Rethinking International Communism
Lead Research Organisation:
Liverpool John Moores University
Department Name: Sch of Humanities and Social Science
Abstract
The principal aims of this network are:
1. To challenge existing interpretations of international communist organisation and activity.
2. To establish the basis for a longer-term, multi-disciplinary analysis of international communism in this period.
3. To disseminate the work of the Network as widely as possible, and in ways that affect public perception of international communist history in the UK and beyond.
This network aims to bring historians of the Communist International together with scholars in cognate fields of study to reassess the history of international communism in the era of the two world wars.
These are exciting times in Communist studies. One hundred years after the founding of the Communist International (Comintern), historians are putting aside long-held assumptions regarding the organisation and functioning of the Comintern, and asking new questions of the Bolshevik-inspired organisation, informed by new cultural-inspired agendas, and most notably by the recent trend in transnational history which have highlighted the roles of communists in pivotal campaigns (anti-colonialism, anti-racism, environmentalism, cultural, female emancipation) - many of which have left a more lasting legacy than communist ideology.
In a field long dominated by Cold War ideologies and by a monolithic interpretation of international communism which focussed principally upon the political and organisational links binding peripheral national Communist parties to Moscow, new cultural and transnational research agendas are opening up ground-breaking areas of study. In place of the well-worn debates over the degree or otherwise of Moscow's control over the apparatus of the Communist International, this research network will extend our understanding of a truly global and multi-centred Communist political movement, one deeply embedded in the political, cultural and social struggles of the era.
The ultimate aim of the network is to provide a platform for the dissemination of this new research into the history of international communism, to build new multi-disciplinary research networks, and to foster and support the research of less-established researchers and academics in the field. This network will unite historians currently undertaking research on the Comintern, and connect them to scholars working on related topics of transnational activism and colonial history to deepen and to enrich the existing debate. It will provide an opportunity to take stock of recent developments in the historical literature and to discuss future pathways for this dynamic new history. Accordingly, the project will bring together an international group of researchers, including those at postgraduate and early-career level, in a series of workshops, culminating in a two-day conference. Public events, developed in cooperation with organisations such as the Marx Memorial Library, London, will connect this new research paradigm with a wider interested general public.
An international and interdisciplinary research network is a necessity for this work, given the range of expertise (for example of different languages and archival resources) and knowledge of different case-studies required. Accordingly, the network will bring together scholars whose work is unpicking the foundations of what we know about international communism, to foster a more nuanced understanding of how it worked and the wider impacts it has had.
1. To challenge existing interpretations of international communist organisation and activity.
2. To establish the basis for a longer-term, multi-disciplinary analysis of international communism in this period.
3. To disseminate the work of the Network as widely as possible, and in ways that affect public perception of international communist history in the UK and beyond.
This network aims to bring historians of the Communist International together with scholars in cognate fields of study to reassess the history of international communism in the era of the two world wars.
These are exciting times in Communist studies. One hundred years after the founding of the Communist International (Comintern), historians are putting aside long-held assumptions regarding the organisation and functioning of the Comintern, and asking new questions of the Bolshevik-inspired organisation, informed by new cultural-inspired agendas, and most notably by the recent trend in transnational history which have highlighted the roles of communists in pivotal campaigns (anti-colonialism, anti-racism, environmentalism, cultural, female emancipation) - many of which have left a more lasting legacy than communist ideology.
In a field long dominated by Cold War ideologies and by a monolithic interpretation of international communism which focussed principally upon the political and organisational links binding peripheral national Communist parties to Moscow, new cultural and transnational research agendas are opening up ground-breaking areas of study. In place of the well-worn debates over the degree or otherwise of Moscow's control over the apparatus of the Communist International, this research network will extend our understanding of a truly global and multi-centred Communist political movement, one deeply embedded in the political, cultural and social struggles of the era.
The ultimate aim of the network is to provide a platform for the dissemination of this new research into the history of international communism, to build new multi-disciplinary research networks, and to foster and support the research of less-established researchers and academics in the field. This network will unite historians currently undertaking research on the Comintern, and connect them to scholars working on related topics of transnational activism and colonial history to deepen and to enrich the existing debate. It will provide an opportunity to take stock of recent developments in the historical literature and to discuss future pathways for this dynamic new history. Accordingly, the project will bring together an international group of researchers, including those at postgraduate and early-career level, in a series of workshops, culminating in a two-day conference. Public events, developed in cooperation with organisations such as the Marx Memorial Library, London, will connect this new research paradigm with a wider interested general public.
An international and interdisciplinary research network is a necessity for this work, given the range of expertise (for example of different languages and archival resources) and knowledge of different case-studies required. Accordingly, the network will bring together scholars whose work is unpicking the foundations of what we know about international communism, to foster a more nuanced understanding of how it worked and the wider impacts it has had.
Publications
Beaumont T
(2023)
Editors' Introduction: Communist Anti-Racism and Anti-Colonialism In The Comintern Era
in Twentieth Century Communism
| Description | At the point of the immediate end of the grant, the award had generated the following: The foundations of a new, interdisciplinary and collaborative network to examine the history of international communism had been established. This outcome was secured through the organisation of two one-day interdisciplinary workshops held both in person and virtually at the University of Exeter (April 2022) and Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU, June 2022), and by a two-day international conference held at LJMU in September 2022. New research exploring novel approaches to the study of international communism in the Comintern-era (1919-43) were presented and discussed as part of the network events. These are at the time of writing being prepared for publication, with collaborative outputs projected to appear in May 2023, July 2023 and spring 2024. |
| Exploitation Route | Forthcoming publications will showcase the research presented and discussed at the workshops and conference. It is envisaged that collaborative funding bids will be developed by members of the network to further extend research in this area. |
| Sectors | Government, Democracy and Justice,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |