Communism was one of the defining political movements of the twentieth century. Viewed from different perspectives, it was at once a utopia, an ideology, a system of government, an apparatus of terror and an international political movement stretching to almost every corner of the globe. This book presents research on communism.

CONTENTS Editorial COMMUNISM AND THE LEADER CULT Introduction: Stalinism and the barber's chair Kevin Morgan Stalinism: workers' cult and cult of leaders Claude Pennetier and Bernard Pudal Dead martyrs and living leaders: the cult of the individual within Finnish communism Tauno Saarela National traditions and the leader cult in communist Hungary in the early cold war years Balazs Apor Ho Chi Minh: creator or victim of Vietnamese communism? Sophie Quinn Judge 'Our only ornament': Tom Mann and British communist 'hagiography' Antony Howe Re-imagining the cavalier of hope: the Brazilian communist party and the images of Luiz Carlos Prestes Marco Aurelio Santana Construction and deconstruction of a cult: Edgar Lalmand and the Communist Party of Belgium Jose Gotovitch REVIEWS AND REFLECTIONS Writing the history of twentieth century communism Bernhard H. Bayerlein, Peter Beilharz, Kevin McDermott A man between two worlds? Palmiro Togliatti and the Italian communist party Roundtable discussion with Aldo Agosti, Toby Abse, Geoff Andrews, Maud Bracke, Carl Levy, Linda Risso 'Life According to the principles of the left': an interview with Hermann Weber Norman LaPorte 'Should we all be on Marx's side?': contributions of post-marxist discourse theory to the historiography of communism Antonio Lopes Book reviews Le Parti communiste francais et l'annee 1956 Aldo Agosti Tareq Y. Ismael, The Rise and Fall of the Communist Party of Iraq Ben Fowkes Agnes Khoo, Life as the River Flows: Women in the Malayan Anti-Colonial Struggle Linda Etchart Gavin Bowd, Le Dernier communard: Adrien Lejeune Stephen Hopkins Xavier Vigna, Jean Vigreux and Serge Wolikow, eds, Le Pain, La Paix, La Liberte: Experiences et Territoires du Front Populaire; Gilles Morin and Gilles Richard, eds, Les Deux France du Front Populaire: Choc et Contre-Chocs John Bulaitis William Kenefick, Red Scotland! The Rise and Fall of the Radical Left, c. 1872 to 1932 Willie Thompson Kevin Morgan, Gidon Cohen and Andrew Flinn, Communists and British Society: 1920-1991 Edward Johanningsmeier Ralph Darlington, Syndicalism and the Transition to Communism: An International Comparative Analysis Thomas Mackaman James McNeish, The Sixth Man: The Extraordinary Life of Paddy Costello Richard Thurlow Notes on Contributors