A brief Franco-Romanian encounter : Guillevic and Nina Cassian in translation

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Patrick Leigh Fermor, Paul Morand and Rumania

The ‘Great Trudge’ of 1933-1934 allowed Patrick Leigh Fermor to discover Rumania, which would later be evoked in Between the Woods and the Water (1986) and The Broken Road (2013). It was in Bucharest that the young Englishman made the life-changing discovery of a Francophile and aristocratic milieu which was also frequented by an established writer and diplomat, Paul Morand (1888-1976), himself married to a former Rumanian princess. Despite such an overlap of life and work, these major figures of travel writing have, until now, escaped comparison. Drawing upon published sources, but also the authors’ private papers, we will therefore explore these visitors’ representations of Rumania and the evolution of their long and passionate relationship with that country. Striking similarities apart, the biggest difference between these two travellers is, we argue, the time and purpose of their writing.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Franco-Romanian cinema in late communism : Sergiu Nicolaescu's François Villon - Poetul vagabond (1987)

In the late 1980s, against the backdrop of worsening Franco-Romanian relations and internal crisis, Sergiu Nicolaescu, who had established an international reputation for epic films about Romanian history, agreed to make François Villon – Poetul vagabond in co-production with TF1 and Cine Berlin, firstly as a television series broadcast in 1987, then as a feature film, released in Romanian cinemas in 1989, the final year of the Ceaușescu regime. This article studies Nicolaescu’s film, its production and its reception, drawing on archival documents, the Romanian press of the time, and Nicolaescu’s memoirs. To what extent was Villon’s story used to criticise the regime? And how far does this co-production mark a watershed in both Nicolaescu’s career and in Franco-Romanian film collaboration?PostprintPeer reviewe

Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo, Charles Maurras and colonial Madagascar

Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo (1903–1937) is widely considered to be the first major writer of la francophonie and as Madagascar’s national poet. His untimely death has been interpreted as an act of rebellion against French colonial rule. However, little attention has been given to his outspoken attachment to the ideas of Charles Maurras and the far right Action Française. This article explores Rabearivelo’s politics, his ambivalent relationship with colonial rule and the complexity of the identity politics expressed in his work.PostprintPeer reviewe

Guillevic's 'Elégie' of 1958

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The French Communist Party and Britain in the Second World War

Transnational studies of the French Communist Party (PCF) have understandably emphasized relations with the Soviet and Italian Parties. However, study of the PCF's relations with its minnow-like counterpart in Britain sheds light on its tortuous trajectory during the Second World War. The French and British communist press of the period, as well as recently released archival documents, show radical shifts in line and fortune, ultimately determined by decisions taken in Moscow. The defeat of Nazism sees the apogee of communist influence on both sides of the Channel, but signs of isolation and inexorable decline soon emerge.PostprintPeer reviewe

"Triple Fugue" revisited : Patrick Leigh Fermor, "Istvan" and "Angela"

“Triple Fugue” is one of the most famous chapters in Patrick Leigh Fermor’s classic travel book, Between the Woods and the Water. Researched and written in the 1970s and 1980s, more than forty years after his “Great Trudge” across pre-war Europe, this account of a whistle-stop tour of the heart of Transylvania in the company of two Hungarian aristocrats, “István” and “Angéla,” has since been revealed to be a virtuoso work of autofiction. In this article, we explore the relationship between Patrick Leigh Fermor and the real characters of this adventure, Elemér von Klobusiczky and Xénia Csernovits, through the study of their correspondence, held in the National Library of Scotland. Their letters offer insights into the fate of this Anglophile and Francophile elite after the Second World War, the crises of late communism in Hungary and Romania, the life and work of Patrick Leigh Fermor, as well as the classless ravages of old age.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Peak dictatorship : Ceaușescu’s state visit to Great Britain, June 1978

The Ceauşescu couple's State Visit to Great Britain in June 1978 has been considered by academic and media commentators as a dark hour for British diplomacy. However, this article aims to place this event in its context, drawing mainly upon newly-declassified British and Romanian documents. It investigates the background and the results of the Visit and the interests of both parties. If, on his return to Bucharest, Ceauşescu boasted of diplomatic and economic success, we argue that there can be detected weaknesses in the regime that anticipate its demise in 1989.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

‘This day in Paris/this day everywhere’ : Jack Lindsay and France

ISBN: 9781912064052The writer Jack Lindsay is well-known for his attempts to acclimatise communism to English conditions, beginning with his poem 'Who are the English?', published in 1936. However, this article aims to show the importance of France as a reference-point in Lindsay's life and work. From the Popular Front onwards, France inspires through its potential for resistance and revolution. At the same time, it is a place of betrayal and sectarianism. We explore this rich relationship through study of Lindsay's literary and non-fiction texts, memoirs and private correspondence. We argue that, throughout Lindsay's immense oeuvre, France has a key place in his constant struggle against alienation and for 'the fullness of life'.PostprintPeer reviewe

Emmanuel de Martonne and the birth of Greater Romania

The research of Emmanuel de Martonne (1873–1955) in the field of physical goegraphy, in its many forms, made him the leading geographer, not only in France, but on an international level. His immense body of work also covers human geography : La Valachie, a doctoral thesis published in 1902, remains a model of the Vidalian regional monograph. But it must be pointed out that de Martonne’s work is not limited to a strictly scientific and disinterested domain. By its very nature, his geographical work is bound up with history, and therefore political circumstances, something which is clearly displayed in his long and passionate relationship with Romania. It is before the Great War, on the frontier between Hungary and Romania, that Emmanuel de Martonne begins his work as a geographer. Enamoured of a landscape and a people, this eminent scholar will serve the cause of ‘Greater Romania’ : firstly as a supporter of Romanian intervention in the European conflict, then as a ‘drawer of frontiers’ at the Versailles Peace Conference. Here we see how geography can be used in political projects, rivalries over territories and debates on identity.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe