Renegotiating the empire, forging the nation(-state): the Bohemian/Czechoslovakian case through the political–economic thought of Thomas G. Masaryk and Karel Kramář, c. 1890–1920s

Abstract

This article explores the dilemma of the small Bohemian Lands/Czechoslovak nation(-state) in staying “in” or “out” of the larger Habsburg supranational entity in the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century. It does so mainly through the language of political economy (on national wealth creation and redistribution) articulated in the opinions and political actions of Czechoslovakia’s two founding statesmen, the first president, Thomas G. Masaryk, and the first prime minister, Karel Kramař. The article argues that their choice of staying “in” the large imperial space was premised upon renegotiating a better political and political–economic deal for the Bohemian Lands, whereas the option of abandoning it and of forging the Czechoslovak nation-state was essentially based on political reasons. And while both advocated an interventionist role for the state in the economy during the imperial period, they considered such a prerogative even more essential for their new nation-state.

Keywords:

• Bohemian Lands
• Czechoslovak nation-state
• political economy
• federalism
• small versus large states
• Austro-Hungarian Empire
• Masaryk
• Kramař

Notes

1 On Masaryk, see, for instance: Baer (2000), Peška and Marès (1991), Opat (1990), Winters (1990), Schmidt-Hartman (1984); on Kramář see, Bílek and Velek (2009), Winkelerová (2011).

2 On the Cambridge School approach to intellectual historical analysis, see Pocock ([1975] 2003, 554).

3 Kosyk (1991, 176) considers Masaryk as a “scientific Slavophile and a moderate Russophile”.

4 Masaryk’s reading of it was correct, see Kann (1974, 407–408).

5 One of the most prominent Czech economists of the time, a member of the National Party, Albín Bráf, Minister of Agriculture in the imperial government (1911–1912), sought to renegotiate trade agreements with Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania by lowering the tariffs on agricultural items from these countries; see Albrecht (1992, 14).

6 Masaryk's preoccupation with the Little Entente as a counter to the Hungarian threat against Czechoslovak territorial integrity distracted Czechoslovakian politics from the real danger of Nazi Germany in Deák (1997, 133).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Charles University Research Development Schemes, Program-Sciences of Society, Politics and Media under the Challenges of the Times.