The End of Communism and the Decline of Democracy

Remember back in 1989 and early 1990s when the Soviet Union fell apart? The USSR lost control over its "satellite" countries in Eastern Europe, then itself dissolved into the Russian Federation. Ukraine and Georgia, among others, soon became independent nations. The truncated Russian state was still the largest country in the world in terms of land mass. 

Western pundits cheered what they called the end of the Cold War and of the triumph of liberal democracy and capitalism over authoritarianism communism (many of them threw in democratic socialism for good measure). Of course, there was much good in the end of the Soviet Union. My history students were generally ecstatic about it, and like many in America, viewed it as the triumph of the USA, now the only Superpower and "Number One "

Liberal democracies would now sprout throughout the world, ushering in freedom, universal peace, and "the end of history" -- or so Francis Fukuyama told us. Free market capitalism promised a golden age of prosperity for all, the neoliberal economists insisted.

Things didn't turn out quite that well, did they? Right wing, fascist regimes are spreading around the globe. Democracies are on the defensive everywhere. World peace is a joke as authoritarian leaders like Putin and Netanyahu invade, slaughter, and interfere in other countries' affairs with all the arrogant brutishness of the old imperialists. Thanks to the Supreme Court, the president of the US -- is it Musk or Trump? -- is immune from prosecution for "official acts." Don't expect the law to protect you. 

The rules of international behavior and diplomacy are flouted regularly. Indeed, it is not a huge exaggeration to say there are no rules anymore. Countries pledge to fight global warming but do nothing of substance. Like an alcoholic or Pete Hesgeth -- but I repeat myself -- their promises to reform are meaningless. The profits of the fossil fuel giants are sacrosanct. Ordinary consumers are complicit, demanding cheap gas for their guzzlers.

And what about prosperity for all? A lot of people have seen some benefits, but most of the world remains mired in a world of poverty, disease, and strife. The mega-millions of migrants knocking on the doors of the more prosperous and peaceful countries are testament to the fundamental chaos of the world. 

In a major way, the end of communism contributed to the mess we are in. It freed capitalists from the need to treat workers with a modicum of decency. The western economic response to communism was to try to provide a decent life for ordinary workers, to prove that capitalism was best. Once the communist threat was removed, capitalists could treat their employees with greater disdain, breaking up unions, reducing wages, offshoring jobs. 

The ultimate symbol of vulture capitalism is the US minimum wage, which long ago ceased to be even close to a living wage. At $7.25/hr it has not increased in decades, while Musk, Jeff Bezos, and their ilk rack up millions of dollars a day in profits. Money stolen from the producers. 

At the same time, these oligarchs, thanks to the venal Supreme Court (SCOTUS) have developed the means and techniques of buying governments who will do their bidding. Elon Musk's recent purchase of the American government is just the most glaring example of the trend. The fact that Musk, Trump, and others display strong fascistic tendencies bodes ill for the future of democracy in the USA. If it has a future.

The Crimean War and Modern Culture

As wars go, the Crimean War (1854-1856) is not one of the most famous or important in history. Few people have understood the reasons for it, then or now. Even fewer probably care. The world has plenty of other things to be concerned about, given the war in Ukraine, the genocide in Gaza, and the chaos emanating from Trump's USA.

It was, however, the biggest conflict among the Great Powers of Europe between the Napoleonic Wars (ended 1815) and World War I (began 1914). And it had some enduring cultural effects.

In 1854, Great Britain, France and the Ottoman Empire allied to stop Russian expansion into the Balkans. In particular, they feared a Russian capture of Constantinople (Istanbul) which would give Russia control of the Bosporus Straits between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. 

The leaders of Catholic France were also determined to prevent the Russian Orthodox Church from gaining control of the religious sites in the Holy Land. No doubt Christ would have approved. 

Most of the fighting took place on the Crimean Peninsula. The allies besieged the largest Russian naval base in the Black Sea, Sevastopol. After a protracted campaign marked by incompetence and suffering on both sides, they did eventually capture Sevastopol, after which the war ended. 

When it was over lots of folks scratched their heads, wondering what all the carnage was about. The allies gave Sevastopol back to Russia, and went home. In the next big European war, World War I, Britain, France, and Russia were on the same side, and the Ottomans were on the other. Diplomacy is like that. 

The Crimean War is remembered for lots of things. The nursing Lady of the Lamp, Florence Nightingale, became an icon, though even she later questioned how effective her work had been. What she did after the war is far more important historically and medically. 

It was also the first war covered by professional journalists. Reporters like William Howard Russell and Howard Fenton were the first true war correspondents. They were able to send stories to their newspapers in almost real time due to the advent of railways and the  telegraph.

