At the end of the Second World War, traditionally Catholic countries like Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary became hard-line Communist dictatorships under the watchful eye of the Soviet Union. This option will explore Church-State relations, together with the dilemmas faced by ordinary Catholics and Communists, in the so-called ‘satellite’ countries of East-Central Europe during half a century of Cold War. Particular attention will be paid to shifting Catholic-Communist relations in Hungary, Poland and Czechoslovakia during periods of Stalinization, de-Stalinization, reform Socialism and Normalization. Topics to be explored will include the show trial of so-called ‘Vatican agents’; a faked miracle by the secret police; the case of a Cardinal who took refuge for fifteen years in the U.S. Embassy in Budapest; the election of a Polish pope and the spirituality of the Polish Solidarity movement.  No previous knowledge of Czechoslovak, Hungarian or Polish history, or of Marxist theory and Catholic doctrine, will be expected or required.

• broad outline knowledge of Church-State relations in the Warsaw Pact from 1945-1989
• broad outline knowledge of the history of East-Central Europe from 1945 to 1989
• a very general outline of developments within the wider socialist world in the second half of the twentieth century
• a heightened sense of the problems of subjectivity, selectivity and bias in the study of history
• increased sophistication in making sense of a wide variety of primary source materials (newsreels, photographs, court proceedings, memoirs, intelligence reports, etc)
• increased confidence and competence in challenging received opinions
• increased confidence and competence in considering and making use of abstract concepts
• familiarity with a variety of writing forms, including brief situation reports and longer essays
• the ability to keep to deadlines, write succinctly and work effectively, both independently and as part of a group
• the ability to locate, analyse and independently interpret a wide variety of primary source materials (memoirs, diplomatic papers, laws, tracts, songs, paintings, newspapers, postage stamps, flags, banknotes, newsreel footage, etc.)
• the ability to analyse and assess contradictory, complex and partisan sources
• the ability to produce history essays which are independently researched, lucidly argued, defended with evidence and properly referenced
• the ability to participate usefully in group discussion, contributing thoughtfully, pertinently and courteously

A range of teaching methods will be used in each of the sessions of the course, comprising a combination of lectures and seminar discussion of major issues. The syllabus is divided into a series of major course themes, then sub-divided into principal topics for the study of each theme.

Lectures:

The aim of the lectures is to provide a brief introduction to a particular topic, establishing the salient features of major course themes, identifying key issues and providing historiographical guidance. The lectures aim to provide a basic framework for understanding and should be thought of as useful starting points for further discussion and individual study. Where appropriate, handouts and other materials may be distributed to reinforce the material discussed.

Seminars:

The primary aim of seminars will be to generate debate and discussion amongst course participants. Seminars for each of the course topics will provide an opportunity for students to analyse and further discuss key issues and topics relating to lectures.

While studying this module, students will communicate ideas and arguments in a variety of forms, including oral presentations, group work, and in written form. They will develop critical reading and writing skills as they engage with historical literature, placing this in a historiographical and methodological framework and coming to their own conclusion as to the validity of evidence and material on topics studied. They will, as a consequence, engage with theoretical arguments and apply this in their own work. During seminars students will analyse primary materials, collaborate with their peers to present ideas and arguments, offer presentations, and engage in plenary class discussions.

Students will be assessed by means of a combination of one 1000 word assessed essay [15%], one 2000 word assessed essay [35%] and one two-hour unseen written examination paper in which the student will answer two questions [50%].

Essay 1 will contribute 15% of the final mark for the module. It is designed to give students the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to review evidence, draw appropriate conclusions from it and employ the formal conventions of scholarly presentation. It must be no longer than 1,000 words (excluding empirical appendices and references).

Essay 2 will contribute 35% of the final mark for the module. It is designed to give students the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to review evidence, draw appropriate conclusions from it and employ the formal conventions of scholarly presentation. It must be no longer than 2,000 words (excluding appendices, references, and bibliography).

The Examination will take place during the second assessment period [May/June] and will consist of an unseen two hour paper that will contribute the remaining 50% of the final mark for this module. There will be ten questions provided and students must write 2 answers in total.

Lecture plan:

Lecture times will be divided between formal, 1-hour lectures and directed presentations, group discussions and formal debates. Seminar times will normally be used for discussion and debate. Occasionally, relevant filmed material will be screened and imaginative role-play exercises used.

• Legacies
• Beliefs
• Structures
• Enemies
• Prisoners of Conscience
• Secret Police operations
• The Hungarian Uprising
• The Second Vatican Council
• The Prague Spring
• Détente
• Normalization
• Solidarity
• The 1989 Revolutions

Seminar themes:

• Show Trial of ‘Vatican Agents’
• Prisoner of Conscience
• The Mindszenty affair
• Marxist-Christian dialogue
• The Second Vatican Council
• Lech Wałęsa and Solidarność

Please see Background Reading List for an indicative list

BEESON, T., Discretion and Valour: Conditions in Russia and Eastern Europe (1974)

[CZECHOSLOVAK MINISTRY OF JUSTICE], Trial of Vatican Agents Bishop Zela and accomplices (1951).

CHADWICK, O., The Christian Church in the Cold War (1992)

GALLAGHER, C., Vatican Secret Diplomacy: Joseph P. Hurley and Pope Pius XII (2008)

HROMADKA, J.L., Thoughts of a Czech Pastor, tr. M. and B. Page (1970)

KENT, P., The Lonely Cold War of Pius XII (2002)

KIRBY, Dianne, ed., Religion and the Cold War (2002; paperback 2013).

MICHNIK, A., Letters from Prison and Other Essays (any edition)

MINDSZENTY, J., Memoirs (any edition)

O’MALLEY, J., What Happened at Vatican II (2010)

RAMET, S., Nihil Obstat: Religion, Politics and Social Change in East-Central Europe and Russia (1998)

WEIGEL, G., The Final Revolution: The Resistance Church and the Collapse of Communism (1992)

WYSZYNSKI, Stefan, A Freedom Within: The Prison Notes of Stefan Cardinal Wyszynski, any edition