Europe’s liberal potential over the span of the 20th century

The article presents a model for interpreting European history in the 20th century. On the one hand, it addresses the question of the “liberal chances” experienced by European states and societies from 1900 onward. On the other hand, it questions how to divide this period into epochs on the basis of identifiably different forms of liberal order. It argues that three conflicts structure the history of this century: World War I, World War II, and the Cold War. In each of these conflicts, powers with liberal state systems and economies (Great Britain, USA, and to some extent France) stood in opposition to hostile powers representing other ideologies. Initially, the “enemy” represented models of authoritarian rule with corporative economies (Germany and Austro-Hungary until 1914), then later fascist systems (Germany and Italy), and finally, post-1945, states ruled by the tenets of Bolshevism (the Soviet Union and its East/Central European satellites). In each of these conflicts, the “liberal West” emerged triumphant; with each victory, however, western liberalism itself changed. The century can be divided into three “epochs” in which the struggle to establish social order was shaped by different notions of liberalism and anti-liberalism. The history of Poland after 1945, and particularly since 1980, will be analyzed using this interpretative framework for the 20th century.

The article presents a model for interpreting European history in the 20th century. On the one hand, it addresses the question of the “liberal chances” experienced by European states and societies from 1900 onward. On the other hand, it questions how to divide this period into epochs on the basis of identifiably different forms of liberal order. It argues that three conflicts structure the history of this century: World War I, World War II, and the Cold War. In each of these conflicts, powers with liberal state systems and economies (Great Britain, USA, and to some extent France) stood in opposition to hostile powers representing other ideologies. Initially, the “enemy” represented models of authoritarian rule with corporative economies (Germany and Austro-Hungary until 1914), then later fascist systems (Germany and Italy), and finally, post-1945, states ruled by the tenets of Bolshevism (the Soviet Union and its East/Central European satellites). In each of these conflicts, the “liberal West” emerged triumphant; with each victory, however, western liberalism itself changed. The century can be divided into three “epochs” in which the struggle to establish social order was shaped by different notions of liberalism and anti-liberalism. The history of Poland after 1945, and particularly since 1980, will be analyzed using this interpretative framework for the 20th century.