Projects / Programmes
Anglo-American Secret Diplomacy in the Mediterranean: the Case of the Primorska Region and Friuli, 1940-1947
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 6.01.00 |
Humanities |
Historiography |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| H250 |
Humanities |
Contemporary history (since 1914) |
Great Britain, the United States of America, diplomacy, intelligence services, Stay Behind, containment, the Mediterranean, the Primorska region, Slovenian-Italian relations, World War II, Cold War.
Researchers (1)
| no. |
Code |
Name and surname |
Research area |
Role |
Period |
No. of publicationsNo. of publications |
| 1. |
22467 |
PhD Gorazd Bajc |
Historiography |
Head |
2007 - 2008 |
383 |
Organisations (1)
Abstract
The project proposer will research British and American secret diplomacy and intelligence services in during the years from 1940 to 1947 in the Primorska region and Friuli. The basic thesis is, that already during World War II, the authorities of the United Kingdom (the UK) and the United States of America (the USA), on the basis of confidential/secret and special information, decided to establish conditions for the containment of Communism; also in one of the most vulnerable parts of the Mediterranean, in the Primorska region and in Friuli. At the end of 1940’, in the preventive anti-Communist fight, special Stay Behind (SB) organisations (for example Gladio) were established in western Europe. Similarly to some western countries, the very beginnings of SB go back to the last period of World War II.
The research will analyse international and local circumstances, which influenced the establishment and development of local SB. Therefore, the proposer will study global Anglo-American strategy; the beginnings of Cold War between East and West; the beginnings of diplomatic and secret cooperation of the UK and the USA with local Slovenian and Italian anti-Fascist groups; Anglo-American intelligence service operation and their special missions among various groups of partisans; involvement of the Slovenian politically heterogeneous circles in emigration, relevance of local problems (Yugoslav-Italian conflicts were interwoven with ideological contraposition Communism-anti-Communism). The aim of the research is to obtain new knowledge on sensitive themes of World War II and Cold War, which still divide the scientific circles. The research will be based on the comparison of information in Slovenian and foreign archives, personal legacies, on the basis of oral testimonies and relevant literature. The final study will present the continuation and supplementation of the proposer’s research work on history of intelligence services in Central and South-East Europe, the Mediterranean, western Slovenia and eastern Italy.
Significance for science
The project findings filled some gaps in historical research in Slovenia and abroad. They enabled better understanding of the topics related to Anglo-American secret operation in the Primorska and Friuli regions between 1940 and 1947, which resulted from the fact that the primary sources are easier to access. The unpublished primary archival sources testifying to the operation of British and American secret services (SOE and OSS and also ISLD or MI6) were systematically registered and analyzed. To be more precise, the project took into account the holdings of The National Archives in London and National Archives and Records Administration in Washington. The project results (the published and delivered papers, the database of reproduced primary sources and, last but not least, the experience gained while researching foreign archives) will offer a good starting point for the conception of new research projects on the operation of Anglo-American secret diplomacy, be it in the local regions (Primorska, Istria, Friuli) or in the wider area (the Mediterranean and other regions) in the period spanning from the beginning of WWII to the beginning of the Cold War (i.e. the late 1930s-1947) or in other periods of the 20th century (i.e. the one after WWI or the following year witnessing the rise of authoritative regimes, the conflict between the East and West lasting for almost half a century, etc.). The research results generated by the project facilitate the development of science because they deepen the knowledge of not only one of the most complex periods in Slovene, Italian, British and American history, but also one of the most controversial issues in British and American history (i.e. the operation of their diplomacy and secret services), and enable better and more objective judgment of Slovene history during WWII and the beginning of the Cold War, which can have a positive impact on heated discussions about Slovene past. In addition, the project enabled Slovene historians to get acquainted with the following elements: 1) new archival sources held in foreign countries, in particular Great Britain and the USA, as well as Italy and Serbia (former Yugoslavia), etc.; 2) the most relevant documents and papers published abroad that, as a rule, are less familiar to or difficult to obtain in the Slovene research area; 3) new methodology for studying the history of secret services; 4) the codes and secret names appearing in unpublished archival documents of Anglo-American secret services; 5) international research on similar topics and vice versa. The project also facilitated not only the development of educational institutions in Slovenia, but also other scientific disciplines (defence studies, political studies, political geography).
