Call for Contributions: 1945: End of the War, Liberation, Occupation

In East Central Europe, 1945 stands as a key year, a pivotal moment between two epochs, on the one hand, symbolizing the end of National Socialist rule and, on the other, the establishment of Soviet hegemony and the development of an authoritarian state socialist order based on the Soviet model. The establishment of a unified political, economic, and social system (the 'Eastern Bloc') was legitimized by the communist parties that gained power as a liberation from fascism. It was only after 1989/91 that this prescribed image of history finally dissolved. This allowed the often very different developments and experiences of different countries, regions, and population groups to be discussed publicly. At the same time, however, various antagonistic interpretations of the end of the war and its consequences emerged.

The aim of Copernico’s newest thematic focus is to shed light on the diversity of experiences and interpretations of this epochal year and to make these accessible to a wide audience. The aim of the contributions is to enable us to better understand the events around the end of the war and the immediate post-war period (1944-1949), for which the epochal year 1945 stands, as well as the various interpretations of these events. The focus will be on the often ambivalent and contradictory regional experiences during this time. We hope to illuminate the gray area between liberation and occupation, the end of the war and continued violence, experiences of homecoming and being uprooted, and the human destinies associated with these experiences that deeply shaped Eastern Europe.

We welcome contributions on any region of Eastern Europe. The following topics are of particular interest:

We are calling for proposals for contributions across a range of formats and forms of content, from low-threshold introductory formats to in-depth background articles on specific issues. The maximum text length is 12,000 characters including spaces. Other text forms may also be significantly shorter (4,000-6,000 characters), for example presentations of individual historical events (e.g. the invasion of a town by the Red Army, family fates etc.), object histories, or contributions on selected historical sources.

Contributions of 10,000 characters or more are published in parallel on a publication server and given a DOI. In addition, all articles in the portal include a citation recommendation, permalinks, and license information. All contributions are published bilingually and translated into English (if required, they can also be submitted in English and translated into German). At least one attractive, high-resolution illustration is required for each entry, together with a caption and a declaration of rights. Submissions will be proofread as part of an internal review process. All authors retain the rights of use for their own texts. Further information for contributors regarding illustrations and keywords can be found in the portal itself and on request at copernico@herder-institut.de.

The rules of good scientific practice apply. 

Please send an abstract of max. 300 words with a brief description of the planned contribution to copernico@herder-institut.de by April 29, 2024. You will receive feedback by May 15, 2024 as to whether the contribution is eligible for the thematic focus. The deadline for submission of the finished contributions is August 15, 2024.