Britain and the Dictators by Robert William Seton-Watson

However, these efforts to formulate a doctrine of ‘popular internationalism’, rooted in the political and cultural impact of the Great War, proved unsustainable in its reliance on an ever-fickle British ‘public opinion’. Besides genuine belief in a humanitarian rationale for Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, Seton-Watsons’s views converged with his vision of Britain as arbiter of a reconstituted Liberal European order. This session seeks to readdress these assertions by situating the figure of Seton-Watson within the domestic context of early-twentieth century Britain and the cultural vagaries of ‘British identity’. and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. 4 (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1921), 237. Britain and the Dictators: A Survey of Post-war British Policy by Seton-Watson, R. This has subsequently seen him characterized as a political ‘dilettante’ and unwitting pawn of regional nationalists, or a partisan non-state actor who leveraged his connections and influence to shape British policy in favour of his preferred national groups. Temperley (ed.), A History of the Peace Conference of Paris, vol. The First World War saw him channel these energies into anti-Habsburg secessionist causes, specifically the Czechoslovak and Yugoslavian movements. Having written extensively on ethnic tensions in Austria-Hungary since 1906, he gradually established a reputation as Britain’s leading authority on Central and Eastern European affairs and advocate for the rights of ‘small nations’.

Seton-Watson (1879-1951) remains a divisive figure. Over seventy years after his death, the historian and political activist R.W.

Britain and the Dictators by Robert William Seton-Watson