The Idea of Central Europe: Geopolitics, Culture and Regional Identity (Tauris Historical Geographical Series)

"Central Europe is one of the key notions of classical geopolitics yet it has always been a somewhat elusive concept. Originally perceived as a plan for a German dominated political and economic union, it subsequently emerged to threaten leaders in the East and West in a variety of forms. Otilia Dhand provides a critical examination of the concept of Central Europe, from its early inception to the present day. Making extensive use of archival material, she shows how successive manifestations of Central Europe - of whatever vintage - have failed to bring about their intended changes on the international structure, and how customary claims about Central Europe are not supported by the original source material. The result is a work of outstanding scholarship that advances our understanding of regionalism and geopolitics in Europe."--Bloomsbury Publishing. Cover 1 Half-title 3 Title 7 Copyright 8 Contents 9 List of Figures 11 Preface 12 1. Introduction: The Puzzle of Central Europe 13 The emerging puzzle 13 The pivot of geopolitics? 18 Approaching Central Europe 19 2. Germany: Mitteleuropa–Realm of the German Nation 25 The narrative of German Central Europe 26 Shifting identities: from Germany to Central Europe 31 Nationalist dream or pragmatic customs union? 39 Friedrich Naumann and wartime concepts 43 Unsuccessful agitators vs. unimpressed government 49 A tale of wartime Mitteleuropa 52 Central Europe in German imperial policy 61 3. Austria-Hungary: Pan-German Paper Dreams 64 The legacy of 1848: Austria goes its own way 64 The pan-German movement 65 The Belvedere Circle 70 The pan-German revival 72 Central Europe the Austrian way 76 Challengers: from Kramár to Masaryk 82 A winding path to a dead end 90 Strength and weakness of the other 99 4. Britain and the United States: What the Enemy Covets 103 ‘Seat of war’ 103 Shifting threat perceptions 105 The Foreign Office and Masaryk’s dismemberment plan 109 The view from across the Atlantic: the Inquiry 114 The stillborn mid-European Union of 1918 118 The construction of the other 121 5. Central Europe 1880–1918: Unsuccessful Exercises in Geopolitics 123 The battle for definition 123 Central Europe equals pan-German Europe 129 Central Europe in policy-makers’ minds 134 Smart propaganda that failed 142 6. Variations in Time and Space 145 Interwar discourse: from Danubian Federation to Reich, 1919 – 39 145 World War II: return of the Middle Tier, 1939 – 45 159 Cold War: a non-existent concept, 1945 – 84 172 Breaking ice: the anti-politics of Central Europe, 1984 – 9 182 A brand new game: integration tautology, 1989 – 2004 191 The ebbs and flows of theorizing 204 7. Conclusions: Central Europe and Beyond 208 The forging of Central Europe 208 Central Europe is back. Again! 211 8. Postscript: Beyond Central Europe 213 Appendix 1. ‘Tshirschky to Bethmann-Hollweg’, 1 September 1914 215 Notes 221 Index 272 "Central Europe is one of the key notions of classical geopolitics yet it has always been a somewhat elusive concept. Originally perceived as a plan for a German dominated political and economic union, it subsequently emerged to threaten leaders in the East and West in a variety of forms. Otilia Dhand provides a critical examination of the concept of Central Europe, from its early inception to the present day. Making extensive use of archival material, she shows how successive manifestations of Central Europe - of whatever vintage - have failed to bring about their intended changes on the international structure, and how customary claims about Central Europe are not supported by the original source material. The result is a work of outstanding scholarship that advances our understanding of regionalism and geopolitics in Europe."-- Provided by Publisher Central Europe is one of the key notions of classical geopolitics yet it has always been a somewhat elusive concept. Originally perceived as a plan for a German dominated political and economic union, it subsequently emerged to threaten leaders in the East and West in a variety of forms. Otilia Dhand provides a critical examination of the concept of Central Europe, from its early inception to the present day. Making extensive use of archival material, she shows how successive manifestations of Central Europe - of whatever vintage - have failed to bring about their intended changes on the international structure, and how customary claims about Central Europe are not supported by the original source material. The result is a work of outstanding scholarship that advances our understanding of regionalism and geopolitics in Europe.--Publisher's description