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The paper examines the direct connection of Olbia Pontica with the events taking place in the steppe regions of the Northern Black Sea coast. It is emphasised that the most salient proof of that dependence can be seen in the establishing and development of its chora. According to the authors, one of the most characteristic manifestations of that dependence is the termination of the existence of the predominant part of the agrarian settlements from the archaic periods along the lower course of the Bug river at the end of the first third of the 5th century BC. Numerous archaeological examples illustrating that process are presented. The authors assume that the Scythians and the emerging animosity to the Greeks were the most probable reason for those radical changes. It is assumed that the end of the first quarter of the 5th century BC marked the beginning of the decomposition of the big tribal union of the Scythians, which occurred in response to the Scythian march of Darius. Thucydides focuses attention to the lack of unity among the Scythians, which was the reason for the transformation of a large part of the territory of the Northern Black Sea coast into an arena of conflicts and wars. The situation in the steppes improved gradually in the second part of the 5th century BC, which was visible in the intensive activities along the lower course of the Bug river from the last third of the 5th century BC onward, and the recolonisation of the territory of Olbia and of the coasts of the Dniepr-Bug liman started at the beginning of the next century, i.e., simultaneously with the emergence of the first Scythian settlements along the Northern Black Sea coast, which turned half a century later into the most important economic and political centres of Great Scythia.
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Macedonian Orthodox Church (MOC) is one of the newest hierarchies in the Orthodox world. Its' appearance is largely a reflection of the processes in Eastern Europe after World War II related to the dominance of atheistic regimes over religious institutions. MOC was founded by Church-People's Assembly (CPA) convened in March 1945 by the Initiative Committee.
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À negative opinion on the reign of the Bulgarian Tsar Peter I (927–969) is sometimes still present in the scholarly literature. He has been described as a weak ruler without any serious political ambitions, pious and focused on religious matters, but neglectful of issues crucial for the Bulgarian state. His reign is said to be marred by byzantinisation of the court and the state itself, a passive response to the Hungarian raids, and the spreading of bogomilism. Peter is thus said to be guilty of the Bulgarian fall of 971. The article aims at a reconsideration of Peter’s rule and the authors present arguments in favour of a more balanced evaluation of the Tsar and his times.
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The end of World War II creates multiple new challenges for the Japanese society. The country is devastated and besieged by the victors. General MacArthur is appointed at the head of the occupational forces and Japanese find in him a person truly concerned about their faith. His primary tasks are: the restitution of the broken economy, the democratization of the country as well as its demilitarization. All that could only be achieved through a comprehensive reform of the Japanese legislation, the first step being the adoption of an entirely new constitution. The next step is concentrated on the annihilation of the big monopolists – zaibatsu and the big land owners, which is significant for the stabilizing of the economy and overcoming the ancient feudal dependency of the common peasants. Multiple reforms are conducted closely connected with the relationship between employers and common workers by creating completely new syndicates and trade-union organizations, whose purpose is to guarantee the rights of the workers and to create safer and healthier work environment. All that helps the inveterate Japanese community gradually get used to and accept the ideas of the democratic world and to fully take advantage of its positives.
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This publication presents an unpublished document relating to the economic history of the Bulgarian lands in the 19th century. This historical source is a translation of an Imperial Ottoman Act from Ottoman into Greek language (Μετἀφρασις τοῦ Ὑψηλου Ὀθωμανικοῦ Περατίου). It is a part of the archives of Georgi Popsimeonov, also known as Georgi Chorbadji or Georgi Anangnost of Arbanassi, Veliko Tarnovo district. The publication presents information about the document, its segmented version of the Greek language, as well as its translation into Bulgarian.
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During the centuries of pre-Hellenism (mid-6th century BC until the ’thirties of the 4th century BC), the two most important characteristics of the period developed, namely those of polis and of empire. Both state forms – polis and ethnos – tried to act as empires. The picture of Thracian society in Southeastern Europe during the period of Hellenism (the ’thirties of the 4th century BC until 27 BC) and post-Hellenism (late 1st century BC – end of 2nd century AD) was different compared to known pictures in Macedonia and Hellas. The main difference consists in the fact that in Thrace – in addition to the monarchic early class empires like the kingdoms of the Odrysae and of the Getae – there were many more ethnic communities (of the Bessi, Dardanioi, Maidoi, etc.), who tried to be an integral part of the historical period by constantly trying to become early class monarchic empires. The transition of Thrace from Antiquity to Middle Ages was facilitated because despite the existence of free people and slaves, the prevalent part of its population had various forms of dependences. The transformation of society occurred in the 4th and 5th centuries, when free men and slaves became dependent and that marked the end of the history of ancient Thrace as a part of the history of the Old World.
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Recent public opinion survey results show that: young people in Bulgaria know little about the pre-1989 period; half of the people consider the country’s development after 1989 to have been unsuccessful. Despite reaching some major goals like restoring private ownership, being free to travel abroad, and accessing the EU, distrust of institutions is shown to be running high among the Bulgarian public. From among nine former Eastern Bloc countries where negative attitudes towards transition- related processes have been observed, the percentage of Bulgarians displeased with the economic situation in the country is one of the highest. According to national statistics, one in five Bulgarians lives on 60 percent of the national medium income, and one in ten Bulgarians grapples with utter poverty. Among the people paying the price for change have been industrial workers, retirees, and residents of peripheral areas of the country. With the vast numbers of people deprived of jobs and prospects for the future, hundreds of thousands of Bulgarians have chosen emigration as a way out of the predicament. Emigration and plummeting birth rates have led to demographic collapse. Researchers see Bulgarian post-1989 capitalism as characterized by poverty, incompetent and corrupt state administration, dependence on international institutions, and a weak civil society. One of the consequences of this state of affairs has been the negative changes in the sphere of morality. Moral norms do not seem to be of particular significance. Added to that is mass pessimism and a continuous trend of people feeling unhappy and displeased with their lives. Seeking the reasons behind the difficulties of transition, observers point to passiveness, collectivism, and egalitarianism of people in post-communist societies. The process of transition has also been looked upon through the prism of memory and transitional justice. Adding to the internal peculiarities of the Bulgarian transition the effects of external influences such as economic and migration crises, it is not easy to formulate effective steps for dealing with the causes of disillusionment. One thing is clear, however. Success is not going to be reached unless a stop is put to the abuse of power and the rule of law is not ensured.
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This article explores the phenomenon of the ‘Green Cadres' at the end of the First World War in Austria-Hungary, with a focus on events in western Slovakia 1918-1920. The Green Cadres were bands of army deserters and radicalized peasants who hid in the forests and mountains of the monarchy during the last year of the war and then violently attempted to topple the social-political order in many localities as the state collapsed. The article suggests that they represented both the last major episode of peasant unrest in the region and a radical new attempt by the rural common people to influence the character of national and social politics in the interwar period. The nationalist dimension of this loose social movement appears to have been particularly strong in western Slovakia and may indicate some affiliation with the leaders of Slovak Catholic populism. On the other hand, the inability of nationalist elites to coopt the Green Cadres was in part responsible for their marginalization in narratives of Czechoslovak liberation as well as in contemporary historiography. On the basis of sources in Slovak, Czech, Slovenian, Serbo-Croatian, and German, this study argues that the Slovak case of the Green Cadres fits into a broader transnational phenomenon, which sheds new light on the history of East Central Europe in the twentieth century.
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