The Balkans: From Constantinople to Communism

by Dennis P. Hupchick

The tragedies of Bosnia and Kosovo are often explained away as the unchangeable legacy of 'centuries-old hatreds'. In this richly detailed, expertly balanced chronicle of the Balkans across fifteen centuries, Hupchick sets a complicated record straight. Organized around the three great civilizations of the region - Western European, Orthodox Christian and Muslim - this is a much-needed guide to the political, social, cultural and religious threads of Balkan history, with a clear, convincing account of the reasons for nationalist violence and terror.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, European History

501 pages, Hardcover

First published December 6, 2000

Reviews

[Zachary Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

A solid introductory work to Balkan history from the middle ages up to the collapse of communism. I had tried to read some material on this subject before, but had always been put off by works that either gave too much detail or brushed aside earlier periods to rush into the 19th and 20th centuries, but I found this book gave the proper scope for a general history. The reader gets a good idea of the sweep of events and can place together the evolution of the various medieval Slavic states, early modern Ottoman provinces and state borders following the various national wars of the 19th and 20th centuries with the help of the maps provided and the clear prose found throughout the book.

The book also does a good job dividing its subject matter into digestible chapters, usually of around 20-30 pages at a time. The author also consciously tries to shift focus throughout the region rather than fixing the story on one state or ethnic group and giving only occasional mention to others.

This book is definitely a good choice for anyone wishing to get a good broad overview of the history of the region for its wide yet inclusive scope and clear prose. It also contains extensive bibliographies after each section for those interested in delving deeper into the subject matter.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a little dry, but this is the book to read if you want to understand why the Balkans are like they are. Basically nothing has changed in the centuries since it they were inhabited.

An interesting and telling fact that I got from the book is that the Ottoman Empire established what it called the "millet" in the area in which the various religious groups were pretty much responsible for their own governing. These "millets" were only for non-Muslims, since the Muslims controlled everything. From these millets the current conflicts grew. The area wasn't settled as countries, it was settled as religions.

So when the Western Romantic idea of nationalism was brought to the area, "nations" were established more on the basis of how many of which religion lived in that area. The only true "nationalists" were the Serbs who felt that the entire peninsula should belong to them, including Greece.

This is another area of the world where the Great Powers, especially Britain got involved and drew arbitrary lines to denote various countries.

Poor Greece is actually a Balkan country, but she discovered that she could capitalize on her classical past to gain the support and financial aid of the Western nations. I thought they basically had a direct route from classical Greece down to today.

There are a few surprises in here that make it worth reading. The Greek part is one. Also, Transylvania has not always been Romanian and, in fact, is not ethnically a part of Romania. It came to that country through some of those "deals" that Western countries and Russia concocted according to their "wise" understanding of the area.

Another good reason to read this is that this is a very little-known area of the world. Many people probably don't know where it's located, let alone anything about it. I have a tutoring student who is a refugee from Kosovo and he was amazed that I knew the country and some of the Balkan history. You should learn some too.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am exceedingly grateful for the time and effort Dennis Hupchick applied into this work, "The Balkans: From Constantinople to Communism".

Reader, please do not obsess over the rating. This is one of the best books you can have as an introduction to Balkan history. You gain far more information than any coffee table book can provide on everything from the rise and fall of the Ottoman Turks, to the unrest that led to World War One. Most importantly for any scholar, Hupchick's sectional bibliographies provide a great resource for more in-depth analysis.

In my eyes, the author skillfully explained a byzantine history in approachable, objective terms. Regardless of our opinions on a deeply divisive subject-matter, I think all readers here agree that Hupchick has applied a deep scholarly analysis of Orthodox, Muslim, and Western influences on Balkan history right up to the fall of communism. On countless occasions, his book has been a vital asset to my studies and a genuinely exciting part of my life. Understanding east European history is an area of deep personal interest. Between Hupchick and John Julius Norwich, I feel I have gained a deep understanding of the cultural history of the Balkans and a lifelong fascination with Byzantine civilization.

Books such as "The Balkans" are a genuine national treasure, a timeless reminder to us of the long view of history and the changeable yet durable patterns of human nature.

[Brad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dry but informative. More balanced than many other surveys of Balkan history, Hupchick's main premise is the role of nationalism in creating the Balkan states as they are now known, but he doesn't let it overwhelm his text (like many others do). Aside from the dull style and sometimes rambling format, its only major drawback is the short shrift it gives to WWII and the Communist era versus earlier periods. Likewise, after deconstructing the idea that is "the Balkans" Hupchick creates an overall impression that the thing that unites the nations of the region is their shared Ottoman past. In analyzing it from a broad perspective, it is the relative smaller space devoted to WWII and the Cold War era, which arguably have had a greater impact on the current states in the region, that runs counter to the "Ottoman heritage" premise, and perhaps why he did not focus on it so much.

[Aleksandar Jovcic · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good history book overall. Mostly unbiased and well presented which made it easy to read.

Although the whole book has academic undertones in it. For example he defines “ethnicity” not by anything biological but by culture, language and religion. Which really makes no sense, so when he talks about ethnic groups within countries you can’t believe him (because someone can claim to be Albanian just because they’re Muslim or Croat just because they’re Catholic according to him) but the ethnic groups between countries are still mostly accurate.

There are some really interesting nuggets of information and the writer is very critical of communism and socialism which I like but also critical of nationalism, which I don’t. He also speaks favourably about the Ottomans which one only does if they’re deep inside Academia and a slave to idolising non-European groups.

[Goran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative, helps getting big picture about regions history.
On the other hand, number of inaccuracies, problematic conclusions and suspicious theories is quite big, especially when it comes to anything even a bit controversial...

[Benjamin Hoffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is an excellent overview of Balkan history. For the breadth of time it covers, the book is remarkable for covering important details while leaving out the nitty-gritty aspects. I learned some new information even as an amateur historian with plenty of history reading under my belt.

[Lyle Werner · Rating 3 out of 5]

If it were possible to weave a binding narrative thread for such a lengthy history, this book would have been much more readable. Unfortunately, Hupchick is faced with the tandem problems of writing perhaps the only english history of the Balkans, as well as the limitation of condensing two millenia of regional history. We're left, unsurprisingly, with a series of seemingly disconnected stories. Interesting enough, and I hope others in the anglosphere pick up where he left off.

[Cate · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very comprehensive survey of Balkan history. It moves through several periods, but does not skimp on details. Also, the maps are extremely useful. It took me a long time to read, because it is so dense, but it was still worthwhile.

[Nick Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very useful general history of the Balkans from the late Roman period to the present. The pace is good, especially when you consider the twists and turns of the various ethnic and religious groups of the region.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the easiest or smoothest of reads but I felt this was a very informative and wide ranging survey on the history of the Balkans. I definitely won't ever read it cover from cover again, but i will keep it in my library for when i need to check or look up a fact about the Balkans.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little hard to get through, but fascinating history, if you can read it all.

[Sleepy Boy · Rating 1 out of 5]

There is alot of information in this book that sadly is about all it has going for it. The text is just dry fact after fact. No quotes, nothing to break up the monotony.