We live in an international system upended by Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Central and Eastern Europe -- a region largely taken for granted since the end of the Cold War -- is now once again the key battleground for the future of the rules-based global order. This course will offer a broad overview of that region's history since the late 1700s -- through empires, revolutions, and cold wars -- and provide students with the critical tools to develop their own views on that history.