This is a sel -a chi ed e sion o an o iginal a icle. This e sion
may di e om he o iginal in pagina ion and ypog aphic de ails.
Au ho (s):
Ti le:
Yea :
Ve sion:
Copy igh :
Righ s:
Righ s u l:
Please ci e he o iginal e sion:
CC BY 4.0
h ps://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/4.0/
Engels on Co up ion
© 2021 ki joi aja
Published e sion
Rönnq is , Mi iam
Rönnq is , M. (2021). Engels on Co up ion. Ennen ja ny , 21(5), 114-125.
h ps://jou nal. i/ennenjany /a icle/ iew/111908
2021
ENNEN JA NYT: HISTORIAN TIETOSANOMAT • 5/2021
KIRJA-ARVOSTELU • Mi iam Rönnq is : Engels on Co up ion
114
KIRJA-ARVOSTELU
Mi iam Rönnq is
Engels on Co up ion
ABSTRAKTI / ABSTRACT
Ki ja-a io käsi elee joh a an saksalaisen ko up io u kija Jens I o Engelsin kah a laajaa
u kimus a. A iossa Engelsin ha ainno yhdis e ään Suomen lähihis o ian kuuluisimpaan
”lau akasajupakkaan” eli silloisen pääminis e i Ma i Vanhasen apaukseen uodel a
2009.
_____________________________________________________________
Mi iam Rönnq is , Åbo Akademi ja Jy äskylän yliopis o, Mi iam.R[email p o ec ed]
A ikkeli kuuluu Jy äskylän yliopis ossa o eu e a an Suomen Aka emian ahoi aman p ojek in In sea ch o co up ion
and bad go e nance p ac ices: Swedish and Finnish expe iences, ca 1614–1917 (Co Go) uo oksiin.
Figu e 1. Engels, Jens I o, The His o y o
Co up ion: F om he Ea ly Mode n Pe-
iod o he 20 h Cen u y (Die Geschich e de
Ko up ion. Von de F ühen Neuzei bis
ins 20. Jah hunde . S. Fische Ve lag,
F ank u am Main, 2014, 423 pages)
Figu e 2. Engels, Jens I o, Is E e y hing
Me ely Bough ? Co up ion in he Fede al
Republic o Ge many since 1949 (Alles nu
gekau ? Ko up ion in de Bundes epublik
sei 1949. Wissenscha liche Buchgesell-
scha , Da ms ad , 2019, 399 pages)
ENNEN JA NYT: HISTORIAN TIETOSANOMAT • 5/2021
KIRJA-ARVOSTELU • Mi iam Rönnq is : Engels on Co up ion
122
In 2009, he Finnish p ess epo ed ha he Cen e Pa y poli ician and P ime Minis e Ma i Vanhanen
was esigning due o medical and p i a e easons. Howe e , i occu ed as he pa y’s image was su e ing
ollowing epo s o undecla ed campaign unding, and la e accusa ions by he media ha ocused on
Vanhanen pe sonally. In es iga i e jou nalis s claimed ha he P ime Minis e had accep ed gi s in o m
o cons uc ion ma e ial o his p i a e home. The ou aged poli ician coun e ed ha hese accusa ions
bo e no u h and in u n an in es iga ion o he media ou le ensued. The claim was ne e ied in cou .
Ne e heless, Vanhanen was las ingly a ec ed by he allega ions.
1
I is p ecisely his pa icula ai o suspicion ha Jens I o Engels, his o ian and p o esso a Tech-
nische Uni e si ä Da ms ad , diagnoses as one o he ca alys s o mode n co up ion c i icism. Engels
is one o Ge many’s o emos expe s on he his o y o co up ion and has published nume ous wo ks
on he opic, among o he s The His o y o Co up ion: F om he Ea ly Mode n Pe iod o he 20 h Cen u y (S.
Fische Ve lag, F ank u am Main, 2014) and Is E e y hing Me ely Bough ? Co up ion in he Fede al Republic
o Ge many since 1949 (Wbg Theiss, Da ms ad , 2019). In combina ion, bo h wo ks encompass mo e han
500 yea s wi h he a o emen ioned anging om he 16 h cen u y o he 20 h cen u y (wi h some cu so y
poin e s owa ds cases o poli ical mic opoli ics in he 2000s and 2010s when he book was published)
and he second anging om 1949 o he 2010s. Rega ding bo h he ch onology and unde lying hemes,
Engels’ second book ollows up o ganically by ocusing on he ime a e Wo ld Wa II and he newly
ounded Republic o Ge many, and a e 1989 he uni ed Republic o Ge many. Na u ally, bo h wo ks
di e om each o he in se e al ways, no only because he his o ian s a es a he ou se o Is E e y hing
Me ely Bough ?
