The South Caucasus has traditionally been a playground of contesting empires. This region, on the edge of Europe, is associated in Western minds with ethnic conflict and geopolitical struggles in August 2008. Yet, another war broke out in this distant European periphery as Russia and Georgia clashed over the secessionist territory of South Ossetia. The war had global ramifications culminating in deepening tensions between Russia on the one hand, and Europe and the USA on the other. Speculation on the causes and consequences of the war focused on Great Power rivalries and a new Great Game, on oil pipeline routes, and Russian imperial aspirations.

This book takes a different tack which focuses on the domestic roots of the August 2008 war. Collectively the authors in this volume present a new multidimensional context for the war. They analyse historical relations between national minorities in the region, look at the link between democratic development, state-building, and war, and explore the role of leadership and public opinion. Digging beneath often simplistic geopolitical explanations, the authors give the national minorities and Georgians themselves, the voice that is often forgotten by Western analysts.

This book was based on a special issue of Central Asian Survey.

BY THE AUTHOR OF CHERNOBYL: HISTORY OF A TRAGEDY, WINNER OF THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE 2018 WINNER OF THE PUSHKIN HOUSE RUSSIAN BOOK PRIZE 2015 On Christmas Day 1991 Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as president of the Soviet Union. By the next day the USSR was officially no more and the USA had emerged as the world's sole superpower. Award-winning historian Serhii Plokhy presents a page-turning account of the preceding five months of drama, filled with failed coups d'etat and political intrigue. Honing in on this previously disregarded but crucial period and using recently declassified documents and original interviews with key participants, he shatters the established myths of 1991 and presents a bold new interpretation of the Soviet Union's final months. Plokhy argues that contrary to the triumphalist Western narrative, George H. W. Bush desperately wanted to preserve the Soviet Union and keep Gorbachev in power, and that it was Ukraine and not the US that played the key role in the collapse of the Soviet Union. The consequences of those five months and the myth-making that has since surrounded them are still being felt in Crimea, Russia, the US, and Europe today. With its spellbinding narrative and strikingly fresh perspective, The Last Empire is the essential account of one of the most important watershed periods in world history, and is indispensable reading for anyone seeking to make sense of international politics today.

The influence of Nazism on German culture was a key concern for many Anglo-American writers, who struggled to reconcile the many contributions of Germany to European civilization, with the barbarity of the new regime.

In German Literature Through Nazi Eyes, H.G. Atkins gives an account of how the Nazis undertook a re-evaluation of German literature, making it sub-ordinate to their own interests. All reference to Jewish writers and influence was virtually eliminated, and key writers such as Goethe and Lessing were re-interpreted. What was left was a military history that was avowedly militant and propagandist.

Higher Education in Nazi Germany was first published in 1944, when it was apparent that Germany was likely to lose the war. Developing themes that were to become commonplace in the analysis of totalitarian regimes, it provides an account of how higher education became a means of both installing and re-enforcing the dominant state ideology.

Not all of the responses to fascism in the English speaking world were hostile. With the aim of providing a representative sample, Routledge here re-issues Norman Hillson's I Speak of Germany. First published in 1937, this is an account of the author's travels in Germany, and is largely sympathetic to the changes wrought by the regime. Like others adopting a similar position, the author believes that the terms of the Versailles treatment put Germany in an impossible position, and that the Nazis had inspired a recovery. Racial politics, whilst not ignored, are not seen as being at the heart of the programme ? ?obsession of race purity maybe a little absurd and quite impractical of realization?.

The extent to which the Nazi regime was truly representative of the German people was a key issue for external commentators. First published in 1940, The German People versus Hitler sets out to prove that the identification of ?Germany and the Third Reich, Germanism and Nazism, the German people and the Nazi Party? is a fallacy. It identifies widespread sources of opposition to the Nazi regime from all strata, including the Church and from the former socialist parties.

The Spanish Civil War was one of the pivotal events of the 1930?s, the moment when fascism and socialism came into open conflict. First published in 1939, The Spanish Tragedy recounts the experiences of Jef Last. Activist, poet and novelist, Last might have been the archetypal Republican volunteer but his experience left him even more disenchanted than most. Critical of Soviet Communism, a court martial loyal to Moscow tried to sentence him to death and he was forced to flee to Scandinavia.

Emilio Lussu was an Italian MP and Professor of Political Economy, who was imprisoned because of his opposition to Mussolini. In 1929 he escaped with two fellow prisoners from the island of Lipari. Enter Mussolini combines an account of Mussolini's rise to power and a critique of the Italian fascist movement that was influential at a time when many observers were still sympathetic to fascism, at least in its Italian guise. It was first published in English in 1936.

