Central Asia has been a crossroads of world and religious history for two millennia. Persians, Greeks, Arabs, Mongols, Turkic peoples and Russians had their territories here. Zarathustrians, Buddhists, Jews, Christians and Muslims shaped the culture of the region. After the October Revolution, the new Soviet power founded the five republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, which became independent states in 1991. For many Europeans, they are still largely unknown territories. Thomas Kunze describes the history, language, culture and politics of the region, combined with a look at the major tourist cities and the everyday lives of the people. Close

The images of the executed dictator Nicolae Ceausescu went around the world in December 1989. Before he was overthrown in a bloody uprising, he had been at the head of the Romanian state for over 20 years. He had moved skillfully on the world political stage and was also a sought-after interlocutor with Western statesmen for a long time. The Securitate secret police protected his position of power by all means. Over time, an absurd cult of personality developed around the "Conducator". His family lived in luxury while the population froze and starved in the 1980s. Thomas Kunze published the first biography of Ceausescu after 1989 in 2000. It was later translated into Romanian and is considered a standard work. Twenty years after the fall of Nicolae Ceausescu, it is now being published in a revised 3rd edition. close

For the new edition of the book, which was first published in 2011, historian Thomas Kunze and journalist Thomas Vogel have once again embarked on a journey through the 15 former Soviet republics. In their description of the dramatic changes of the past 25 years, they also take into account recent events and conflicts, such as the clashes in Ukraine. The book is a combination of contemporary historical analysis and lively travelogue. close

In December 1989, photos of the execution of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu circulated the world. Before he was overthrown by a bloody revolution, he had ruled Romania for more than two decades, surrounded by a bizarre cult of the individual on the model of Stalin and the communist leaders of the Far East. The regime of the grandiose mania-ridden Conducator, wishing to apply models taken from North Korean communism in the middle of Europe, made Romania a real hell on earth. Ceausescu's Romania became a country of widespread misery, and the notorious Securitate secret police - a symbol of bloody terror even for its socialist neighbors. Thomas Kunze's biography of Ceausescu is widely regarded - including in Romania - as a classic position. Twenty years after the overthrow of Nicolae Ceausescu, the latest third edition of the book has been published. close

"Honey of the world", "New Bonaparte" or "Born from heaven" - this is how dictators such as Nicolae Ceausescu, Emperor Bokassa or Kim Jong Un have been and still are paid homage to. Eulogies are written, hymns composed, gigantic monuments carved into mountains, tens of thousands gather to celebrate a person excessively as "father", "leader" or "eternal" - the political cult of personality blossoms in bizarre ways. In totalitarian regimes, it covers up criminal abysses and consolidates one-person rule. But personality cults also exist in other political circumstances, just think of the enthusiasm for the British royal family. The book presents more than 20 people from contemporary history and the sometimes absurd cult surrounding them: Hitler and Stalin as well as Mao and Kim Il Sung or Gaddafi and Khomeini. Their stories illustrate how personality cults develop and what forms they can take. close

Erich Honecker was overthrown in October 1989. Three weeks later, the Wall came down and with it the GDR. The once most powerful man in the "first socialist state on German soil" experienced a deep fall. He spent the following years of his life in a vicarage, embassies, hospitals and prisons. He finally sought asylum in Moscow and Santiago de Chile, where he died in 1994. Thomas Kunze describes Erich Honecker's dramatic life between his fall and death, the conflicts with his former companions and the clashes with the German judiciary. The result is a vivid picture of the turbulent years of upheaval following the peaceful revolution. Schließen

The GDR once made an honest effort to gain international recognition with considerable success. To this day, the memory of the "workers' and peasants' state" and its development projects is cherished intensively in some countries. People in Cuba ride Simson mopeds to the GDR beach, people in Namibia meet up at the Ossi Club, you can buy Thuringian sausages in Hanoi and Hollywood stars are enthusiastic about the pictures of the Leipzig School. In July 2008, Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega awarded Erich Honecker's widow a medal for her former support of the GDR. The volume, edited by Thomas Kunze and Thomas Vogel, provides insights into the afterlife of a vanished state through more than 20 examples. Politicians, artists, journalists, historians and diplomats write about what has survived from the GDR into the 21st century 20 years after German reunification and how remembrance sometimes takes on strange forms. close

Since the 1980s, processes have been taking place worldwide that are comparable to the major turning points in world history in terms of their political, economic and ethical dimensions and the depth of change. The world-historical ruptures of the 21st century are accompanied by tectonic upheavals, social quakes, wars and crises that can hardly be understood with familiar patterns of perception. A new world order is gradually emerging. Internationally, processes are in motion, the end of which no one can yet foresee. close

In October 2007, construction workers discovered an underground vault in the center of Moscow, not far from the Kremlin, in which 34 human skeletons were found. They are presumably victims of Stalin's repressive measures. Moscow's underground is not the only place full of secrets; bunkers, tunnels and secret metro lines. There are underground facilities all over Russia that are difficult to access or are still subject to secrecy: Stone Age caves, medieval catacombs, Tsarist fortifications, underground cities from the Stalin era, huge nuclear bunkers from the Cold War period and ambitious large-scale projects in today's Russia. Thomas Kunze spent several years roaming the vast country. From the White Sea to Dagestan and from Vladivostok to Kaliningrad, he traveled to places that few foreigners have ever seen. His exploration of the Russian underworlds is a journey through the history of the Russian empire and provides fascinating insights into an unknown Russia. This volume contains more than 200 photos, most of which are unpublished. close

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