Die "Blüte" der Staaten des östlichen Europa im 14. Jahrhundert by Marc LöwenerReview by: Jean W. SedlarSlavic Review, Vol. 64, No. 2 (Summer, 2005), pp. 404-405Published by:Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3649991 .

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404 Slavic Review

utopian ideologies, nowhere in his text or his bibliography does he acknowledge the debt that all students of genocide owe to Professor Cohn.

Finally, in response to his conclusion that the ideologies of race and nation, when sit- uated in the hands of a "powerful interventionist state" (51), have been fundamental to several of the major genocides of the twentieth century, Weitz urges attention to Vaclav Havel's long-term vision of the global community, rather than the nation-state, as "the lo- cus of sovereignty and the source and protector of basic human rights" (254). At various times, Weitz has contrasted the harm done through the Versailles and Trianon settlements by Woodrow Wilson's vision of the nation-state as the locus of democracy with the more fruitful model under elaboration by the European Union (EU). While his recommenda- tion is understandable, it not only neglects the internal problems of the EU, but also ig- nores the EU's inability to respond to genocides, whether in its own backyard, as in the case of Bosnia, or in Africa, as in the case of Rwanda. In my view, the real challenge today, illustrated by the Darfur crisis, is to harness the prevention of genocide to the self-interest of the nation-state and to persuade enough nation-states to act in concert when genocides are imminent.

FRANK CHALK Concordia University, Montreal

Die "Blute"der Staaten des ostlichen Europa im 14.Jahrhundert. Ed. Marc Lowener. Deutsches Historisches Institut Warschau, Quellen und Studien, vol. 14. Wiesbaden: Harrasso- witz Verlag, 2004. vi, 352 pp. Notes. Index. Figures. Maps. C60.00, hard bound.

Historians of eastern Europe often regard the fourteenth century as a period of "flower- ing," the high point of a much longer period of development. In October 1999 a group of specialists in medieval history met in Cracow to examine this important concept. The pres- ent book is a collection of the papers delivered at that conference, all of which appear here in the German language. Contributions by Krzysztof Oi6g,Janusz Kurtyka, Slawomir Gawlas, and Marian Dygo have been translated from the original Polish. A brief summary of the contents of this volume appears at the end in English and Polish.

A short review can hardly do justice to all the essays in this volume, but their scope can be briefly indicated. The editor, Marc L6wener, leads off with an overview of the common features and differences between states within eastern European society in the fourteenth century. Christian Lfibke follows with a discussion of the terms "Central Europe," "East Central Europe," and "Eastern Europe" and describes the earliest political structures in this region, assisted by several useful maps. The eight subsequent essays deal with events occurring in a specific geographical area during the century under consideration. Bern- hartJahnig stresses the continuity in the policy of Prussia under the Teutonic Knights, de- spite the fact that many grand masters enjoyed relatively short terms of office. The Knights quickly transformed Prussia into a power of pan-European importance, with a unique con- stitution and a territorial administration based upon German law. Alvydas Nikzentaitis contends that Lithuania under Grand Dukes Gedymin and Olgerd experienced a period of "flowering" already in the fourteenth century, even though the highest point of devel- opment for Lithuania occurred only in the fifteenth. Anna Choroskevic regards the four- teenth century as decisive for the development of the Moscow principality under Ivan Kalita and Dmitrii Donskoi, since the expansionist policy of these two rulers laid the basis for Moscow's subsequent rise to power.

With respect to the lands of east central Europe, Janusz Kurtyka underlines the im- portance of foreign influences in promoting the unification of the Polish kingdom in the fourteenth century. Feudalizing tendencies and German law penetrated from farther west, assisting the efforts of Ladislas Lokietek and Casimir the Great to stabilize the state and ex- pand eastward into the Ruthenian regions. Peter Moraw contends that Bohemia, as part of the Holy Roman Empire, really belongs to central rather than eastern Europe, despite close ties to the latter region. Bohemia experienced a period of "flowering" under the Luxemburg dynasty when her king became Emperor Charles IV Pal Engel emphasizes the importance of the gold mines of Upper Hungary (now Slovakia) in permitting the

404 Slavic Review

utopian ideologies, nowhere in his text or his bibliography does he acknowledge the debt that all students of genocide owe to Professor Cohn.