Incompetence, of course, is also high on the list of memorable things about the Crimean War. The British commander, Lord Raglan, kept referring to the enemy as the French, who were his allies. But then his last action had been at Waterloo against Napoleon, 40 years before. [Image: Fitzroy Henry James Somersett, AKA, Lord Raglan]

Lord Raglan died during the middle of the war, but not before issuing a famously confusing order for a direct cavalry attack on a heavily fortified Russian position bristling with artillery. 

The almost suicidal attack has become notorious as one of the most gallant blunders in military history. Alfred (Lord) Tennyson wrote a famous poem about it. Films have been made about it. I refer of course to the Charge of the Light Brigade. Onward, into the Valley of Death and all that, as Tennyson put it. [A Victorian painting of the charge by Richard Caton Woodville is at the top of this post.]

Raglan also survived long enough to give his name to a fashion: raglan sleeves. His lordship liked jackets with sleeves that did not end at the shoulders, but continued to the neck, supposedly because he lost an arm at Waterloo. The style soon became fashionable back home, although in pullovers (sweaters), not jackets. 

The man who commanded the Light Brigade itself was also a fashion influencer. James Brudenell was a strict disciplinarian with a love for designing fancy uniforms for his men. His competence as a military commander and commitment to the truth have often been questioned. 

Better known by his title, Lord Cardigan, Brudenell allegedly liked to lounge in a buttoned sweater or waistcoat without a collar. Merchants back in the UK quickly began promoting such items as "cardigans" and the name stuck. [Image: James Brudenell, Earl of Cardigan, but not in a cardigan]

The Charge of the Light Brigade took place on the same day as another famous action, equally brave and much more useful to the allied side. Five hundred of the 93d Highlanders, supported by a small detachment of marines and some Turkish infantry, repelled Russian cavalry numbering between 2,000 and 3,000.

They were all that stood in the way of the Russian objective: capturing the Allied supply base at Balaclava, or Balaklava (not be confused with the dessert, baklava). The Highlanders' commander, General Sir Colin Campbell, positioned them directly in front of the advancing Russians with the ominous words, "There is no retreat from here, men. You must die where you stand." 

As it happened they didn't have to. After three volleys from the Highlanders, the second and third highly effective, the Russians retreated, pursued by the Heavy Brigade. 

The British press dubbed the Highlanders' stand "The Thin Red Line." Robert Gibb later produced an iconic if romanticized painting of the event, which hangs in the National Gallery of Scotland. 

If you search the words "Thin Red Line" on the internet today, you will be inundated by posts about a film of 1998 by that name, which is about the Battle of Guadalcanal in World War II. But keep looking and you will find others about the original event of 1854, and an ad for a shirt company. The internet is full of surprises.  

A controversial term often used by police and their supporters today, "The Thin Blue Line" also derives from the fame of that brief heroic action at Balaclava. The allusion to the original term is based on the notion that the police are the thin line that stands between society and barbaric chaos. Unlike the red-coated Highlanders, the police generally wear blue. 

It is unknown when people began using the term "Thin Blue Line," but it has been in use for a century at least. In recent years the "Thin Blue Line" has been appropriated by right-wingers and white nationalists in the USA.

I am not done with Balaclava yet. As you might have guessed by now, the place gave its name to the balaclava hat or cap, which helped protect the face and head from extreme cold. [Image: Balaclava hat]

The winter of 1854-1855 was extremely cold, and British soldiers suffered terribly from the effects, and from disease. Due to an antiquated and incompetent logistics system, cold weather clothing and supplies did not arrive on schedule. 

In response, women in the UK took up their needles and knitted thousands of the woolen caps that became known as balaclavas. A revision of the original covered the whole face with holes for the eyes and mouth. Terrorists, criminal gangs, and ICE are enjoy the anonymity, if not the warmth, of the balaclava. 

One more little thing before I cease. The first allied victory of the Crimean War, the Battle of the Alma, occurred shortly after they landed their armies on the peninsula, in September 1854. It took its name from a nearby river.

After news of the battle reached the UK, many British families began to name their daughters Alma. The name already existed but was not common. In Latin, it means "nurturing soul." It became much more popular after the battle of that name, but declined in popularity in the 20th century. Some British pubs adopted the name "The Alma" and continue to use it, including the one below in Wandsworth.

I hope you have enjoyed this feeble attempt to show how even a relatively minor war can have major cultural effects. 

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The Peasants Strike Back

The people had had enough. Endless war, a deadly pandemic, and stagnant wages had pushed them to the edge of revolt. The actions of a selfish oligarchy took them over it. I could be writing about the present time in many places, but the events in question took place in 14th century England.

England had been at war with France almost continuously since King Edward III laid claim to the French throne in the 1330s. Historians call the conflict the Hundred Years War, though no one called it that at the time, obviously. 

