Available for the first time in English language translation, the third volume of Totalitarianism and Political Religions completes the set. It provides a comprehensive overview of key theories and theorists of totalitarianism and of political religions, from Hannah Arendt and Raymond Aron to Leo Strauss and Simone Weill. Edited by the eminent Professor Hans Maier, it represents a major study, examining how new models for understanding political history arose from the experience of modern despotic regimes. Where volumes one and two were concerned with questioning the common elements between twentieth century despotic regimes - Communism, Fascism, National Socialism, Maoism – this volume draws a general balance. It brings together the findings of research undertaken during the decade 1992-2002 with the cooperation of leading philosophers, historians and social scientists for the Institute of Philosophy at the University of Munich. Following the demise of Italian Fascism (1943-45), German National Socialism (1945) and Soviet Communism (1989-91), a comparative approach to the three regimes is possible. A broad field of interpretation of the entire phenomenon of totalitarian and political religions opens up. This comprehensive study examines a vast topic which affects the political and historical landscape over the whole of the last century. Moreover, dictatorships and their motivations are still present in current affairs, today in the twenty-first century. The three volumes of Totalitarianism and Political Religions are a vital resource for scholars of fascism, Nazism, communism, totalitarianism, comparative politics and political theory.

Available for the first time in English language translation, this is the long-awaited second volume of the three part set on Totalitarianism and Political Religions, edited by the eminent Professor Hans Maier. This represents a major study, with contributions from leading scholars of political extremism, sociology and modern history, the book shows how new models for understanding political history arose from the experience of modern despotic regimes. We are used to distinguishing the despotic regimes of the twentieth century - Communism, Fascism, National Socialism, Maoism - very precisely according to place and time, origins and influences. But what should we call that which they have in common? On this question, there has been, and still is, a passionate debate. Indeed, the question seemed for a long time not even to be admissible. Clearly this state of affairs is unsatisfactory. The debate has been renewed in the past few years. After the collapse of the communist systems in Central, East and Southern Europe, a (scarcely surveyable) mass of archival material has become available. Following the lead of Fascism and National Socialism, communist and socialist regimes throughout the world now belong to the historical past as well. This leads to the resumption of old questions: what place do modern despotisms assume in the history of the twentieth century? What is their relation to one another? Should they be captured using traditional concepts – autocracy, tyranny, despotism, dictatorship – or are new concepts required? Here, the most important concepts - totalitarianism and political religions - are discussed and tested in terms of their usefulness. This set of volumes is as topical and relevant to current world events in the twenty first century.

We are used to distinguishing the despotic regimes of the 20th century - communism, fascism, National Socialism, Maoism - very precisely according to place and time, origins and influences. But what should we call that which they have in common? On this question, there has been and is still a passionate debate. This book documents the first international conference on this theme, a conference that took place in September of 1994 at the University of Munich. The book shows how new models for understanding political history arose from the experience of modern despotic regimes. Here, the most important concepts - totalitarianism and political religions - are discussed and tested in terms of their usefulness.

This book uses the case studies of Adolf Hitler, Mao Zedong, Fidel Castro, and Hugo Chávez in order to introduce the concept of revolutionary totalitarian personality, and to show that this type of personality is decisive in choosing a totalitarian regime-building project and in shaping the ensuing totalitarian process.

This edited volume arose from an international workshop convened in 2006 by Feldman and Turda with Tudor Georgescu, supported by Routledge, and the universities of Oxford, Brookes, Northampton and CEU (Budapest). As the field of fascist studies continues to integrate more fully into pan-European studies of the twentieth century, and given the increasing importance of secular ‘political religion’ as a taxonomic tool for understanding such revolutionary movements, this collection of essays considers the intersection between institutional Christian faiths, theology and congregations on the one hand, and fascist ideology on the other. In light of recent debates concerning the intersecting secularisation of religion and (usually Christian-based) the sacralisation of politics, "Clerical Fascism" in Interwar Europe approaches such conundrums from an alternative perspective: How, in Europe between the wars, did Christian clergy, laity and institutions respond to the rise of national fascist movements? In doing so, this volume provides case studies from the vast majority of European countries with analyses that are both original in intent and comprehensive in scope. In dealing with the relationship of various interwar fascist movements and their respective national religious institutions, this edited collection promises to significantly contribute to relevant academic historiographies; and as such, will appeal to a wide readership. This book was previously published as a special issue of Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions.

These studies examine the ways in which succeeding democratic regimes have dealt with, or have ignored (and in several cases sugar-coated) an authoritarian or totalitarian past from 1943 to the present. They treat the relationship with democratization and the different ways in which collective memory is formed and dealt with, or ignored and suppressed. Previous books have examined only restricted sets of countries, such as western or eastern Europe, or Latin America. The present volume treats a broader range of cases than any preceding account, and also a much broader time-span, investigating diverse historical and cultural contexts, and the role of national identity and nationalism, studying the aftermath of both fascist and communist regimes in both Europe and Asia in an interdisciplinary framework, while the conclusion provides a more complete comparative perspective than will be found in any other work. The book will be of interest to historians and political scientists, and to those interested in fascism, communism, legacies of war, democratization, collective memory and transitional justice. This book was previously published as a special issue of Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions.

This interdisciplinary endeavour portrays the central features of militant movements which hold totality as an important part of their doctrinal core. Revisiting the importance of modernity, utopianism, eschatology, charisma, psychology and the history of ideas, Mihai Murariu pursues a reconstruction of the historical requirements for the emergence of such movements. Making a central use of the concept of totalism, the work establishes a conceptual bridge from antiquity to the contemporary period, whilst also arguing for the suitability of the term in comparison to totalitarianism or political religion. The author also proposes a distinct taxonomy for structural elements, variants, and development phases which may be encountered in totalist movements.

"This book represents the first study in English to closely explore the Ustasa's Independent State of Croatia between 1941 and 1945, a period when it was active collaborator with nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. By using the top scholars in the field to explore the nature of the NDH, this book contributes to scholarly understandings of Croatian nationalism, Balkan politics, European fascism, and genocide in World War II." --Book Jacket.

Essays by Roger Griffin on the evolution of fascism since 1919, covering a range of key case-studies and historiographical themes.