Finally, in response to his conclusion that the ideologies of race and nation, when sit- uated in the hands of a "powerful interventionist state" (51), have been fundamental to several of the major genocides of the twentieth century, Weitz urges attention to Vaclav Havel's long-term vision of the global community, rather than the nation-state, as "the lo- cus of sovereignty and the source and protector of basic human rights" (254). At various times, Weitz has contrasted the harm done through the Versailles and Trianon settlements by Woodrow Wilson's vision of the nation-state as the locus of democracy with the more fruitful model under elaboration by the European Union (EU). While his recommenda- tion is understandable, it not only neglects the internal problems of the EU, but also ig- nores the EU's inability to respond to genocides, whether in its own backyard, as in the case of Bosnia, or in Africa, as in the case of Rwanda. In my view, the real challenge today, illustrated by the Darfur crisis, is to harness the prevention of genocide to the self-interest of the nation-state and to persuade enough nation-states to act in concert when genocides are imminent.

FRANK CHALK Concordia University, Montreal

Die "Blute"der Staaten des ostlichen Europa im 14.Jahrhundert. Ed. Marc Lowener. Deutsches Historisches Institut Warschau, Quellen und Studien, vol. 14. Wiesbaden: Harrasso- witz Verlag, 2004. vi, 352 pp. Notes. Index. Figures. Maps. C60.00, hard bound.

Historians of eastern Europe often regard the fourteenth century as a period of "flower- ing," the high point of a much longer period of development. In October 1999 a group of specialists in medieval history met in Cracow to examine this important concept. The pres- ent book is a collection of the papers delivered at that conference, all of which appear here in the German language. Contributions by Krzysztof Oi6g,Janusz Kurtyka, Slawomir Gawlas, and Marian Dygo have been translated from the original Polish. A brief summary of the contents of this volume appears at the end in English and Polish.

A short review can hardly do justice to all the essays in this volume, but their scope can be briefly indicated. The editor, Marc L6wener, leads off with an overview of the common features and differences between states within eastern European society in the fourteenth century. Christian Lfibke follows with a discussion of the terms "Central Europe," "East Central Europe," and "Eastern Europe" and describes the earliest political structures in this region, assisted by several useful maps. The eight subsequent essays deal with events occurring in a specific geographical area during the century under consideration. Bern- hartJahnig stresses the continuity in the policy of Prussia under the Teutonic Knights, de- spite the fact that many grand masters enjoyed relatively short terms of office. The Knights quickly transformed Prussia into a power of pan-European importance, with a unique con- stitution and a territorial administration based upon German law. Alvydas Nikzentaitis contends that Lithuania under Grand Dukes Gedymin and Olgerd experienced a period of "flowering" already in the fourteenth century, even though the highest point of devel- opment for Lithuania occurred only in the fifteenth. Anna Choroskevic regards the four- teenth century as decisive for the development of the Moscow principality under Ivan Kalita and Dmitrii Donskoi, since the expansionist policy of these two rulers laid the basis for Moscow's subsequent rise to power.

With respect to the lands of east central Europe, Janusz Kurtyka underlines the im- portance of foreign influences in promoting the unification of the Polish kingdom in the fourteenth century. Feudalizing tendencies and German law penetrated from farther west, assisting the efforts of Ladislas Lokietek and Casimir the Great to stabilize the state and ex- pand eastward into the Ruthenian regions. Peter Moraw contends that Bohemia, as part of the Holy Roman Empire, really belongs to central rather than eastern Europe, despite close ties to the latter region. Bohemia experienced a period of "flowering" under the Luxemburg dynasty when her king became Emperor Charles IV Pal Engel emphasizes the importance of the gold mines of Upper Hungary (now Slovakia) in permitting the

