European History Commons^™

Holes In The Historical Record: The Politics Of Torture In Great Britain, The United States, And Argentina, 1869-1977, Lynsey Chediak

CMC Senior Theses

While many politicians gain national or international acclaim, domestic political activists are rarely remembered for their dedication and, similarly, their sufferings. More specifically, the acts of female political activists, and the harsh punishments they endure following government pushback, are not appreciated or acknowledged by popular histories.

Across Great Britain, the United States, and Argentina, three women played crucial roles in advancing reform against unjust government policies. Josephine Butler (1828-1906) was a pivotal character in repealing laws allowing for the government regulation of prostitution, the Contagious Diseases Acts, in Great Britain. Similarly, Alice Paul (1885-1997) was essential in achieving the ratification …

The Grand Strategy: A Study On Hannibal’S Stratagem During The Second Punic War, John T. Medin Iv

CMC Senior Theses

In this paper I sought to determine whether or not Hannibal Barca had a grand strategy to deal with the Romans during the Second Punic War. If Hannibal did have a strategy, I would try to determine what his strategy was and if it was actually feasible. I approached this question by looking into the background leading up to the Second Punic War, the primary sources explanation of Hannibal’s strategy during the Second Punic War, the logistical feasibility of the plan, and Hannibal’s movements throughout Italy during the war. In conclusion I decided that Hannibal did have a Grand strategy …

The Secret Weapons Of World War Ii: An Analysis Of Hitler's Chemical Weapons Policy, Reyn Sp Ono

CMC Senior Theses

Very little historical scholarship specifically analyzes or explores the absence of chemical weapons in World War II. This thesis seeks to fill the gaps in the historical narrative by providing insight into the personal and external factors that influenced Hitler’s chemical weapons policy. This thesis also touches upon the wartime violence perpetrated by both the Axis and the Allies, thereby offering a neutral, unbiased historical account. From 1939-1941, Hitler did not deploy chemical weapons because his blitzkrieg of Europe was progressing successfully – chemical warfare was unnecessary. With the failure of Operation Barbarossa from 1942-1943, Armaments Minister Albert Speer oversaw …

Law And Fiction In Medieval Iceland: The Story In The Gragas Manuscripts, Thomas J. Mcsweeney

Studio for Law and Culture

Medieval Icelandic law has been appropriated for modern purposes as diverse as creating a history for European democracy and proving that a libertarian legal system can work in practice. It has been put to so many modern uses because it presents us with a picture of the Icelandic Commonwealth (ca. 930-1262) as a society of free and relatively equal farmers who operated with no king, no nobility, and minimal government. The laws represent Iceland as an exceptional polity, strikingly different from the monarchies and hierarchical societies that dominated Western Europe in the middle ages. This exceptionalism resonates strongly with modern …

Rent: Same-Sex Prostitution In Modern Britain, 1885-1957, Jonathan Coleman

Theses and Dissertations--History

Rent: Same-Sex Prostitution in Modern Britain, 1885-1957 chronicles the concept of “rent boys” and the men who purchased their services. This dissertation demonstrates how queer identity in Britain, until contemporary times, was largely regulated by class, in which middle-and-upper-class queer men often perceived of working-class bodies as fetishized consumer goods. The “rent boy” was an upper-class queer fantasy, and working-class men sometimes used this fantasy for their own agenda while others intentionally dismantled the “rent boy” trope, refusing to submit to upper-class expectations. This work also explains how the “rent boy” fantasy was eventually relegated to the periphery of queer …

At Home In An Astonishing World: The Square Stories Of Louis Jensen, Lise Kildegaard

The Bridge

Louis Jensen, the Danish author of more than 70 books, has published poetry, memoir, and fiction for adult readers, but he is best known for his children and young adult books. He has won numerous literary prizes and honors, including the Nordic Children's Prize (1996), the Hans Christian Andersen Stipend (1998) and the Gyldendals Store Bernebogspris (Gyldendal's Big Children's Book Prize) (2009). He has been nominated several times for both of the most prestigious international awards in children's literature, the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Prize, and the Hans Christian Andersen Award. In 2010, he made the short list (five authors, chosen …

Convocations Of Empire: Public Spectacle And Ceremony In Britain, 1851-2012, Ryan G. Hudnall

Master of Liberal Studies Theses

Britain has long been associated with the staging of grand ceremonies, popular spectacles, massive exhibitions, state occasions, and Royal events which embody historically-informed conceptualizations of “Britishness.” To this end, significant public spectacles occurred periodically from the height of the British Empire until its decline—many of which spoke to the nature of British imperial ambition. This project traces the evolution of those key popular gatherings which relate to the shifting British imperial scene from 1851-2012, providing an in-depth accounting of the Great Exhibition of 1851, the Jubilees of Queen Victoria in 1887 and 1897, the postwar memorial movements after the First …

Call To Duty: Women And World War I, Jennifer D. Keene

History Faculty Articles and Research

"Watching loved ones depart, uncertain if they would return—this was an experience that women around the world shared during the Great War. The continual scene of women sending men off to fight was troubling; paradoxically, it was also a familiar, traditional ritual that reinforced gender roles within western societies. "

Finding The Witch’S Mark: Female Participation In The Judicial System During The Hopkins Trials 1645-47, Shannon M. Lundquist

Departmental Honors Projects

Between the years of 1645 and 1647 in East Anglia, a series of witch trials known as the Hopkins Trials took place. In all, 250 witches were accused and 100 hanged. The ability to convict a person of the crime of witchcraft relied heavily on evidence which was hard to come by given the nature of the crime of witchcraft. Tangible proof of an intangible crime was needed; this came in the form of witch’s marks. To the learned population, marks were a symbol of the witch’s covenant with the devil. To the lay person, they were called ‘teats’ and …