The fighting had favoured the English in the early going. They won several lopsided victories, notably at Crecy in 1346 and at Poitiers ten years later. In a treaty of 1360, they gained control of large parts of France. In the 1370s, however, the war resumed, and the French won back what they had lost and more. (Image: Battle of Crecy, 1346. From the Chronicles of Jean Froissart)

In 1376 England's greatest warrior, Edward the Black Prince, died of a lingering disease. He was also heir to the English throne. His father Edward III died the following year. The crown passed to his son, ten-year-old Richard II. During the next few years, actual power was in the hands of councils dominated by overmighty nobles, including Richard's uncles. (Image: Richard II, portrait in Westminster Abbey, 1390s)

In order to pay for the French war, the government raised taxes. It introduced a new tax, a regressive poll tax. Attempts to collect the tax in May 1381 triggered a massive popular uprising. The causes of the revolt go far beyond hatred of the particular tax, however. Unrest and tension had been growing for decades. At its heart was the response of the ruling classes to the effects of the plague pandemic later known as the Black Death.

The plague arrived in England in 1348, having made its way along trade routes from the Far East. By 1349 it had killed between 40 and 60 per cent of the population. Plague returned in 1361, killing off another 20 per cent or so. One effect of this massive mortality was a severe shortage of labour. Peasants and other workers saw an opportunity to improve their condition. They demanded higher wages and an end to serfdom and other injustices.

The landed classes, the lords and gentry who dominated Parliament, responded with the Statute of Labourers (1351). It essentially froze wages at their pre-plague levels. Although not entirely successful, it worked well enough to arouse widespread anger at the government and the aristocrats that controlled it. The sense of injustice contributed to the popularity of egalitarian ideologies.

The revolt broke out in Essex on May 30 with an attack on tax collectors. It spread quickly to Kent and much of the Southeast. The rebels, who included artisans and local officials, burned court records and emptied the jails. Thousands of Kentish rebels marched on nearby London, led by Wat Tyler and a radical priest, John Ball, whom the rebels had released from prison.

At Blackheath, near London, Ball famously exhorted the rebels to fight for equality. "When Adam delved and Eve span, who was then the gentleman?" he asked. "From the beginning all men were by nature created alike, and our bondage or servitude came in by the unjust oppression of evil men ... now the time is come, appointed to us by God, in which ye may ... cast off the yoke of bondage, and recover liberty." (Image: John Ball encouraging the rebels; Wat Tyler is in red at front left. Chronicles of Jean Froissart)

On June 13, sympathetic citizens admitted them into the capital. Together, they destroyed the Savoy Palace, residence of the king's hated uncle John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. They attacked the jails, burned buildings, and killed a number of government officials, including the Lord Chancellor and Lord High Treasurer. Richard II fled to the safety of the Tower of London.

On the 14th, Richard met the rebels' representatives at Mile End and granted most of their demands, including the abolition of serfdom. On the following day he met them again. On this occasion, a confused melee broke out, and a member of the king's party killed Wat Tyler. (Image: The Death of Wat Tyler, Chronicles of Jean Froissart)

In the confusion that followed, Richard managed to calm the rebels and assure them he was on their side. "I am your captain, follow me," he is alleged to have said, and led them away from the scene. Meanwhile, the Lord Mayor of London rallied a militia and confronted the rebel forces. Richard urged them to disperse to their homes, which most did.

The rebellion continued in other locales, but the king's supporters suppressed it during the next few weeks and months. Richard rescinded his promises for change, including the abolition of serfdom. Most of the rebel leaders were hunted down and executed, along with about 1500 others.

The Great Revolt, or Peasants' Revolt, as it is more conventionally known, failed to win the rebels' immediate demands. Yet, the fright it gave to the ruling orders did help bring change. The poll tax was abandoned. Nothing like it was imposed again until the premiership of Margaret Thatcher (1979-1990), who forgot the lesson of 1381. It aroused mass protests, first in Scotland, then in England. It was replaced in 1993 by the Council Tax.

Subsequent Parliaments were reluctant to raise taxes, making it difficult for the government to pay for campaigns in France. Serfdom was not abolished but it gradually died out over the next few decades, as landowners commuted labour services into money rents.

Wages also rose, in spite of the Statute of Labourers. Economic laws of supply and demand proved stronger than the laws of Parliament. Between 1350 and 1450 wages nearly doubled. The 15th century has sometimes been called the Golden Age of the English Peasant. Unfortunately, these gains were largely lost by population growth in the 16th century.

The Peasants' Revolt has continued to fascinate historians, writers, artists, and musicians into our own times. In 1888, the artist, writer, and designer William Morris published a novel about the Great Revolt, A Dream of John Ball. The work centres on Ball and his egalitarian ideology. Below is one of Morris's illustrations for the novel.

In many respects the situation of the UK today resembles that of 1381. The combination of disasters: Brexit, Covid pandemic, the Ukraine war, and an out of touch government has produced economic crises and widespread industrial unrest. Will it all lead to another mass revolt? We will see.