This content downloaded from 185.44.79.92 on Wed, 18 Jun 2014 20:25:01 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

Book Reviews Book Reviews

Angevin kings Charles Robert and Louis the Great to establish an authoritarian monarchy and undertake an ambitious expansionist policy. Alone among the contributors to this vol- ume, this veteran historian (now deceased) takes issue with the concept of "flowering," ar- guing that historians should simply describe phenomena, not judge them. In the Balkans, Serbia under Tsar Stephen Dugan maintained closer ties to Byzantium than to the more northerly states, though Ludwig Steindorff points to some structural parallels between Dusan's regime and that of neighboring Hungary. Unlike the Moscow princes, Dusan tied the nobility to himself by granting them land; and his reign marks the high point of a long process of development. On the other hand, the margravate of Brandenburg experienced a period of crisis rather than flowering in the first half of the fourteenth century. Peter- Michael Hahn argues that the Askanian dynasty overstretched its capabilities, and that Brandenburg, as a fief of the Holy Roman Empire, became hostage to imperial policy.

The four final essays in this collection strive for a comparative perspective. Krzysztof Oz6g argues that the cultural flowering of central and east central Europe was closely linked to the establishment of universities, since men with legal training were increasingly employed in state service. Emperor Charles IV founded a university in Prague and soon found imitators in Casimir III of Poland, Rudolf IV of Habsburg, and Louis the Great of Hungary. Slavomir Gawlas reviews the inner constitutional and social transformations in Poland, Bohemia, and Hungary, noting in particular the growing centralization of the state, its enhanced financial demands, and the increasing importance of the estates. Marian Dygo finds a link between the "flowering" of the east European monarchies and the eco- nomic "crisis" of western Europe. Insufficient quantities of metal from easily accessible western sources and a trade deficit with the Levant encouraged the development of min- ing in east central Europe and the eastward transfer of capital and expertise. Close exam- ination, however, reveals major structural defects in the economies of east central Europe. Rich in raw materials but poor in capital, this region formed the hinterland of the great trade and production centers of western Europe.

Michael Borgolte concludes this collection of conference papers by examining the models and tasks of a comparative historiography. He points out that a certain minimum of common features in the realms of law, economics, and military affairs must exist before

any comparison is possible. Naturally the states of eastern (or east central) Europe did not all "flower" simultaneously in the fourteenth century. Nonetheless this volume provides a useful antidote to the more usual practice of considering each country in isolation. Its comparative context provides a welcome approach to the study of this entire region in the medieval era.

JEAN W. SEDLAR

University of Pittsburgh, Johnstown

Identitdtenwandel und nationale Mobilisierung in Regionen ethnischer Diversitdt: Ein regionaler Vergleich zwischen WestpreuJ3en und Galizien am Ende des 19. und Anfang des 20.Jahrhun- derts. Ed. Ralph Schattkowsky and Michael G. Miiller. Tagungen zur Ostmitteleuropa- Forschung, vol. 20. Marburg: Verlag Herder-Institut, 2004. viii, 184 pp. Notes. Illus- trations. C27.00, paper.

This collection of studies is a genuine treasure trove for anyone interested in the develop- ment of nationalism at a level below that of the nation-state. The opening essay by the edi- tor, Ralph Schattkowsky, "Nationalism in East-Central Europe: Tendencies and Tasks of Research," sets the tone for the whole book. It is a wise discussion, extraordinarily rich in bibliography, of the general lines, as well as peculiarities, of the development of national- ism in east central Europe, both north and south. History as well as geography played here an important, but not necessarily decisive role. Galicia, and eastern Galicia too, had an identity at the time of annexation by Austria; Bukovina had none. It was designated as a "typical colonization country." And yet, on the eve of World War I, Bukovina was not only a firmly established, legally autonomous crown land but also a cultural landscape inhab- ited by people frequently referred to as homo bucovinensis.

