 1935 the University of Josef Pilsudski).
Also, the attitude of the professors towards these anti-Semitic ideas is very interesting. The indecisiveness and lack of determination were one of the main features of the academic authorities. This attitude, slightly neutral, in the professors’ community, who confined to making statements about examination and explanation certain matters, was just an incentive for the national students to continue their action.