The Baltic Revolution: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Path to Independence [Hardcover]

Mr. Anatol Lieven (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 23, 1993

World attention has focused on the newly independent Baltic states of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania, as they struggle to become politically and economically viable. In this book, Anatol Lieven presents an intimate and engaging portrait of the history and culture of the Baltic states from their ancient origins to their contemporary status. He explores the culture and personality of the Baltic peoples, their religious and racial differences, their relations with Russia and with the West, and their prospects for the future. Lieven begins by describing the ancient Baltic peoples, their conquest by the Christians, the evolution of the Lithuanian empire and their union with Poland, and the experience of the Baltic provinces under the Russian Empire. He then looks at the countries' first struggle for independence in 1918, the failure of democracy and the establishment of authoritarian regimes, and the Soviet annexation of the Baltic in 1940. Lieven discusses the class structure of the Baltics and the ethnic tensions that have existed between the Germans, Jews, Poles, and Russians who live there. Drawing on a wide range of sources including interviews, newspaper accounts, and his own observations, he describes and analyzes the rise of national movements in each of the three countries after Glastnost. He concludes by discussing the new constitutions and the elections of 1992, the current forces of order, the demolition of the Soviety economies, and the possibilities for democracy and Europeanization or for ethnic conflict and nationalist dictatorship.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 496 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press; 1St Edition edition (June 23, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300055528
• ISBN-13: 978-0300055528
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,480,317 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #43 in Books > History > Europe > Estonia
  • #56 in Books > History > Europe > Latvia

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Solid and opinionated, landmark of the era, July 14, 2004

By 

Andrius Uzkalnis (Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Baltic Revolution: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Path to Independence (Paperback)

This well-written, confident and elegantly worded book will not be the guidebook to the Baltics of today, but this is not why you would be picking this book in this day and age. 'The Baltic Revolution' is now firmly a part of the shelf looking at history - albeit a recent one, but history nevertheless.

It was fun to pick this book and leaf through it this week. My God - it was only written about a decade ago! So many things changed beyond belief (shops, houses, infrastructure, clothes - these are no-brainers; but also political life has matured incredibly, and Lithuania even managed to impeach its president caught with his hand in the till).

And then, even more bizarrely, you notice that so many things stayed the same. EXACTLY the same.

If you are in the Baltics for more than a week, this book would make a captivating reading: you will understand where Baltic ways of doing things, Balts' thoughts and idiosynchracies come from. In my travels, I found that studies of RECENT history of a country were the most revealing when trying to understand the national character. Maybe it is something about being able to see the process - see it 'to scale', so to speak.

The Baltic people are prisoners of their history more than they are willing to admit (and as a Lithuanian-born and Lithuanian-educated but UK-resident Lithuanian, I can say so without a fear of insulting sensibilities). In Lieven's book, you will read about the same character traits - but, visually, the countries really are nothing like those in which Mr Lieven lived when he used to write for 'The Times'.

Probably the smartest analogy I could think of would be as follows: imagine yourself staying in one of seven-star super-duper hotels in Dubai with plasma TVs and fish-tank walls and internet access in your shower AND while you're at it, read a book about the times when this emyrate was nothing but desert and camels.

It is, however, very sad to realize that, with a bit of luck, the Baltics may never again be in a situation where major newspapers would feel it is worthwile to retain a correspondent there. It is good news for the people of those countries that Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are no longer on the news map. They have developed into predictable democracies - unexciting but better for the people.

However, in the absence of seasoned correspondents, who is going to write books about them like Mr Lieven?

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Baltics finally get the attention they deserve., September 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Baltic Revolution: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Path to Independence (Paperback)

Baltic history had been so long overlooked, at best it was relegated to footnotes in European history, that it was great to read a book totally devoted to the subject in the English language. Lieven gives an excellent overview of events that led to the independence of these tiny republics in the aftermath of the Soviet collapse. Unfortunately, the information is now dated. So much has transpired since 1991 that the book needs to be revised and updated. While the other former Soviet republics struggle to esatblish even the rudiments of a free-market economy, the Baltics are thriving. As Lieven pointed out, these countries have long European roots, unfortunately they became entangled with Russian roots and their personal histories became obscured.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great, in-depth news reporting of the revolution, December 21, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Baltic Revolution: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Path to Independence (Paperback)

For those interested in the details of how the Baltic republics broke free of Soviet domination, this book, written by a knowledgeable Brit, reads fast, like an extended news report, and gives details I never found covered in the daily press during the actual events. I recommend it.