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"Across Eastern Europe and Russia in the first half of the twentieth century, conflict and violence arising out of foreign and civil wars, occupation, revolutions, social and ethnic restructuring and racial persecution caused countless millions of children to be torn from their homes. Examines the powerful and tragic history of child displacement in this region and the efforts of states, international organizations and others to 're-place' uprooted, and often orphaned, children. By analysing the causes, character and course of child displacement, and examining through first-person testimonies the children's experiences and later memories, the chapters in this volume shed new light on twentieth-century nation-building and social engineering and the emergence of modern concepts and practices of statehood, children's rights and humanitarianism. Contributors are: Tomas Balkelis, Rachel Faircloth Green, Gabriel Finder, Michael Kaznelson, Aldis Purs, Karl D. Qualls, Elizabeth White, Tara Zahra"--Provided by publisher

"In 1920, Lenin authorised a plan to transform Karelia, a Russian territory adjacent to Finland, into a showcase Soviet autonomous region, to show what could be achieved by socialist nationalities policy and economic planning, and to encourage other countries to follow this example. However, Stalin's accession to power brought a change of policy towards the periphery - the encouragement of local autonomy which had been a key part of Karelias model development was reversed, the state border was sealed to the outside world, and large parts of the republic's territory were given over to Gulag labour camps controlled by the NKVD, the precursor of the KGB. Using recently declassified party, state, and security police documents, this book traces the evolution of Soviet Karelia in the interwar period, discussing amongst other things how political relations between Moscow and the regional leadership changed over time; the nature of its spatial, economic and demographic development; and the origins of the massive repressions launched in 1937 against the local population."--Jacket