PŘEHLED ARCHIVNÍCH FONDŮ A HISTORIOGRAFICKÉ PRODUKCE K ČESKOSLOVENSKO-RAKOUSKÝM VZTAHŮM
AN OVERVIEW OF ARCHIVES AND HISTORIOGRAPHY RELATING TO CZECHOSLOVAK-AUSTRIAN RELATIONS

Summary/Abstract: The paper brings a basic overview on archives and historiography to Czechoslovak-Austrian relations. Most documents pertaining to the topic in the Czech Republic are housed in the Archives of the Foreign Ministry. Less frequented, yet with no less potential are the materials housed in the National Archives in Prague. These are usually documents coming from activities of public authorities – central offices and their subordinate organisations. The foreign documents pertaining to the Czechoslovak-Austrian relations are mostly housed in the Austrian State Archives, Archives of the Republic in Vienna and Political Archives of the Foreign Office in Berlin. The documents are classified following the geographical criterion or according to their specific nature. The relations between Austria and Czechoslovakia have been focused on in the historiographical research for several decades. Among the most important features of the research, there have been for long a distinctive dividing line between Czech and German speaking researchers both in regard to their topic choice and to the use of archival sources. This perspective has been overcome only in 1990s with the possibility of free research in Czech archives. The years 1918–1938 are one of the very well analysed period where, apart from contributions to political and economic history, several studies on cultural relations in broad sense such as the “image” of Austrians and Austria in Czech society have been published. At the end of the paper, a possible perspective of further research is given. The current state lacks a complex and heuristically based view on the complicated development of Czechoslovak-Austrian relations during the 20th century. An analysis detailing the role of the press and press propaganda is also missed as well as the comparison of the political culture in both states and their political party systems, mutual relations between trade unions and cooperation in culture. Public archives in the Czech Republic, Austria and Germany offer a great variety of archival sources; their exploitation or new interpretations remain a task for generations of researchers to come.

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