Florian Greiner and Tobias Meßmer Introduction Today, the united Europe of the EU is generally associated with principles of liberal democracy but, historically speaking, this was by no means always the case: until the second half of the twentieth century, many conceptions of Europe exhibited traits that were authoritarian, anti-democratic, racist, hegemonic, and nationalistic. While these came into disrepute after 1945, numerous concepts and notions about Europe that build on these older traditions can still be found on the extreme political right, especially in recent years. These range from straightforward criticism of the EU to more positive attitudes towards Europe, …
Concepts
Mitteleuropa / Central Europe (1980s)
Florian Greiner Introduction The notion of Central Europe as an interconnected space is one of the oldest and most controversial European ideas. The term does not denote a set geographical entity but represents a political and cultural construct interpreted by Europeans in different ways at different times. For this reason, it seems more appropriate to use the German term Mitteleuropa with its strong political overtones, since historically, Mitteleuropa – in its various manifestations – has usually described a more or less pronounced German claim to power in certain parts of Europe (Le Rider 1994). This article analyzes the conditions and circumstances underlying the renaissance …