Territory and terror : conflicting nationalisms in the Basque Country / Jan Mansvelt Beck.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mansvelt-Beck, J.

Series:

Routledge advances in European politics ; 25.

Routledge advances in European politics ; 25

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Nationalism--Spain--País Vasco.

Nationalism.

Spain--País Vasco.

Nationalism--France--Pays Basque.

País Vasco (Spain)--Politics and government--20th century.

País Vasco (Spain).

Pays Basque (France)--Politics and government--20th century.

Pays Basque (France).

France--Pays Basque.

Physical Description:

xiii, 263 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : Routledge, 2005.

Summary:

All-Basque interpretations of national power have resulted in an uneasy mix of often fragmented and conflicting territorial identifications. Basques can identify themselves with France, Spain or an imagined Basque nation-state. Territory and Terror confronts the imagined and actual territorial dimensions of nationalism, shedding new light on the Basque conflict.

The study provides a rich description of territoriality analysed from a comparative perspective and explores the relation between territoriality and regional differences in conflict intensity. It supplies an account of the oftenoverlooked internal struggles between Basques, arguing that overestimation of Basque nationalism as the ideological force behind the conflict often leads to a disregard of the identification of many with France or Spain. In addition, the author investigates the conflicts between Basque nationalists themselves over key issues such as terrorist activity.

Territory and Terror will appeal to students and researchers of nationalism and territoriality, in particular to those with an interest in the Basque country.

Contents:

The problem 3

Approaches to conflicting nationalisms 4

The spacing and timing of nationalist conflict: a descriptive and interpretative frame 8

Method, scope and outline 17

2 The French-Basque experience: how Basques became French 19

Nationalist messages 19

Basque elite and the spread of French nationalism 21

Frenchification 28

Development of a strong state 32

Territorial administration: cosmetic decentralization 37

The current situation: the present distribution of Frenchness 38

3 The Spanish-Basque experience: a case of weak nation-state building 41

Nationalist messages 42

Basque elite and the spread of Spanish nationalism 46

Castilianization 58

Weak-state development 61

Territorial administration: decentralization 68

The current state: the present distribution of Spanishness 70

France and Spain compared 74

4 Euskal Herria: rhetoric of commonness versus uncommon practice 77

Nationalist claims: a short history of territorial and linguistic demands 77

Language and identity 80

Contact space and cross-border contacts 84

Nationalist symbols and practice of Euskal Herria 87

Conclusion: the territorial dimension of the imagined community 94

5 Basque nationalism: a recent and modest phenomenon 97

Nationalist messages 97

Mobilization behind new messages: process and pattern 100

A social ecology of mobilization 109

State reactions to language and territorial claims 118

6 Euskadi as a weak proto-state: the fragmentation of Basque society 126

Nationalist messages 127

Mobilization behind new messages: process and pattern in the pre-Franco period 131

Institutions of mobilization after Franco 135

A social ecology of mobilization 145

Accommodation and the regionalization of infrastructural power in Euskadi 154

Accommodation in Navarra: real or cosmetic? 168

7 The spatial dimension of violence: beyond the fracture lines 176

Manifestations of political violence 177

From spiral of violence to 'pain socialization' 185

Ideological and organizational features of the adversaries in the conflict 186

A geography of support for violence 192

Supportive economy 196

Anti-system features of violence-rejecting nationalist parties 199

8 Conflict solutions: past and future scenarios 205

The failure of short-term rapprochement 206

Institutionalization of conflict resolution and its impact on violence 208

Scenarios for peace 219.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [233]-252) and index.

ISBN:

0415348145

OCLC:

55982392