War and Nationalism-Praise and Reviews:

Professors Yavuz and Blumi have edited an excellent and much needed study on the
interdisciplinary aspects of the Balkan Wars (1912-1913). By avoiding nationalist narratives that
came to dominate the recent scholarship, the chapters rigorously develop the social, economic,
cultural, and diplomatic connections between local, regional, and European dimensions of this
catastrophic event that resulted in the annihilation of the Ottoman Muslim civilization in the Balkans.
This book argues for a new theoretical approach to studying the complex connections between
warfare, nationalism and homogenization. This book is more so a study of the patterns of the nation-
building than a military history. It is a must read for the Balkan and Ottoman specialists and students
of nationalism.
Ilber Ortayli, Galatasaray University, Istanbul and the author of Discovering the Ottomans
A very impressive collection. Not only will this be the most comprehensive volume on the Balkan
Wars, but the interdisciplinary approach which it incorporates casts new light on the origins of
contemporary conflicts in the Balkans.
Uli Schamiloglu, University of Wisconsin
War and Nationalism is the second volume in this series, which covers the causes, course and
consequences of the end of the Ottoman Turkish empire. It had famously been multi-ethnic and
multi-religious, and its destruction was accompanied by mass deportations, what we have learned to
call ethnic cleansing, and vicious murder. This volume's originality lies in its demonstration that the
first instance of this came with Greek independence, and that the model was then adapted to the
rest of the Ottoman Balkans and then to Anatolia itself. The articles are of high quality, bringing
various elements of historysocial, intellectual, diplomatic and economictogether to present a
coherent narrative of these tragedies.
Norman Stone, Bilkent University and author of The Eastern Front 1914-1917
War and Nationalism offers a new perspective on understanding the process of nation-building in
the Balkans at the end of the nineteenth century. It indicates very clearly that war-making became an
effective agent of homogenization through ethnic cleansing and mass killing. A number of papers
argue that the Ottoman military defeat and the deportation of so many Muslims from southeastern
Europe, and the destruction of long-established Muslim communities, radicalized the Young Turks
and helped to create a revanchist (rather than nationalist) political atmosphere. Ottoman public
opinion concluded that the very existence of the Ottoman state was in the balance, and that they
needed a major ally. This is a large part of the explanation for the Ottomans' decision to enter the
First World War. This book offers a clear and original narrative of the social and political implications
of the Balkan Wars.
Peter Sluglett, President of the Middle East Studies Association of North America, 2012-13,
Visiting Research Professor, Middle East Institute, National University of Singapore