Tuesday, July 18, 2006

History today

History Today August 2006

Contents include:
David Anderson, Huw Bennett and Daniel Branch on 'A Very British Massacre', looking at the Chuka Massacre in Kenya in 1953: a grim and disgusting affair, which led to a court martial; but a court martial apparently designed to minimise the crimes and divert any public attention. Materials on the case are still be kept secret, which the authors argue continue to cover-up and protect both Britain's imperial reputation and actual war criminals. It's not mentioned but anderson is author of the recent devastating exposes of the cruelties of the suppression of the Mau Mau in Kenya: Histories of the Hanged.

Marisa Linton on 'Robespierre and the Terror', a solid account that efectively puts Robespierre in context and thus provides a defence against the usual criticisms of the great revolutionary.

Mark Bevir reviews Kevin Morgan's Bolshevism and the British Left (Vol 1, Labour Legends and Russian Gold; Vol 2 The Webbs and Soviet Communism). The first volume is certinly a surprise, not quite what I was expecting and not making sufficient demarcation between Bolshevism and Stalinism to keep me happy.

1 Comments:

Blogger Thom Brooks said...

I am big fan of Mark Bevir's---good to see he's still writing about British socialism, the topic of his D.Phil. thesis.

22 July 2006 at 14:03  

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