In order to come to a new understanding of Austrian and even Central European history, this thesis questions the notion of 1918 as a watershed moment through an analysis of Linz’s festive culture...Show moreIn order to come to a new understanding of Austrian and even Central European history, this thesis questions the notion of 1918 as a watershed moment through an analysis of Linz’s festive culture in the period 1908-1928. This thesis illustrates the existence of a wide array of continuities in three layers of territorial identification – local, regional, and national – inherent in the city’s festive culture and divides this process into three categories: community building, ascribed commonalities, and feelings of belonging. The interaction between layers of identification provided a sustainable foundation for identity, which could overcome major upheavals like the First World War and the fall of the Habsburg Empire. In addition to interpreting these layers as nested identities, this thesis explores the importance of rhythms as a source for continuity in daily life. Preserving traditions and customs in practices often outweighed other considerations, such as displaying political views, in organizing local festivities. The repetition of a set of practices transcended party lines and shows that Social Democrats, Christian Socials, and German Nationalists all valued the use of these practices, albeit using them to create different territorially bounded narratives. Finally, this thesis argues that an overemphasis on capitals and crises in historiography has created a distorted view of this period and, consequently, advocates a new focus on localities, regions and stability.Show less
The focus of this thesis is on the role of the Dutch national identity in the perceptions and experiences of a wide array of Dutch Spainfighters, who volunteered to fight on the Republican side in...Show moreThe focus of this thesis is on the role of the Dutch national identity in the perceptions and experiences of a wide array of Dutch Spainfighters, who volunteered to fight on the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. It aims to understand how the volunteers dealt with the potential for clashes between the imagined communities of the Dutch nation-state and the border transcending, transnational appeal of their left-wing ideology. This thesis demonstrates that they felt loyalty both to the transnational community of left-wing and communist sympathizers, and the national Dutch community. It argues that the motivation of the Spainfighters is closely linked to their national identity, which they tried to construct in symbiosis with their transnational thoughts via the message of anti-fascism. As such, the thesis adds to the understanding of the phenomenon of foreign fighters. Next to the conscious building of national identity, national sentiments and practical culture played a considerable role in the daily reality of the Spainfighters, which is especially relevant if the rather mythical image of the International Brigades as a classic example of a transnational army is taken into account. As the case of the Dutch Spainfighters illustrates, the International Brigades provided space and even recognition for national identity as an organizing entity and as such functioned more as an ideologically motivated international army. For this reason, this thesis suggests that the fundaments of the supposedly transnational movement of support to the Spanish Republic may partly be built on national tensions and the resulting compromises. While studying transnational movements in the twentieth century, it therefore may be worth the effort to analyze the role of national identity, of national political culture.Show less