The project results disseminated through publication in scientific journals or presentation at international scientific conferences will be useful for further scientific research on the history of Anglo-American diplomacy, Anglo-American and other secret services, the origins of stay-behind organizations (i.e. the Italian organization “Gladio” and its predecessor) whose primary mission was to contain Communism, NATO and its counterpart – the Warsaw Pact, Italian and Slovene anti-Fascism (in particular their different stances, etc.), Slovene/Yugoslav-Italian relations, and arrests, deportations, and executions committed after 1 May 1945 in the Julian March (»foibas«).
Last but not least, the project results are of vital importance for the continuity of the work of our research institution (Science and Research Centre Koper of the University of Primorska) in terms of recording, collecting and analytically studying the information discovered in foreign archival institutions. The past few years saw the formation of an extensive database that increased by several ten thousand copied documents during the two years of this project.
Significance for the country
The project results are significant for the social and economic development of the Republic of Slovenia owing to their potential transfer to practice and application in various fields of research and education in Slovenia and in society in general. The results (both in terms of contents and methodology) will be incorporated into research work conducted at the Science and Research Centre Koper of the University of Primorska, in particular within the framework of the following projects: basic research project “Problems of the History of Slovene-Italian Relations” (principal investigator: Dr Egon Pelikan), applied research project “Mediterranean Slovenia as A Convergence Point of European History” (principal investigator: Dr Jože Pirjevec), and target research project “Experiences of Primorska Slovenes Gained in Unconventional Warfare at Home and Abroad” (principal investigator: Dr Egon Pelikan). By doing so, we will assure the continuity of the set goals and research itself.
The results (in particular those related to the contents) will also be incorporated into syllabi of undergraduate and postgraduate study programmes conducted at the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Primorska, in particular in the following undergraduate subjects: History of the (Slavic-Romance) Border, World Wars and European Society in the 20th Century, New Europe, 19th and 20th Centuries Slovene History, General History of the 20th Century, Period of Totalitarian Regimes – Their Rise and Downfall. As for the postgraduate programmes, they will be used for teaching the following subjects: WWII – Global, National and Regional Dimensions, Ideologies of the 20th Century, Comparative History of Southeastern Europe in the 19th and 20th Centuries.
The research conducted within the project, the dissemination of the project results and the record and reproduction of previously unused primary archival sources (largely from London and Washington archives) on arrests, deportations and executions after 1 May 1945 in the Julian March (“foibas”) are of vital importance for the Republic of Slovenia as they provide a scientific clarification of unsolved problems that have affected the Slovene-Italian relations for more than a decade. The question of how to respond, if at all, to the frequent use and political abuse of the term “foiba” in order not to make the atmosphere ever more tense is cyclically resurrected. So far, none of the Slovene presidents, governments and ministers of foreign affairs could ignore this burning diplomatic issue.
The project results and further use of new knowledge and experience will also improve the understanding of and research on certain social processes and changes (often resulting from Anglo-American interventions during the Cold War), in particular those related to ethnic issues and interethnic relations in the Primorska and Friuli regions, as well as relevant scientific and political questions that they raise.
The project results will also provide a useful scientific basis for the formation of an objective and unprejudiced attitude towards extremely delicate topics such as the history and current status of secret services, which are of vital importance to every state.
They will also facilitate the planning of efficient promotion of Slovene science abroad, be it in neighbouring countries (especially Italy) or elsewhere.
Last but not least, they will also provide interesting contents to printed and electronic media (local, national, and foreign), which have already proved to be very interested in previous presentations of scientific findings.
Most important scientific results
Final report,
complete report on dLib.si
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Final report,
complete report on dLib.si
