Democracy in Postwar Western Europe Flashcards
What was the most striking feature of postwar western Europe?
Uniformity of its political structures (parliamentary democracy) - not since the ancien regimes of the 18th century
What is the view of someone looking from the end of the 20th century?
The political landscape of the 1940s to the socio-political changes of the 1960s appear neat and controlled - stark contrast to ideological battles of before
Who ruled western Europe in the 1950s?
Not extremists e.g. communists
Not disruptive figures e.g. de Gaulle
Middle class men
What were the key reforms of the era?
Anticlerical disputes about financing education
Reform to welfare policies
Gradual process of european integration
Undramatic compared to past
Was was the main political culture of Western Europe?
Ideological conflict not so passionate
Centre of political gravity in the middle
Culture of power sharing and compromise
What are the key questions to historians of this period?
Why did democracy acquire a durable dominance?
Why did the democracy that formed take the strange form it did?
What are the three simple answers to why democracy was so dominant?
Authoritarian alternatives discredited due to violence of WW2
Influence of free market capitalism which emerged out of economic reconstruction
Informal influence of the USA
Why were the future of the post communist states after 1989 different to that of Western Europe after 1945?
In 1989 influential institutions already existed which provided a model for reconstruction
What makes the success of parliamentary democracy following WW2 even more significant?
Seemed to have failed before WW2 e.g. couldn’t stop economic depression of 1930s or respond effectively to Nazism
Did the events of WW2 seem to set out a ‘path to democracy’?
No - there was a cult of newness, nostalgia wasn’t a key component of wartime european culture and oppression didn’t seem to rehabilitate the political orders of the past
Which political movement done the best after WW2?
Ones that could differentiate themselves from wartime and postwar rulers e.g. communism or Christian democracy
What was one of the most significant consequence of the events of WW2?
Culture of localism flourished - needs of the community took precedence over those of the more abstract ‘nation’ - result of local resistance movements on southern France
What is a key paradox regarding democracy post war?
The spirit of localism and direct democracy which flourished in the immediate aftermath of WW2 were the antithesis of the hierarchal, national and representative structures which would succeed later
Is the view that the post 1945 Western European governments were the culmination of a process of progressive democratisation beginning in the 19th century a legitimate one?
No - fails to take into account the extent to which the course of european political history had been flowing in very different directions for the previous 30 years
What else proves that postwar governments weren’t the result of a 19th century process of democratisation?
The constitutions of France and Italy got their legitimacy not form reference to history but on their modernity and fitness or meet the challenges of the future
Should we believe the political rhetoric of the postwar years that new governments were staffed by new men with new ideals?
No - appeal to the future often a way to distract from their previous actions
Austria and Italy relied on structures and personnel inherited from their authoritarian predecessors
Does Martin Conway believe democracy was achieved after WW2?
No - inability to purge those tainted by fascism
Symbolic/superficial enfranchisement of women
Arbitrary use of state power to undermine communists
What does Martin Conway instead believe was achieved after WW2?
A relative form of democracy - shouldn’t be considered in reference of the ideal standard but in the context of the history of the era
What debate is redundant in this area?
Whether Western Europeans were more free in the 1950s to prewar years or their eastern counterparts (of course they were and not as important as analysing the character of the democratic movements that did emerge)
What did Europe witness after 1945 according to Alan who?
Alan Milward
The rescue of the nation state
How does Alan Milwards argument work?
The process of European integration e.g. economic decision making in the European Steal and Coal Community privileged the nation state at the expense of regional units
Where most Western European countries centralised?
Yes - a single National Assembly as the exclusive repository of democratic authority
Only exception being the FRG
Why did powering the nation state become popular?
An omnipotent National Assembly could be the only way to prevent the disruptive consequences of democratic participation
How many key elements are there of post war democracy?
5
What was the second central element of postwar democracy?
Supremacy of parliaments - presidents and judges not seen as defenders of democratic freedoms after WW2
What increases the significance of parliaments?
Held up by Western Europe of communist Eastern Europe and colonial populations as the indispensable institutions of a democratic system
Why was the emphasis of parliaments on control rather than mass participation?
Electoral rise of anti-democratic movements e.g. Nazism and potential ply communism - instead sought to respect diversity of societal opinions
How did parliaments learn form the lessons of the past?
Implemented proportional representation - gave space for several political movements whilst guarding against single party rule
Coalition governments imposed a logic of compromise where everyone could benefit form political power
What is the third feature of postwar democracy?
Governed democracy - legitimacy was derived from the will of the but not exercised by the people
What was the character of governed democracies?
Top down decision making remote from the people
Emphasis on the complexity of government - legislation prepared by bureaucracies, assisted by advisory committees (few of which claim a democratic mandate)