In Schattkowsky's second essay, "Transformation of Identities and National Mobiliza-

Angevin kings Charles Robert and Louis the Great to establish an authoritarian monarchy and undertake an ambitious expansionist policy. Alone among the contributors to this vol- ume, this veteran historian (now deceased) takes issue with the concept of "flowering," ar- guing that historians should simply describe phenomena, not judge them. In the Balkans, Serbia under Tsar Stephen Dugan maintained closer ties to Byzantium than to the more northerly states, though Ludwig Steindorff points to some structural parallels between Dusan's regime and that of neighboring Hungary. Unlike the Moscow princes, Dusan tied the nobility to himself by granting them land; and his reign marks the high point of a long process of development. On the other hand, the margravate of Brandenburg experienced a period of crisis rather than flowering in the first half of the fourteenth century. Peter- Michael Hahn argues that the Askanian dynasty overstretched its capabilities, and that Brandenburg, as a fief of the Holy Roman Empire, became hostage to imperial policy.

The four final essays in this collection strive for a comparative perspective. Krzysztof Oz6g argues that the cultural flowering of central and east central Europe was closely linked to the establishment of universities, since men with legal training were increasingly employed in state service. Emperor Charles IV founded a university in Prague and soon found imitators in Casimir III of Poland, Rudolf IV of Habsburg, and Louis the Great of Hungary. Slavomir Gawlas reviews the inner constitutional and social transformations in Poland, Bohemia, and Hungary, noting in particular the growing centralization of the state, its enhanced financial demands, and the increasing importance of the estates. Marian Dygo finds a link between the "flowering" of the east European monarchies and the eco- nomic "crisis" of western Europe. Insufficient quantities of metal from easily accessible western sources and a trade deficit with the Levant encouraged the development of min- ing in east central Europe and the eastward transfer of capital and expertise. Close exam- ination, however, reveals major structural defects in the economies of east central Europe. Rich in raw materials but poor in capital, this region formed the hinterland of the great trade and production centers of western Europe.

Michael Borgolte concludes this collection of conference papers by examining the models and tasks of a comparative historiography. He points out that a certain minimum of common features in the realms of law, economics, and military affairs must exist before

any comparison is possible. Naturally the states of eastern (or east central) Europe did not all "flower" simultaneously in the fourteenth century. Nonetheless this volume provides a useful antidote to the more usual practice of considering each country in isolation. Its comparative context provides a welcome approach to the study of this entire region in the medieval era.

JEAN W. SEDLAR

University of Pittsburgh, Johnstown

Identitdtenwandel und nationale Mobilisierung in Regionen ethnischer Diversitdt: Ein regionaler Vergleich zwischen WestpreuJ3en und Galizien am Ende des 19. und Anfang des 20.Jahrhun- derts. Ed. Ralph Schattkowsky and Michael G. Miiller. Tagungen zur Ostmitteleuropa- Forschung, vol. 20. Marburg: Verlag Herder-Institut, 2004. viii, 184 pp. Notes. Illus- trations. C27.00, paper.

This collection of studies is a genuine treasure trove for anyone interested in the develop- ment of nationalism at a level below that of the nation-state. The opening essay by the edi- tor, Ralph Schattkowsky, "Nationalism in East-Central Europe: Tendencies and Tasks of Research," sets the tone for the whole book. It is a wise discussion, extraordinarily rich in bibliography, of the general lines, as well as peculiarities, of the development of national- ism in east central Europe, both north and south. History as well as geography played here an important, but not necessarily decisive role. Galicia, and eastern Galicia too, had an identity at the time of annexation by Austria; Bukovina had none. It was designated as a "typical colonization country." And yet, on the eve of World War I, Bukovina was not only a firmly established, legally autonomous crown land but also a cultural landscape inhab- ited by people frequently referred to as homo bucovinensis.

In Schattkowsky's second essay, "Transformation of Identities and National Mobiliza-

405 405

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