First published in 1947, Straight On is a first-hand account of the authors' work with the Red Cross in central and eastern Europe at the end of the Second World War, including their work providing medical care to survivors at Auschwitz and Belsen. 'The most moving description I have read of life and death in Central Europe immediately after the war' - Jewish Chronicle. 'One of the most powerful indictments of Fascism ever written' - Irish Chronicle. 'A simple, sincere, and very moving book, full of kindness and understanding for human failings' - The Observer.

Konrad Heiden was an influential journalist and historian of the Weimar Republic and Nazi Eras. He became an early critic of National Socialism after attending a party meeting in 1920. First published in English in 1934, A History of National Socialism provides a detailed account of the growth of the movement through the 1920's until its assumption of full control of Germany in 1934. It argues that Nazi ideology was extremely pragmatic and able to accommodate a wide diversity of opinion in return for the unconditional support of Hitler as leader.

Faced with a political movement that was effectively unparalleled many observers found it extremely difficult to work out exactly what kind of regime they were dealing with: whose interests did it serve? First published in 1934, The Nazi Dictatorship argues both that the Nazi regime represented a clear break from pre-War 'Prussian militarism' and that it was not a passing fad. It describes a 'State of Monopoly Capitalism' in which large scale industrial and financial interests are paramount.

1st July 1916 saw a campaign that devastated the lives of thousands of young men serving under the British Empire. It was a day chosen to begin what had been called 'The Big Push', a desperate attempt to overwhelm the German Front Line and bring an end to a two year long stalemate on the Western Front. The Battle of the Somme has become tightly woven into the memory of the British nation and stands as a testimony to the conflict which took so many lives. This authoritative guide gives a factual account of the events leading up to the Somme battle, the battle itself, the politics of the day as well as the experiences of the young men who answered the call to join Kitchener's Army. With dramatic photographs, maps and diagrams this guide is an informative and sensitive account of the conflict.

This series, for AS and A2, is tailored to Edexcel's new exam specification. Packed full of exam tips and activities, students can be sure they will develop all the historical skills and understanding they need.

The book explores the views of elites alongside those of the wider population in the European Union. The chapters place the new member states and the potential candidate Serbia on the map of Europe in this context for the first time. The volume's comparative method goes beyond the standard old member states versus new member states divide. It assesses regional differences within Central Europe and evaluates the problem of European and national identity formation, perception of external threats to the EU (including Russia), differences between economic and political elite views about the integration process and the connection between national performance and public opinion about Europe. Even though, in each country, positive views are dominant about the integration process, heterogeneous views prevail behind the image of a unifying Europe.

The book 's major contribution is that it makes the new member states more visible and provides hard evidence while remaining theoretically driven. Furthermore, it covers the most important topics that emerge in studies concerning European integration. The book is intended for those interested in European integration in general but Central and Eastern European comparativists will find it particularly useful.

This book was published as a special issue of Europe-Asia Studies.

The Amazon History Book of the Year 2013 is a magisterial chronicle of the calamity that befell Europe in 1914 as the continent shifted from the glamour of the Edwardian era to the tragedy of total war. In 1914, Europe plunged into the 20th century's first terrible act of self-immolation - what was then called The Great War. On the eve of its centenary, Max Hastings seeks to explain both how the conflict came about and what befell millions of men and women during the first months of strife. He finds the evidence overwhelming, that Austria and Germany must accept principal blame for the outbreak. While what followed was a vast tragedy, he argues passionately against the 'poets' view', that the war was not worth winning. It was vital to the freedom of Europe, he says, that the Kaiser's Germany should be defeated. His narrative of the early battles will astonish those whose images of the war are simply of mud, wire, trenches and steel helmets. Hastings describes how the French Army marched into action amid virgin rural landscapes, in uniforms of red and blue, led by mounted officers, with flags flying and bands playing. The bloodiest day of the entire Western war fell on 22 August 1914, when the French lost 27,000 dead. Four days later, at Le Cateau the British fought an extraordinary action against the oncoming Germans, one of the last of its kind in history. In October, at terrible cost they held the allied line against massive German assaults in the first battle of Ypres.The author also describes the brutal struggles in Serbia, East Prussia and Galicia, where by Christmas the Germans, Austrians, Russians and Serbs had inflicted on each other three million casualties. This book offers answers to the huge and fascinating question 'what happened to Europe in 1914?', through Max Hastings's accustomed blend of top-down and bottom-up accounts from a multitude of statesmen and generals, peasants, housewives and private soldiers of seven nations. His narrative pricks myths and offers some striking and controversial judgements. For a host of readers gripped by the author's last international best-seller 'All Hell Let Loose', this will seem a worthy successor.

Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France is one of the major texts in the western intellectual tradition. This book describes Burke's political and intellectual world, stressing the importance of the idea of 'property' in Burke's thought. It then focuses more closely on Burke's personal and political situation in the late 1780s to explain how the Reflections came to be written. The central part of the study discusses the meaning and interpretation of the work. In the last part of the book the author surveys the pamphlet controversy which the Reflections generated, paying particular attention to the most famous of the replies, Tom Paine's Rights of Man. It also examines the subsequent reputation of the Reflections from the 1790s to the modern day, noting how often Burke has fascinated even writers who have disliked his politics.

