Professor Timothy Garton Ash is a British historian, author, commentator and Professor of European Studies at Oxford University. Professor Garton Ash witnessed some of the most critical moments in the Eastern Bloc during the 1980s as these populations threw off Communist rule.He provides us with vivid details of his time in East Germany, Gdansk, Poland where in 1980 the first free trade union in the Eastern Bloc was formed, and his time with then dissident Vaclav Havel when the Czechoslovak Communist government resigned in 1989.Professor Garton Ash genuinely had a front row seat to history and provides us with fascinating and profound analysis of those incredible years.I do really need your help to allow me to find the time to continue producing and preserving these Cold War stories. I’m asking is for listeners to pledge a monthly donation of at least $4, £3 or €3 per month to help keep the podcast on the air, although larger amounts are welcome too. If you donate monthly via Patreon you will get the sought after CWC and bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history.Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/If a financial contribution is not your cup of tea, then you can still help us by leaving written reviews wherever you listen to us as well as sharing us on social media. It really helps us get new guests on the show.I am delighted to welcome Professor Garton Ash to our Cold War conversation…

UK listeners - Professor Garton Ash's books are available hereUS listeners - Professor Garton Ash's books are available hereThere’s further information on this episode in our show notes which can also be found as a link in your podcast app here. https://coldwarconversations.com/episode158/If you can’t wait for next week’s episode do visit our Facebook discussion group where guests and listeners continue the Cold War Conversation. Just search Cold War Conversations in Facebook.Thank you very much for listening. It is really appreciated.

Episode photo by By Daniel Vegel (www.vegeldaniel.com) - This file has been extracted from file: Timothy-Garton-Ash-Daniel-Vegel-CEU-Lecture-2017.jpg, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=59301308

Support the project! https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/ColdWarPodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/Youtube https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations0:00 Introduction and background of Professor Timothy Garton Ash2:02 Donations and support options3:23 Professor Timothy Garton Ash's experiences and research in East Berlin12:37 Discussion on the Stasi file and its contents20:05 The eruption of the Solidarity movement in Poland and the strikes in Gdansk33:20 Professor Garton Ash's involvement in the Solidarity movement39:00 The political climate in Poland during the 1980s and the journey towards freedom43:59 Hungary's role in the fall of the Soviet block45:30 The Velvet Revolution in Prague and Vaslav Havel's leadership54:07 Reflection on pivotal moments of the Cold War era in Eastern Europe1:02:00 The regional collaboration of anti-communist groups during the Cold War1:09:02 Acknowledgements and closing remarks from Ian SandersChapters powered by PodcastAI✨Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices