Revolution and Resistance in Eastern Europe: Challenges to Communist Rule

Description

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.

Kevin McDermott is a Senior Lecturer in the history department of Sheffield Hallam University. Matthew Stibbe is a Senior Lecturer in the history department of Sheffield Hallam University.

'An excellent overview of the great turning points in the history of communist-dominated Europe, not least of the revolutions of 1989.' Richard Crampton, Professor of East European History, Oxford University 'A significant contribution to our understanding of Communism in Central and Eastern Europe'. Tim Haughton, Lecturer in the Politics of Central and Eastern Europe, Birmingham University 'This imaginative collection reflects the most updated findings on the nature of Communist rule and the real content of some of the most striking crises in post-1945 Eastern Europe. The well-orchestrated team of authors has made the best use of the decade-and-a-half of open archives in the region. The results frequently startle and upset the various received interpretations, but always in a convincing and documented way.' Ivo Banac, Bradford Durfee Professor of History, Yale University 'In its variety and longevity, East European resistance to Soviet-imposed political forms is central to the story of twentieth-century dictatorships. This is a useful overview of the state of the field, and helps us to answer the key question of why resistance matters.' Padraic Kenney, Professor of History, University of Colorado, Boulder