The Red Army in Austria: The Soviet Occupation, 19451955

(Hardback)

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Based on interviews and a broad array of sources from Russian and Austrian archives, this collection provides a comprehensive analysis of the Soviet occupation of Austria from 1945 to 1955. The contributors cover a wide range of topics, including the Soviet Secret Services, the military kommandaturas, Soviet occupation policies and the withdrawal of troops in 1955, everyday life, the image of the Russians, violence against women, arrests, deportations, and Soviet aid provisions.

Reviews

Based on an unprecedented richness of primary sources from Austrian and Russian archives, this volume presents important contributions to the interpretation of Soviet policy towards Vienna during and after World War II. The contributors aptly analyze the multifaceted interconnections between economic and broader strategic conceptions in Soviet decision-making. They demonstrate the Cold wars all-encompassing scope and itssometimes contradictoryinfluence on all aspects of social and individual life. The findings provide a challenging example of multi-perspective research on international history that can inspire future research on the multifaceted dimensions of the early Cold War and beyond. -- Andreas Hilger, German Historical Institute Moscow

Author Bio

Stefan Karner is professor and chair of the Institute for Economic, Social and Business History at the University of Graz.

Barbara Stelzl-Marx is director of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Research on Consequences of War and professor of contemporary history at the University of Graz.