03432nam 22005534a 450 991079359000332120230617025953.01-4237-2446-1615-5053-69-310.1515/9786155053696(CKB)4100000007803116(OCoLC)84145526(MdBmJHUP)muse25936(MiAaPQ)EBC3137182(Au-PeEL)EBL3137182(CaPaEBR)ebr10118482(DE-B1597)633569(DE-B1597)9786155053696(EXLCZ)99410000000780311620050127d2005 uy 0engur|||||||nn|ntxtrdacontentcrdamediacrrdacarrierA cardboard castle?[electronic resource] an inside history of the Warsaw Pact, 1955-1991 /edited by Vojtech Mastny and Malcolm Byrne ; editorial assistant Magdalena KlotzbachNew York Central European University Press20051 online resource (xlix, 726 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates) illustrations, mapNational Security Archive Cold War readers963-7326-08-1 Includes bibliographical references (p. 693-704) and index.The formative years -- The crisis -- The alliance at its peak -- The incipient decline -- Disintegration.This is the first book to document, analyze, and interpret the history of the Warsaw Pact based on the archives of the alliance itself. As suggested by the title, the Soviet bloc military machine that held the West in awe for most of the Cold War does not appear from the inside as formidable as outsiders often believed, nor were its strengths and weaknesses the same at different times in its surprisingly long history, extending for almost half a century. The introductory study by Mastny assesses the controversial origins of the "superfluous" alliance, its subsequent search for a purpose, its crisis and consolidation despite congenital weaknesses, as well as its unexpected demise. Most of the 193 documents included in the book were top secret and have only recently been obtained from Eastern European archives by the PHP project. The majority of the documents were translated specifically for this volume and have never appeared in English before. The introductory remarks to individual documents by co-editor Byrne explain the particular significance of each item. A chronology of the main events in the history of the Warsaw Pact, a list of its leading officials, a selective multilingual bibliography, and an analytical index add to the importance of a publication that sets the new standard as a reference work on the subject and facilitate its use by both students and general readers.National Security Archive Cold War readers.Cold WarEurope, EasternHistory, Military20th centuryEurope, EasternHistory, Military20th centurySourcesCold War, Communism, Eastern Europe, Military History, NATO, Sources, Warsaw Pact.Cold War.355/.031/0947Mastny Vojtech1936-141717Byrne Malcolm297831MiAaPQMiAaPQMiAaPQBOOK9910793590003321A cardboard castle3745042UNINA