Berghahn Books The Monumental Nation: Magyar Nationalism and Symbolic Politics in Fin-de-siècle Hungary: 20 (Austrian and Habsburg Studies, 20)

From the 1860s onward, Habsburg Hungary attempted a massive project of cultural assimilation to impose a unified national identity on its diverse populations. In one of the more quixotic episodes in this "Magyarization," large monuments were erected near small towns commemorating the medieval conquest of the Carpathian Basin--supposedly, the moment when the Hungarian nation was born. This exactingly researched study recounts the troubled history of this plan, which--far from cultivating national pride--provoked resistance and even hostility among provincial Hungarians. Author B lint Varga thus reframes the narrative of nineteenth-century nationalism, demonstrating the complex relationship between local and national memories. Review WINNER OF THE 2018 RICHARD G. PLASCHKA PRIZE FROM THE AUSTRIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES "...an excellent introduction to the social and cultural history of Hungary's provincial urban centers and will be a valuable resource for historians of the Austro-Hungarian Empire."- Austrian History Yearbook"[The] outstanding merits of Varga's book...include his mastery over both his subject and his overall lucid handling of analytical concepts. Based on a series of interrelated case studies, this monograph represents a nuanced interpretation of nineteenth-century state nationalism challenged on the ground by rival roads to modernity, and it offers far-reaching insights for readers beyond those interested in Hungarian history."- East Central Europe"The book is a significant contribution to the 'national indifference' debate. Varga takes the questions of this literature as his starting point, systematically reviewing each town's schools, census data, language, nationality, and religious distribution, as well as the impact of institutions of national government or local elites and intelligentsia. This he does meticulously, using similar data sources across languages and regions. The book contains a wealth of information."- American Historical Review"In twelve short, very readable chapters, Varga... offers a convincing analysis of the shortcomings of efforts to create an inclusive Hungarian nation-state led by Magyar elites prior to World War I."- Journal of Modern History"Varga successfully alters how we think about Hungarian history and especially how we think about the story of ethnic and national belonging. His book challenges top-down histories that emphasize activities in the capital; instead he pro- vides us with a fascinating study of how local and regional identities reacted to, as well as helped to create, national myths, such as the one concerning the Hungarian conquest."- Slavic Review"By confining his study to a narrow time period, Varga achieves a broad thematic view over a wide geographic area. While several urban studies have compared nationalist movements to competing non- national loyalties, few country-level studies have managed to encompass such a breadth of interacting political forces. Varga's clear, no-nonsense prose is suitable for undergraduates, but specialists will also benefit from this book, which synthesizes several trends in recent historiography into a coherent and interesting narrative."- Central Europe"...uncovers something valuable and authentic. In a sequence of 'scenes from provincial life', for which he draws masterfully on sources in all the relevant languages and genres, he shows us a rich tapestry of indigenous conditions in Hungary's disparate regional townscapes."- Journal of East Central European Studies"This rather short book by a young Hungarian historian is an excellent study in politics of history. With a very short time span (end of nineteenth/beginning of twentieth century) and limited territory (five specified localities) covered, the study brings to foreground a series of important phenomena, some of them astonishingly topical today... It is with real pleasure that this wise and witty book reads: its vivid and ironical style is in cont