MVZb2015 Two world wars in the history of international relations

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2023
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 5 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
PhDr. Vladimír Černý, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Ing. Mgr. Adriana Ilavská, Ph.D. (assistant)
Guaranteed by
PhDr. Vladimír Černý, Ph.D.
Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Supplier department: Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Mon 12:00–13:40 P24a
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 50 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 26/50, only registered: 0/50
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 6 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
The main goal of the course is to acquaint students with lesser-known aspects of both world conflicts and point out their interconnectedness.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion the course, students will be able to analyze the main political, military and economic processes that affect the international policy and evaluate their impact on the outbreak of both world wars.
Syllabus
  • 1. An introduction to the topic; primary and secondary sources.
  • 2. The golden age? Concert of the great powers and the causes of the First World War.
  • 3. Soldiers and politicians. Difficult cooperation between politicians and general staffs of the two warring blocs of the First World War.
  • 4. Social revolution? Changes in society due to the First World War (women's suffrage, the rise of Labor, social democracy and other left-wing parties, etc.)
  • 5. It did not end in November 1918. The Russian Civil War, the Greco-Turkish War and other conflicts.
  • 6. Twilight of colonial powers. The Versailles system and the problem of empires.
  • 7. Crisis of democracy. Fears of Bolshevism and the rise of fascism and Nazism.
  • 8. Enemies or allies? German-Soviet cooperation in 1922–1941.
  • 9. Falling for the homeland is an honour: propaganda and the war effort of the great powers.
  • 10. Is it worth fighting? Economic aspects of world conflicts.
  • 11. Between millstones. Small European states and war.
  • 12. How is a coalition formed – lights and shadows of the British-Soviet-American alliance.
  • 13. Not only Tehran and Yalta. Allied conferences during World War II and their importance.
Literature
    required literature
  • DAVIES, Norman. Europe at war : 1939-1945 : no simple Victory. 1. pub. London: Macmillan, 2006, ix, 544. ISBN 0333692853. info
  • GERWARTH, Robert. Poražení : světová válka byla jen jedna. Translated by Ludvík Gréc. Vydání první. V Praze: Paseka, 2018, 431 stran. ISBN 9788074328954. info
  • Small powers in the age of total war, 1900-1940. Edited by H. Amersfoort - W. Klinkert. Boston: Brill, 2011, xii, 372 p. ISBN 9789004204331. info
  • STEINER, Zara S. The lights that failed : european international history 1919-1933. 1st pub. in pbk. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007, xv, 938. ISBN 9780199226863. info
  • STEINER, Zara S. The triumph of the dark : European international history, 1933-1939. 1st pub. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011, xiv, 1222. ISBN 9780199212002. info
  • The Cambridge history of the Second World War. Edited by Michael Geyer - J. Adam Tooze. First published. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015, xiv, 833. ISBN 9781107039957. info
    recommended literature
  • A historical dictionary of Germany's Weimar Republic, 1918-1933. Edited by C. Paul Vincent - Harry Ritter. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1997, xi, 635 p. ISBN 0313273766. info
  • Britain, France, and the financing of the First World War. Edited by Martin Horn. Ithaca: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2002, x, 249 p. ISBN 0773522948. info
  • GILBERT, Martin. První světová válka : úplná historie. Translated by Zdeněk Hron. 1. vyd. v českém jazyce. Praha: BB/art, 2005, 759 s. ISBN 8073415631. info
  • PROKŠ, Petr. Habsburkové & velká válka (1914-1918) : [první světová válka a rozpad Rakouska-Uherska 1914-1918]. 1. české vyd. Praha: Naše vojsko, 2011, 285 s. ISBN 9788020612038. info
  • State of deception : the power of Nazi propaganda. Edited by Edward Phillips. Washington: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, 2009, xi, 194. ISBN 9780896047143. info
  • WILLIAMSON, Samuel R. Austria-Hungary and the Origins of the First World War. 1st ed. Houndmills: Macmillan Education, 1991, xviii, 272. ISBN 0333420802. info
Teaching methods
The course is carried out by the combination of lectures and seminars. Regular attendance is required. During the semester, students will compose a seminar essay that will examine their ability to utilize analytical skills and to work with relevant literature.
Assessment methods
The classification will evaluate attendance which will be proved by signatures on the attendance lists. The students will also have to write an seminar essay on one of the given topics (at least 18 000 characters). The final exam will be in the form of a written test examining the student's elementary knowledge of the subject. Overall assessment is composed of the final examination (30 points), midterm written examination (10 points) and seminar essay (20 points. To succesfully complete the course, students have to achieve at least 40 points.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught annually.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2023, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/autumn2023/MVZb2015