This book is no his o y o ‘co up ion’ since 1945. Buying o o es, b ibe y, en anglemen , pa -
onage, mic opoli ics, back oom deals and he co e p ac ices o powe a e no he objec o his s udy.
A leas no di ec ly: I ocuses on deba es and scandals ha deal wi h hese phenomena.
2
Ano he main di e ence ce ainly is he geog aphical scope. Whe eas he His o y o Co up ion
(2014) comp ises a b oade Eu opean pe spec i e wi h he main ocus on Ge many, G ea B i ain and
F ance and o a lesse deg ee Spain and I aly, he ocus is pu on Ge many in Is E e y hing Me ely Bough
(2019). Ne e heless, Ge man e en s a e con ex ualized wi hin an in e na ional amewo k.
The s a ing poin o he His o y o Co up ion (2014) is he ea ly mode n pe iod in which absolu e
mona chs elied on a ou ed minis e s (Güns lingsminis e ) and mis esses as pa o hei cou s. F om
he e, he ocus mo es o wa d in ime as Engels ollows cases o co up ion, o a he mic opoli ics, o
he F ench Re olu ion and i s mo al aspi a ion o id he coun y o co up and decaden p ac ices. I
ex ends o he igh agains “old co up ion” in G ea B i ain, agains he pa ons o he Caciquismo in
Spain and he as o mismo in I aly be o e inally a ge ing he pe iod o adicalisa ion be ween he Wo ld
Wa s. As is shown, he na ional socialis s po ayed he Weima Republic as a s a e idden wi h co up
p ac ices. Engels’ His o y o Co up ion is simul aneously a his o y o co up ion c i icism (Ko up ionsk i ik).
Thus, he his o ian does no i e o emind he eade o he di e ence be ween ac ual cases o co up ion
(p ac ices) and he in e p e a ion o said e en s. Me hodologically, Engels a emp s o ollow his di iding
line e en i he depic ion o p ac ices and in e p e a ions a e unbalanced in a ou o he la e . This
migh be one o he easons o he a o emen ioned p oclama ion in he la e book (2019) which is no
supposed o be ead as a ‘his o y o co up ion’ bu explici ly ocuses on he deba es accompanying hese
cases.
Re u ning o he His o y o Co up ion Engels iews he F ench Re olu ion as a caesu a, ending he
p emode n gene al pe cep ion o co up ion. In he ea ly mode n pe iod, p ac ices o mic opoli ics did
no au oma ically ha e he nega i e conno a ion ha ma ks he mode n e a un il oday. P io o his,
peoples’ e alua ion depended on he poli ical ac o s’ mo i es, agendas and easoning – i mo i a ed by
ENNEN JA NYT: HISTORIAN TIETOSANOMAT • 5/2021
KIRJA-ARVOSTELU • Mi iam Rönnq is : Engels on Co up ion
123
he common good, he ac o s’ deeds could be conside ed legi ima e. Condemned we e p ac ices ha we e
conduc ed sec e i ely and ha we e exclusi ely mo i a ed by sel -in e es . This dis inc ion disappea ed
in he mode n in e p e a ion ha li ed up a mo al s anda d which o bade poli icians o ac egois ically.
Consequen ly, he pe cep ion o co up ion emained a child o i s own ime, adap ing and changing
acco ding o he mo al compass o co up ion c i icism. Acco ding o Engels, i should be bo ne in mind,
howe e , ha co up ion c i icism could p e alen ly se e a pu pose beyond he e ela ion o indecen
poli ical conduc . O en, i was ins umen alised in o de o disc edi poli ical opponen s. Fu he mo e,
co up ion c i icism equen ly o igina ed wi hin he poli ical eli e i sel – hose membe s accusing he
co up sys em we e ul ima ely he ones bene i ing om i . As indica ed abo e, Engels inds wo ope -
a ing e ms especially bene icial o his oeu e: mic opoli ics (Mik opoli ik c . Engels 2014, 28-35) and
‘No menkonku enz’ (beha iou al no ms in compe i ion, c . Engels 2014, 71-75). The i s concep encom-
passes p ac ices such as a ou s and gi -gi ing, pa onage, ne wo k-building, e c. while no ca ying he
au oma ic nega i e alue-judgemen he e m ‘co up ion’ con eys. The la e , ‘No menkonku enz’,
which he links p ima ily o he ea ly mode n pe iod highligh s he manne in which con lic ing and am-
biguous no ms could co-exis simul aneously.
