The World War I did not end in Novem­ber 1918 but triggered a shockwave of violence — revolutions, civil wars and bloody border clashes that lasted down to the 1920s. These by now almost forgotten conflicts — that erupted not only in Russia, but elsewhere in Eastern and Central Europe, Ireland, the Middle East and Anatolia — claimed the lives of millions of people.

War in Peace explores paramilitary vi­olence in a time of peace by offering a closer look at the Russian Civil War and the effect that it had on other regions. Revolutionary euphoria or fear of Bol­shevism, territorial and border disputes or high hopes dashed in the aftermath of the Great War, propelled discon­tented masses towards paramilitary violence, which, in turn, led to the radicalization of political culture and the roughening of social life.

The book is published as part of the sub-series Studia europaea — a joint project of the German Historical Institute Moscow (DHI Moscow) and the New Lit­erary Observer publishing house.