Between Nation and State: Serbian Politics in Croatia Before the First World War (Pitt Series in Russian and East European Studies) [Hardcover]

Nicholas J. Miller (Author)

Book Description

Series: Pitt Series in Russian and East European Studies | Publication Date: November 1997

Nicholas Miller chronicles the politics in Croatia (1903-1914,) prior to the first World War. He examines the failures of the Croat-Serbian Coalition that led to their future inability to create a cohesive civic/democratic union during the war years. The Serb-Croat differences—political, ethnic, and regional—prevail to this day.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

At first glance, this book's narrow scope might make it a minor addition to a crowded field. In fact, it is an important contribution to understanding the perennial Balkan dilemma of a minority's position among a majority seeking autonomy or independence. As Miller (history, Boise State Univ.) makes clear, before the "first" (post-World War I) Yugoslavia, Croatia's large Serb minority was deeply divided by the dilemma of seeking to reaffirm their traditional privileges within the Austro-Hungarian Empire or cooperating with the Croats against it. Serbian parliamentary politics confronted a decaying empire and an ascendant Croatian nationalism disinclined to consider Serbian distinctiveness. The rise and decline of the "Croato-Serbian Coalition" is emblematic of the obstacles to Balkan cooperation and the nefarious impact of the extraregional interference. Miller's painstaking detail revises important aspects of the standard work by Ivo Sanac, The National Question in Yugoslavia: Origins, History, Politics (Cornell Univ., 1984). Highly recommended for all academic and larger public libraries.?Zachary T. Irwin, Pennsylvania State Univ., Erie
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

“An important contribution to understanding the perennial Balkan dilemma of a minorty’s position  among a majoirty seeking autonomy  or independence. . . . Miller’s painstaking detail revises important aspects of the standard work by Ivo Banac. . . . Highly recommended for all academic and larger public libraries.”
—Library Journal

“Nick Miller’s book is an overdue study of the rather promising political alliance between Croats and Croatian Serbs at the start of the twentieth century. Its persuasive case should drive a fatal spike into the notion that the subsequent violence between the two groups is the inevitable result of age-old antagonisms.”
—John R. Lampe, Woodrow Wilson Center

“A welcome addition to the scholarly literature about South Slavic history and politics. . . especially welcome because it dismisses the still relatively popular idea that the Croat-Serb antagonism is “age-old” or “ancient.” Miller shows that it is in fact quite recent, and that the period before the First World War was one of cooperation rather than confrontation, even though it did end in political failure.”
—Canadian Slavonic Papers

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 280 pages
• Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Press (November 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0822939894
• ISBN-13: 978-0822939894
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,498,883 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An important study of ethic rivalry and nationalism, January 16, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Between Nation and State: Serbian Politics in Croatia Before the First World War (Pitt Series in Russian and East European Studies) (Hardcover)

This readable and well researched study of the Serbian community in Croatia sheds bright light on the political, ethic, and regional rivalries that endure in the tragedy of modern Yugoslavia.