French Opera And The French Revolution, Etienne Nicolas Mehul, Savannah J. Dotson

Departmental Honors Projects

Although Etienne Nicolas Méhul is relatively unknown today, he was greatly respected by his contemporaries, including Beethoven, Cherubini and Berlioz. He rose to popularity and notoriety during the most turbulent years of the French Revolution, when most intellectuals fled for their lives, and yet he managed to maintain his status as a favorite of the people. From an examination of some of his operas - Euphrosine (1790), Ariodant (1799), Adrien (1792, 1799), and Horatius Coclès (1794) - it is apparent that Mehul used thinly veiled allegories to express his views. His heroes in these operas were Romans, Scottish nobles, and …

Nazi Ideology And The Pursuit Of War Aim: 1941-45, Kenneth Burgess

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis is to examine what can be considered a military blunder on the part of the Nazi Germans. On June 22, 1941, Nazi Germany launched a massive invasion into the Soviet Union and Soviet territories. The political goals of Operation Barbarossa were to seize hold of the expanses of land belonging to the Soviet Union. This would serve as the foundation for increased agricultural production and the enslavement of any remaining Slavic people for the supposed greater good Germany. Additionally, the Nazis desired to erase the presence of all Jews living within the Soviet Union and …

Veblen On National Economic Development, Rebekkah Brainerd

Anthós

This inquiry seeks to establish that Thorstein Veblen introduces key ideas concerning national economic development in his book Imperial Germany and the Industrial Revolution. Using works by prominent scholars Alexander Gerschenkron and Gary Becker, this inquiry addresses the role of the state, human capital theory, and late industrialization theory. While specific ideas about the development of societies can be gleaned, ultimately it is about the individual factors of each society in how and why it develops as it does.

Re-Thinking Paris At The Fin-De-Siècle: A New Vision Of Parisian Musical Culture From The Perspective Of Gabriel Astruc (1854-1938), Cesar A. Leal

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Gabriel Astruc (1864-1938), a French impresario of Jewish background, is mostly known for his collaborative work as an impresario with Sergei Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes. His role within Parisian musical culture at the fin de siècle, however, was much broader. He was a critic, creator of a leading periodical, producer of musical and circus events, music publisher, and associate of many important cultural figures of his day. Although Astruc has been mentioned in scholarly literature, his multifaceted activities have never been carefully studied.

Following the revisionist initiatives of previous scholars (e.g., Pasler, Huebner, Garafola, Fauser), this project offers …

Printing, Fundraising, And Jewish Patronage In Eighteenth-Century Livorno, Francesca Bregoli

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

That Spanified League: The Elizabethan Catholic Community And Resistance To The Jesuits, Thomas Ridgedell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Historians have devoted much attention to Catholics in Elizabethan England at a time when tensions ran high between the Catholic Church and the English state. The current dissertation deals with perceptions of the Jesuits among the Catholic community in the Elizabethan Age. Numerous primary sources, both printed and manuscript, written by the Jesuits, their supporters, and their opponents were consulted in the writing of this dissertation. Additionally, the observations and research of other historians have been included to show how the current study differs from past scholarship on the Catholic community in Elizabethan England. Previous studies of the Elizabethan Catholics …

A Foray Into Library Digital Publishing: The British Virginia Project At Virginia Commonwealth University, Kevin Farley

VCU Libraries Faculty and Staff Publications

The British Virginia project involves a collaboration between Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Libraries and faculty members in the departments of English and History at VCU, with the project led by Dr. Joshua Eckhardt (English). As of April 25, 2013, the project has published its first title: an online edition of a sermon preached to the Virginia Company by William Symonds. To ensure the success of this project, a number of details required careful planning, including library outreach, IT involvement, and digital publishing protocols. Our example has deepened a move toward a dynamic and creative digital environment for researchers across campus. …

Reviews

The Bridge

No abstract provided.

'Det Ny Fra Thy': Historical Innovation In A Peripheral Place, Poul Houe

The Bridge

When we say in English that a certain innovation "takes place" or in Danish: finder sted, which means literally, "finds place" -both linguistic idioms, "takes" or "finds" place, suggest that the role of place is not accidental. This is obviously pivotal in geography, but also in anthropology, sociology, philosophy, and a host of cultural studies, sometimes in the form of "mental geography." Recent Danish book titles suggest as much: Dan Ringgaard's Stedssans (Sense of Place), Anne-Marie Mai's Hvor litteraturen finder sted (Where literature Takes Place) in 3 volumes, and Ringgaard & Mai's anthology Sted (Place).

Hidden From Memory: Remembrance And Commemoration Of The Sherwood Foresters’ Involvement In Easter, 1916, Amanda S. Kinchen

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the level at which the Sherwood Foresters are commemorated for their service during the Easter Rising of 1916. The Sherwood Foresters, known officially as the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment, were created in 1881 in England after combining the 45^th (Nottinghamshire) and 95^th (Derbyshire) Regiments of Foot and had previously served as part of the guard to the royal family. Four battalions were sent to Dublin to quell the rebellion, yet their efforts go largely unnoticed in the annals of the history of World War I. These men are not considered …

Nonfiction, Documentary And Family Narrative: An Intersection Of Representational Discourses And Creative Practices, Kristine T. Weatherston

Theses and Dissertations

Nonfiction, Documentary, and Family Narrative:
 An Intersection of Representational Discourses and Creative Practices explores the role of personal memory, family history, and inter-generational storytelling as the basis for making a nonfiction film. The film, American Boy, tells the story of my mother’s immigration to the United States after the failed Hungarian Revolution of 1956, opening a discussion of four generations of my family life in the context of historical events, exile, self re-invention, and identity formation. As a media producer and nonfiction author, I narrate my understanding of these events to my infant son, as a way of communicating …