War_Wold_One

· The main European countries to be considered are Russia, Austria-Hungary (till 1920s), France, Germany, Italy & GB/UK + Ireland (post 1920s). · Other countries may be relevant to particular subjects, such as the Balkan states and the Scandinavian countries Some observations from the course aims 1. Social Change - a major concern of the course · Social geography = demography (population) - NOT just physical movement, but Birth, Class mobility, BOUNDARY movement · Social Structure = CLASS - If use ‘class' be consistent - Mittelstand is German equivalent of French petits bourgeois - the lower middle class (shopkeepers) - Working Class - White (clerical) & blue collar (manual) - Upper class - different types - Aristocrats, gentry etc - Fluid or rigid class structure [Rigid - Austria-Hungary, Nazi Germany / Fluid - interwar Britain & France] · National cohesion - ETHNIC GROUPS and sometimes RELIGIOUS affiliation - C20th NATIONALISM has become increasingly important · Social Reform - Political changes (Pensions), Impact of War (Widow' pensions) · Material conditions - Standards of living (is it measurable'), Improvements to quality of life · Role & status of women - Changes in European society, Impact of war on women, Franchise - voting rights · High & popular culture - Art, Literature, music, film radio - elitist · Values & institutions - Impact of Total war on politics - Parties, FranchiseNature of total war 2. Nature of total war · Is total war a sufficient description of what happened in C20th' - How much is this applied with hindsight' How different was it to earlier wars - scale, nature, tactics & mobilisation' · Other types of war - international (BALKANS) - Revolutionary (Russia) - use term carefully - civil (whites vs Reds in Russia) - internal (USSR against section of population) 3. Causes of War - Why do wars occur · Structural - Marxist view of underlying tension due to imperialism · Ideological - eg Nazi or Soviet ideology, BUT also pre-1914 ‘shared ideology' of Euro states belief in going to war in support of national interests · Institutional - eg different institutions of government AFTER WW1 have LofN, before 1914 very few international institutions (Int Court at Hague) · Geopolitical - balance of power in Europe · Nationalism - especially in large multi-national or imperial states eg Austria Hungary · Contingency - a chance event eg success of Assassination of ArchDuke = trigger · Psychological - a cultural fear of, or desire for War · Political & diplomatic - alliances between states Relationship between Total War and social change closely linked · Argument that social change is attributable to grand narrative in which war is incidental OR war is a catalyst for social change