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To the outside world, for some half a century, the words ‘Basque Country’ have provoked an almost instant association with the Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA, Basque Homeland and Liberty) separatist group and violent conflict. The Basque Contention: Ethnicity, Politics, Violence attempts to undo this simplistic correlation and, for the first time, provide a definitive history of the wider political issues at the heart of the Basque Country. Drawing on three decades of research on Basque nationalism, Ludger Mees weaves together the various historical and contemporary strands of this contention: from the late medieval kingdoms of Spain and France and the first articulations of a Basque ethno-particularism, to the dissolution of ETA in 2018, and all manner of dictatorships, conflict, peace, civil war, political intrigue, hope and failure in-between. For anyone who has ever wanted to gain an insight into the Basque Country beyond the headlines of ETA and grasp the complexity of its relationship with Spain, France and indeed itself, this volume provides a detailed, yet digestible, basis for such an understanding.
This volume explains the genesis and development of the nexus between radical Basque nationalists and Irish republicans, how they have learnt from each other historically, and how they have utilised this relationship, at times, to their benefit. From medieval tales of shared origins to the violent conflicts largely wrought by ETA and the IRA, the Basque Country and Ireland have long been associated in popular imagination. Despite this, little is known of historical Basque-Irish relations and, in particular, the web of party-political, military and social movement connections between radical Basque nationalists and Irish republicans since the Irish Revolutionary Period (1916–23). Drawing on...
The History of Rioja Wine offers an informative, chronological and in-depth account of Rioja wine from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. This book illuminates the fascinating and largely unknown success story of Rioja wine. Drawing on illustrative sources, the volume traces the economic, social, cultural and political evolution of Rioja wine from the 1850s to the present day, concluding with a reflection on the lesson its appealing success story offers to any lover of history and wine. The book is adorned with historical photographs throughout, the majority previously unpublished. An ideal companion both for students interested in Spanish history and wine enthusiasts more generally, this volume offers readers the opportunity to uncork the secrets of Rioja’s wine.
Contesting Spain? The Dynamics of Nationalist Movements in Catalonia and the Basque Country offers an exploration of the dynamics behind contemporary shifts in the orientation of nationalist parties and movements with reference to Catalonia and the Basque country in Spain. The chapters were originally papers presented at a workshop held at the Barcelona Centre for International Affairs (CIDOB) in September 2014 as part of a research project on ‘The Dynamics of Nationalist Evolution in Contemporary Spain’, whose purpose was to gain a better understanding of why regionally-based nationalist movements have experienced shifting relationships with the Spanish state over time, in some periods ...
'This book makes uncomfortable reading both in its detailed analysis of terrorism and its causes, and in the critique of state responses, particularly in modern times. It is unusual to have such a defence of a 'human rights framework' from a counter-terrorism practitioner rather than from within the legal fraternity. It is this that makes the case even more persuasive. All who are involved in counter-terrorism strategy should consider carefully the arguments put forward.'Global Policy JournalFor more than 150 years, nationalist, populist, Marxist and religious terrorists have all been remarkably consistent and explicit about their aims: provoke states into over-reacting to the threat they po...
Social Protests in Colombia: A History, 1958-1990 examines social mobilization in Colombia through a variety of lenses in an interdisciplinary approach. Mauricio Archila-Neira incorporates theories from diverse social sciences including subaltern studies and postcolonial approaches to open up an intergenerational dialogue about political transformation and social change. Archila-Neira approaches this history from an objective viewpoint, offering an analysis from a distance not altered by emotion or hyperbole as he examines the values, traditions, and social collective action of subaltern sectors without external influence or motive. The book argues that academia bears the responsibility to put into play its accumulated symbolic capital to critically understand society, without abandoning the utopic effort to imagine another world is possible. Social Protests in Colombia teaches readers how to inhabit differences—of historical experiences, knowledge, and understandings—and why it is crucial to challenge a world that claims to be homogenous. Scholars of Latin American studies, sociology, political science, and history will find this book especially useful.
Drawing on a unique body of oral history interviews, archival material and published sources, this book shows how women’s participation in radical Basque nationalism has changed from the founding of ETA in 1959 to the present. It analyses several aspects of women’s nationalist activism: collaboration and direct activism in ETA, cultural movements, motherhood, prison and feminism. By focusing on gender politics Women and ETA offers new perspectives on the history of ETA, including recruitment, the militarization of radical Basque nationalism, and the role of the media in shaping popular understandings of ‘terrorism’. These arguments are directly relevant to the study of women in other insurgence and terrorist movements. The book will be of interest to scholars and students of history, Hispanic studies, gender studies, anthropology and politics, as well as to journalists and readers interested in women’s participation in contemporary conflicts and terrorist movements.
Why was Franco exhumed from the Valley of the Fallen in late 2019? How is it that he was there in the first place? Why did Catalonia erupt suddenly in October 2017? Why don’t you hear so much about the Basque Country anymore? How did Podemos gather momentum so quickly in 2014-15, and why did half of that support vanish five years later? Isn’t it counterintuitive that a Catholic-majority country also has the most LGBT-friendly society in the world? Understanding the most significant events in recent Spanish politics requires spelling out the unspoken but enduring foundations of the country’s deepest fears and weaknesses, its Achilles' heels. In Greek mythology, an Achilles' heel is a vulnerability that can lead to downfall despite the apparent general strength of the full body. Casla uses this term to define the underlying factors that, while by no means unique, are characteristic of a particular society, delimit what is possible and shape the political debate. They are the primary political frailties without which a country’s politics cannot be properly comprehended.
Although many scholars have studied terrorism, few scholars have ever studied terrorism from the aspect of its initial origins in social movements. Not only is research concerning this phenomenon outdated, but there has also been no consensus as to what causes terrorism. Many contemporary terrorist organizations were once social movements that formed for a specific purpose using nonviolent tactics to accomplish their agenda. Eventually, terrorist tactics became the method of choice for these once peaceful social movements. Volatile Social Movements and the Origins of Terrorism: The Radicalization of Change, by Christine Sixta Rinehart, focuses on why this transition occurred; why did a peace...
This book explores the history and legacy of monuments to the fallen from the Francoist side in the Spanish Civil War. Del Arco Blanco studies thousands of monuments in towns and cities across Spain to provide a detailed account of the history and memory of the civil war, Francoism, and the transition to democracy. Chapters in the book focus on the myth of those said to have 'fallen for God and for Spain'—a phrase that encapsulated and shaped the dichotomy between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ Spaniards. They also focus on the use of monuments to control political and ideological ideals and to legitimise the Francoist dictatorship. Further chapters study Spanish society’s struggle to deal wit...