The second of two episodes on the re-birth of Poland. When the borders of Poland were finally settled, the nation was larger than most had anticipated, including lands to the east that had substantial minority populations.

All this territory came at a price: warfare and poor relations with the new neighbors.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening Theme

Mazurka in A Minor
Composed ca. 1840 by Frédéric Chopin. Public domain.
Performed by Olga Gurevich. Public domain recording. Source.

Closing Theme 

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

The first of two episodes on the birth of Poland. Here, Poland arises from the chaos in the east following the Armistice.

This is a bonus episode, released on Christmas Day as a gift to my listeners.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening Theme

Minuet in G
Composed in 1887 by Ignacy Jan Paderewski. Public domain.
Performed by Markus Staab and used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY 3.0 license. Source.

Closing Theme 

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

We conclude our series on post-war Austria-Hungary by considering the births of the new nations of Austria and Hungary.

Also, the lives of two young Hungarians of the time who became influential figures in the US motion picture industry.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening Theme

Frühlingsstimmen (Voices of Spring)
Composed in 1882 by Johann Strauss II. Public domain.
Public domain recording. Source.

String Quartet No. 2
Composed in 1917 by Béla Bartók. Public domain.
Performed by Luis Sarro and used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 license. Source.

Closing Theme 

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

In the second of our three-part series on post-war Austria-Hungary, we look at the creation of Yugoslavia and the transfer of Transylvania to Romania.

Romania’s Queen Marie (above) played an important role in the peace talks.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening Theme

“Himna Kraljevine Jugoslavije” (The national anthem of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.)
Composed in 1918 by Davorin Jenko and Josef Runjanin. Public domain.
Public domain recording. Source.

Romanian Folk Dances, No. 2
Composed in 1915 by Béla Bartók. Public domain.
Performed by Papalin. Public domain recording. Source.

Closing Theme 

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.

We begin our series examining the world of 1919 with the first of a three-part series on the post-war fate of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

We begin with Czechoslovakia. It has already declared its independence, but what should be its borders?

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• Transcript.

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Playlist:

Fanfare

Opening Theme

“Kde domov můj” (The national anthem of the Czech Republic.)
Composed in 1834 by František Škroup and Josef Kajetán Tyl. Public domain.
Public domain recording. Source.

Closing Theme 

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Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.