`A fascinating book, readable and illuminating.' Times Literary Supplement

A History of Eastern Europe 1740-1918: Empires, Nations and Modernisation provides a comprehensive, authoritative account of the region during a troubled period that finished with the First World War. Ian Armour focuses on the three major themes that have defined Eastern Europe in the modern period - empire, nationhood and modernisation - whilst chronologically tracing the emergence of Eastern Europe as a distinct concept and place. Detailed coverage is given to the Habsburg, Ottoman, German and Russian Empires that struggled for dominance during this time. In this exciting new edition, Ian Armour incorporates findings from new research into the nature and origins of nationalism and the attempts of supranational states to generate dynastic loyalties as well as concepts of empire. Armour's insightful guide to early Eastern Europe considers the important figures and governments, analyses the significant events and discusses the socio-economic and cultural developments that are crucial to a rounded understanding of the region in that era. Features of this new edition include: * A fully updated and enlarged bibliography and notes * Eight useful maps * Updated content throughout the text A History of Eastern Europe 1740-1918 is the ideal textbook for students studying Eastern European history.

Overthrowing communism in 1989 and joining the European Union in 2004, the Polish people hold loyalties to region, country and now continent – even as the definition of what it means to be ‘European’ remains unclear. Paying particular attention to those who came of age in the earliest years of the neoliberal and democratic transformations, this book uses the life-story narratives of rural and urban southern Poles to reveal how ‘being European’ is considered a fundamental component of ‘being Polish’ while participants are simultaneously ‘becoming European’. Ultimately, this study demonstrates how the EU is regarded as both an idea and an instrument, and how ordinary citizens make choices that influence the shape of European identity and the legitimacy of its institutions.

The Routledge Companion to Modern European History since 1763 is a compact and highly accessible work of reference covering the broad sweep of events from the last days of the ancient regime to the ending of the Cold War, and from the reshaping of Eastern Europe to the radical expansion of the European Union in 2004. Within the broad coverage of this outstanding volume, particular attention is given to subjects such as: the era of the Enlightened Despots the Revolutionary and Napoleonic era in France, and the revolutions of 1848 nationalism and imperialism, and the retreat from Empire the First World War, the rise of the European dictators, the coming of the Second World War, the Holocaust, and the post-war development of Europe the Cold War, the Soviet Union and its break up the protest and upheavals of the 1960s, as well as social issues such as the rise of the welfare state, and the changing place of women in society throughout the period. With a fully comprehensive glossary, a biographical section, a thorough bibliography and informative maps, this volume is the indispensable companion for all those who study modern European history.

The tragedies of Bosnia and Kosovo are often explained away as the unchangeable legacy of 'centuries-old hatreds'. In this richly detailed, expertly balanced chronicle of the Balkans across fifteen centuries, Hupchick sets a complicated record straight. Organized around the three great civilizations of the region - Western European, Orthodox Christian and Muslim - this is a much-needed guide to the political, social, cultural and religious threads of Balkan history, with a clear, convincing account of the reasons for nationalist violence and terror.

First published in 2003. Europe: lives in transition gives a voice to people living through transition, opening a door for outsiders to understand how such people have lived - an opportunity for one to speak and another to listen. The book has been deliberately written in an accessible, engaging and first-hand manner. Original quotes from various projects are woven together throughout the text.This book focuses explicitly on the experiences of respondents and functions largely to introduce themes and speakers. The principal themes are: identities, relationships, production, consumption and power. Except for selected crucial theoretical and methodological discussions, any academic commentary, which might overshadow the words of the respondents, is kept to a minimum. A key aim is to engage the readers with the text by confronting them with their own preconceptions and geographical imaginations. Each chapter opens with two activity sections to help readers think about the themes in broader terms, for example, by doing some research themselves. Each chapter closes with two further activity sections for review and discussion.

This book is based on the premise that the foreign policy of any country is heavily influenced by a society's evolving notions of itself. Applying his analysis to Russia, Poland, and Ukraine, the author argues that national identity is an ever-changing concept, influenced by internal and external events, and by the manipulation of a polity's collective memory. The interaction of the narrative of a society and its foreign policy is therefore paramount. This is especially the case in East-Central Europe, where political institutions are weak, and social coherence remains subject to the vagaries of the concept of nationhood. Ilya Prizel's study will be of interest to students of nationalism, as well as of foreign policy and politics in East-Central Europe.