This collection of articles explores changes in images of the French monarchy propagated in ceremonies that townspeople and officials created for their kings. Bryant looks at royal entrees as massive processional and street theaters in which members of the kingdom both discoursed with and exalted the king in a multiplicity of ritual forms, symbolism and public art. These ceremonies personalized the idea of the state as embodied in the king, and they publicized rights and authority, new historical or mythological themes, innovative styles of monumental architecture and art, and theories of ideal and shared government.

In this revised edition, Matthew Dillon and Lynda Garland have expanded the chronological range of Ancient Greece to include the Greek world of the fourth century. The sourcebook now ranges from the first lines of Greek literature to the death of Alexander the Great, covering all of the main historical periods and social phenomena of ancient Greece. The material is taken from a variety of sources: historians, inscriptions, graffiti, law codes, epitaphs, decrees, drama and poetry. It includes the major literary authors, but also covers a wide selection of writers, including many non-Athenian authors. Whilst focusing on the main cities of ancient Greece - Athens and Sparta- the sourcebook also draws on a wide range of material concerning the Greeks in Egypt, Italy, Sicily, Asia Minor and the Black Sea.

Ancient Greece covers not only the chronological, political history of ancient Greece, but also explores the full spectrum of Greek life through topics such as gender, social class, race and labour. This revised edition includes:

• Two completely new chapters - "The Rise of Macedon" and "Alexander ?the Great?, 336-323" BC
• New material in the chapters on The City-State, Religion in the Greek World, Tyrants and Tyranny, The Peloponnesian War and its Aftermath, Labour: Slaves, Serfs and Citizens, and Women, Sexuality and the Family

It is structured so that:

• Thematically arranged chapters arranged allow students to build up gradually knowledge of the ancient Greek world
• Introductory essays to each chapter give necessary background to understand topic areas
• Linking commentaries help students understand the source extracts and what they reveal about the ancient Greeks

Ancient Greece: Social and Historical Documents from Archaic Times to the Death of Alexander the Great. Third Edition, will continue to be a definitive collection of source material on the society and culture of the Greeks.

This biographical narrative is a detailed portrayal of the life and career of the first Christian emperor Constantine the Great (273 ? 337). Combining vivid narrative and historical analysis, Charles Odahl relates the rise of Constantine amid the crises of the late Roman world, his dramatic conversion to and public patronage of Christianity, and his church building programs in Rome, Jerusalem and Constantinople which transformed the pagan state of Roman antiquity into the Christian empire medieval Byzantium.

The author's comprehensive knowledge of the literary sources and his extensive research into the material remains of the period mean that this volume provides a more rounded and accurate portrait of Constantine than previously available.

This revised second edition includes:

• An expanded and revised final chapter
• A new Genealogy and an expanded Chronology
• New illustrations
• Revised and updated Notes and Bibliography

A landmark publication in Roman Imperial, early Christian, and Byzantine history, Constantine and the Christian Empire will remain the standard account of the subject for years to come.

This book is the first study of the mentality of anti-Communist underground fighters and presents, especially, their thinking, ideals, stereotypes and customs. The models and psychological processes that the volume analyses are relevant not only to the Polish partisans, but also to members of other underground organisations, in East-Central Europe, South America and Asia. It explores how the underground organizations were created, who joined them and why, what thoughts and emotions were involved, and what were the consequences of the decisions to join them. Experiences and situations are illustrated with excerpts of diaries and memoirs which reveal the thinking of people in extreme situations, when their lives are in danger, when they are caught in desperate conflicts, or are fighting against overwhelming government forces. The Mentality of Partisans is useful for upper-level undergraduates, postgraduates, and scholars interested in the history of Europe, resistance movements, anticommunism, military and political conflicts, World War Two and non-classical historiography.

The rise of Italian fascism is often seen as a pre-condition, as well as a precursor of, later developments in Europe most notably in Germany. As such they were also much discussed in the English speaking world throughout the 1930?s. First published in English in 1938 this book gives an account of Italian history in the years immediately following the first world war, culminating in the triumph of Mussolini. Arguing that Mussolini succeeded because he was much more ruthless than his opponents, he concludes that this is something that must be learnt from: ?in point of material and military strength we must be superior to the fascists since that is the ground on which they are trying to force a decision.'

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In 1927 Hitler asked Gottfried Feder to formulate the official Programme of the German National Socialist Party. This English translation of the fifth German edition was first published in 1934.

The extent to which Jews were being actively persecuted in Germany through the 1930's was a hotly debated issue, with many apologists downplaying the centrality of race in Nazi ideology. This book, first published in 1939, provided a clear counter argument to this position. Based on official German publications and reliable external reports, it details the many methods adopted by the Nazi party against the Jews.