Austria, Germany, and the Cold War: From the Anschluss to the State Treaty, 1938–1955. By Rolf Steininger. New York and Oxford:Berghahn Books. 2008. Pp. x þ 172. Cloth $60.00.ISBN 978-1-84545-326-8.

摘要

In the introduction to Austria, Germany, and the Cold War: From the Anschlussnto the State Treaty, 1938–1955, Rolf Steininger, while acknowledging thenexistence of an already sizeable literature on the genesis of the State Treaty,npoints out that, for the most part, it has been done from an Austrian perspectivenand what he has attempted to do is to expand that perspective to include thenroles played by Germany and the Cold War in its realization. His booknaccomplishes that end with cogency and concision, but in doing so, it connectsnthe struggle of Austria to be free of her military occupiers to the broader issue ofnhow the identity of one nation ceased to be occupied by that of another. Thenstory told by Professor Steininger certainly fits into its ostensible contexts ofnpostwar diplomatic history and international affairs, but, whether intended bynthe author or not, this is also the story of the course of post-imperial Austria’snincestuous infatuation with, marriage to, and divorce from its German cousin.