Beyond the Empire: A social and cultural history of Czechoslovak Officer Corps (1918-1939) in transnational perspective

Syllabus

Syllabus: 1.     Introductory lesson (5.10.2021)

Basic information about the course, attestation requirements, literature, introduction to the concepts of warfare and society, and social and cultural history of war. 2.     Great War and Birth of “Nation” (12.10.2021)

The disintegration of Austria-Hungary, the creation of Czechoslovakia during the First World War, takeoff of the experience of both the last Habsburg War and Czechoslovak Legions.  3.     Building of State and Greater War (19.10.2021)

Waging the wars after the War (Duchy of Teschen and Slovakia), coping with national, class, and societal violence during the early years of the Republic. 4.     “Austrians” contra Legionnaires: A Social History of Officer Corps ((26.10.2021)

Creation of new professional officers from opposing sides of the Great War, its place in Czechoslovak state and society, construction of military tradition, honour, and myth. 5.     Excursion   (2.11.2021)

Visit of Museum of Czechoslovak Legions and lecture of current memory culture of First World War and its legacy. 6.     Cultures of Defeat and Cultures of Victory in Masaryk´s State (9.11.2021)

Divided memories and commemorative acts after the Great War, in favor and against the State, seeds of the future conflicts.  7.     Between State Idea and National and Political Realities (16.11.2021)

Military during the “quiet” years, its place in society, minorities question and its tension with the idea of citizen-soldier.  8.     Veterans, Paramilitarism and Politics (23.11.2021)

Veterans and paramilitary forces in the interwar political spectrum as both threats and support of the Republic. 9.     Rise of External Threats and Internal Turmoil (30.11.2021)

Military Policy towards the aggressive neighbours and internal dissent, modernization of the Army, construction of Concrete Border. 10.  Czechoslovakia and internationalist volunteers (7.12.2021)

Lessons not learned, Spanish civil war as a preview of WW2, Czechoslovak state and society reaction to its own international fighters. 11.  Munich and Finale (14.12.2021)

Threat, mobilization, defeat, and its fallout on society, fall of the First, and its reorganization into the Second Czechoslovak Republic in a military context.  12.  Exile Armies, historical memory, and “should we have defended ourselves?” (21.12.2021)

Memory of interwar Czechoslovak army, its immediate legacy in the foreign armed resistance.   13.  Final Lesson (4.1.2022)

Summary of the course, possibilities of transnational comparison, discussion and new perspectives and themes of research.

Annotation

The course introduces students to the history of interwar Czechoslovakia from the perspective of the relationship between warfare and society. Its goal is to give the students the basic overview of developments of the First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938) and expand it through the lens of social and cultural military history. It is primarily aimed at Erasmus, especially History students, but all interested are welcome.

Course is designed as a sequence of weekly attended lectures (realization depends on covid-19 situation) expanded with reading of texts.