Travellers of the World Revolution

The history of the 20th century cannot be understood without the history of communism. With the Communist International, a revolutionary project took shape in 1919 that was founded on an effectively organised and globally interconnected avantgarde.

Paying special attention to a group of transnationally active women and men, Brigitte Studer creates an overall picture of the Comintern from a global perspective – from Moscow and Berlin to Baku and Tashkent, to Wuhan and Shanghai. She shows the social reality of the world of Comintern that was based on a division of labour and the experiences, hopes and disappointments of people for whom the revolution was both work and raison d’être.

»This is a book that is not primarily focused on the chequered politics of the Comintern but on the lived experiences of the acting persons. It was written by the Swiss historian Brigitte Studer, who has been conducting research in this field for decades and has surveyed a plethora of primary and secondary sources.« Gero von Randow, DIE ZEIT

»Studer’s book […] delivers even more than its title promises.« Florian Wilde, neues deutschland

»Looking back at the ›global history‹ of the [Communist International], as Brigitte Studer’s excellent book enables us to do, may help us to better understand the contradictions of our time – and perhaps also to take action.« Kurt Seifert, Widerspruch