Suchergebnisse

In The European Commission of the Danube, 1856-1948 Constantin Ardeleanu offers a history of the world's second international organisation, an innovative techno-political institution established by Europe's Concert of Powers to remove insecurity from the Lower Danube. Delegates of rival empires worked together to 'correct' a vital European transportation infrastructure, and to complete difficult hydraulic works they gradually transformed the Commission into an actor of regional and international politics. As an autonomous and independent organ, it employed a complex transnational bureaucracy and regulated shipping along the Danube through a comprehensive set of internationally accepted rules and procedures. The Commission is portrayed as an effective experimental organisation, taken as a model for further cooperation in the international system

The history of the world's second international organisation, an innovative techno-political institution established by Europe's Concert of Powers to remove insecurity from the Lower Danube.; Readership: Historians of nineteenth and twentieth centuries European history, scholars and students in the history of international relations, international organisations, science and technology studies. Keywords: Danube, Danube Delta, Sulina, Romania, Southeastern Europe, Danube Commission, international organizations, international relations, 1856-1940, river histories, technopolitics, internationalism, navigation.

This article aims to historicise the making of the border between the Russian and Ottoman empires in southern Bessarabia, drawn in the post-Crimean War context in 1856–1857. An international commission was appointed for this purpose, and delegates from five empires – Austrian, British, French, Russian and Ottoman – gathered in the province on the ground to demarcate the border decided by Europe's powers. Based on the commission's lengthy protocols, and on the memoirs of several experts involved in surveying, mapping and demarcating the border on the ground, this article delves into the mechanisms of border-making in the field, examining the challenges that commission members encountered with finding a common vocabulary and with balancing larger geopolitical interests with local geographical realities. The case study is also an excellent illustration of what it means to zoom in and out of the different scales involved in bordering. From the diplomatic meetings in Paris to the commissioners' negotiations in Chișinău and the land surveyors adding names on maps after discussions with peasants in a village close to the Dniester, border making is a complex process that operated simultaneously at different scales, spaces and times.

This collection considers how, when, and under what conditions the borders that historically defined the country of Ukraine were agreed upon. A diverse set of transnational contexts are explored, focusing mostly on the critical period of 1917-54 and revealing the shared history of territory and state formation in Europe and the wider modern world.

Invited experts who study and teach economic history in American, Romanian, Swedish, and Ukrainian universities answer questions about the recent trends and perspectives in the economic history of Eastern Europe. They demonstrate how the relationship between history and other disciplines developed in Eastern European scholarship. They explain the reasons for the relatively underdeveloped scholarly community of the field in the region. Finally, they talk about the applicable theories and concepts which could challenge Gerschenkron's theoretical framework when discussing the history of economy and business in Eastern Europe. Authors mostly accept the suggested statement that the economic history of Eastern Europe is institutionally underdeveloped if compared with Western scholarship. At the same time, they see the situation as a good opportunity for the development of new research projects. The authors emphasize the necessity to "learn the language of other disciplines" as well as to develop skills in data analysis. They also point out that to explain the global economic transformations in history, working with archival sources and understanding the context are as important as the application of economic theories and quantitative analysis.