Peace In Their Time

The mini-tour of Central Europe ends this week, and I take a look at Czechoslovakia and Poland. Nations that shared no small number of problems, and each in their own way failed to address them. For Czechoslovakia it was being unable to get their German minority to stop making eyes across the border, and for Poland it was being unable to stabilize their government enough to even begin making accommodations with their own ethnic minorities. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Berend, Ivan Decades of Crisis: Central and Eastern Europe Before World War II University of California Press 1998

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

Romania was a nation better situated than most by 1929. It hadn't suffered from devastating civil conflict, there had been no political collapse, and its frontiers were reflective of the dreams of every nationalist. And of course, there's a significant "but" to that statement. Corruption was rife, the people didn't really benefit much from the swank new borders, and a local brand of fascism was on the rise. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Berend, Ivan Decades of Crisis: Central and Eastern Europe Before World War II University of California Press 1998

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

The rise of fascism in Hungary proceeded in fits and starts during the 30s, primarily due to there not being a formidable Left in the country's politics to rage against. But the Depression hit the country severely enough that the establishment was badly discredited, and the men who had crushed the Left in 1919 and the early 20s were still around to sink their hooks into the state. On top of that, a new generation of fascists arose to push the nation into ever more extreme directions. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Berend, Ivan Decades of Crisis: Central and Eastern Europe Before World War II University of California Press 1998

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

Because of Austria's central position in Europe and close ties to Germany, its importance was all out of proportion to its size. Which is why the rise of fascism during the Depression is so important to the course of later events. The country found itself between proponents of pan-Germanism and those who favored an independent course, both of which had their own authoritarian visions. And each camp invited foreign influence into the country. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Berend, Ivan Decades of Crisis: Central and Eastern Europe Before World War II University of California Press 1998

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

The damage caused by the Great Depression was not confined to the big economies of the world, and today I'll take a look at the instability and civil conflict that resulted from it in a trio of Central European nations. That's right, it's back to the future battlegrounds of Europe and the smaller states caught between the giants. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Berend, Ivan Decades of Crisis: Central and Eastern Europe Before World War II University of California Press 1998

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

The quest for absolute power in Italy was always one on Mussolini's mind, but the Depression forced the Fascists into overdrive. With the economy falling apart, the state swooped in to both clumsily rescue the situation, as well as expanding its hold over the economy. And the crisis in general started opening up very big possibilities for expansion that had otherwise been denied in the 20s. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Bosworth, RJB Mussolini's Italy Penguin Group, 2005

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

For France, the Great Depression came late, but also refused to go away. On account of being one of the few winners of the Gold Standard, France's economy was booming so much by 1929 that it took until 1932 for the downturn to take effect. But when it did, it proved intractable, critically undermining the legitimacy of the shaky Third Republic. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Adamthwaite, Anthony Grandeur and Misery: France 1914-1940 Arnold, 1995

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

Today we begin our Depression European tour and take a look at the UK. That nation had already been suffering a prolonged recession through most of the 20s, so the Great Depression only added to the nation's woes. While the politics of the nation wouldn't go haywire like they would elsewhere, it did doom the Labour-Liberal coalition that held power in late 1929, and created the conditions for a decade of Conservative dominance. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Taylor, AJP The Oxford History of England, Vol 15 Oxford University Press, 1978

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

The year 1932 was a special low point of the Great Depression in the US not just because of the material devastation for people, but also because how little was done to address the crisis. The Hoover administration revealed how incapable the traditional Conservative orthodoxy was at repairing the nation, and the year became a grim waiting game for FDR and the resurgent Democrats to takeover. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Kennedy, David M. Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War 1929-1945 Oxford University Press 1999

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]

At first it looked like the Great Depression would be just another run of the mill recession. But the bubble that was the US economy popped right at the same time much of Europe was entering a general fiscal crisis, which in turn undermined the Gold Standard system most nations were a part of. The imbalances created by the Gold Standard proved unsustainable, and its collapse led to a free for all as every nation had its own answer to the crisis. 

Bibliography for this episode: 

1. Clavin, Patricia The Great Depression in Europe, 1929-1939 St. Martin's Press 2000

Questions? Comments? Email me at [email protected]