I is illus a ed as well ha co up ion c i icism in he media can ha e p oblema ic dimensions,
e.g. ela ing o cu en e en s in he 2000s such as he depic ion o mass demons a ions in Thailand in
2006 and 2013/2014 (2014, p. 367). Engels indica es concludingly ha he c i ics o exagge a ed an i-
co up ion campaigns ha e poin ed ou ha hese po en ially ha e a de-poli icising impac . This means
ha i poli ical con lic s a e educed o a c i icism o co up ion by means o discou se, he poli ical
dimension disappea s in a ou o a mo al one. Ul ima ely, his manne o discussion will no be able o
sol e poli ical con lic s. To sum up, he mode n co up ion deba e is cen e ed a ound mo al, he dis inc-
ion be ween p i a e and public-poli ical, he aim o d aw lines and o ca ego ize, he a emp o a oid
‘No menkonku enz’ and mic opoli ics, he ea o inancial ac o s in e ening wi h poli ics, he concep-
ion o global cen es and pe iphe ies and he opposi ion be ween mo al eg ess and poli ical p og ess
(2014, p. 370). P esen day co up ion c i icism has u he mo e a global dimension because NGOs such
as T anspa ency In e na ional ha e come in o exis ence. In bo h o his wo ks, Engels illus a es he me a-
pho s ha ma k he co up ion discou se. On one hand, good poli ical p ac ices a e desc ibed as ans-
pa en and clean, co up ion on he o he hand is alluded o wi h adjec i es such as opaque, muddy, and
di y. Tha his me apho ical discou se ex ends o he No h as well becomes e iden in combina ion
wi h he case o Ma i Vanhanen desc ibed abo e. Acco ding o an a icle published on 24 h o Sep embe
2009 “ he opposi ion conside s Ma i Vanhanen so comp omised due o he campaign unding scandal
ha only his esigna ion could clean he democ acy”.
3
As s a ed abo e, Engels a icula es he u ile a emp o s ongly sepa a e sphe es o he sake o
anspa ency in oday’s mode n li es in 2014 and 2019. I s ands o easons ha his has been u he
ampli ied by he Co id-19 pandemic in 2020: as people mos ly wo k om home and hei mul iple oles
and p o essional and p i a e iden i ies a e bound o o e lap cons an ly, he jux aposi ion o p i a e and
public-poli ical will be ende ed i ually non-exis en .
As Engels men ions ini ially in he His o y o Co up ion he sys ema ic esea ch on co up ion in
Ge many is s ill la gely a esea ch deside a um, especially since deba es on co up ion seem o be en i ely
absen a e 1945. In addi ion o ha , he opens up o u u e esea ch ha apa om poli ics comp ises
o ins ance he inancial wo ld o he wo ld o spo s. All o which he his o ian ocuses on in Is E e y hing
Me ely Bough ? (2019). The s a ing poin o Engels’ s udy is he Ge man people’s appa en gloomy ou look
on he deg ee o co up ion in poli ics. Poli ical ac o s a e iewed as mo e o less suscep i e o co up
p ac ices. An assump ion ha in u n in luences he discou se on co up ion. By sys ema ically analysing
ENNEN JA NYT: HISTORIAN TIETOSANOMAT • 5/2021
KIRJA-ARVOSTELU • Mi iam Rönnq is : Engels on Co up ion
124
he deba es ha ollowed cases o co up ion and he ole o he di e en ac o s ha pa ook o and
shaped he discou se (e.g. he media) Engels succeeds in acing his men ali y back o i s o igin. One o
he cen al conclusions he d aws is an appeal o a p agma ic and less mo ally judgmen al ou look on he
co up ion discou se, some hing he o mula es in his His o y o Co up ion as well.
Engels’ wo ks a e highly ele an because hey a e no limi ed o explaining co up ion o mi-
c opoli ics as his o ical phenomena o limi hemsel es o a desc ip ion o his o ical e en s bu a he
aim o ende he eade sensi i e o he in e p e a ions, mechanisms and c i icisms ha o m ou pe -
cep ion o poli ics in gene al and deba es on co up ion in he media in pa icula . In imes o ‘ ake news’
and populis ic poli ics, wo ld leade s can p esen hemsel es as ou spoken ‘men o he people’ who gain
popula i y no in he leas because o hei sel -p oclaimed image as p ophe s o u h, o en disc edi ing
poli ical ad e sa ies wi h he help o alleged e ela ions o un i poli ical p ac ices. Thus, hey eed in o
he people’s gene al mis us o un anspa en poli ical p ac ices and, on he a end o his spec um,
conspi a ion heo ies. Engels demons a es ha bo h, a gene al deep- oo ed mis us ega ding poli ical
p ac ices, and he medial depic ion ha seems o eed in o his sen imen , did no come in o exis ence in
a acuum. Ins ead, bo h ha e an in e connec ed and long his o y ha no only shapes ou pe cep ion o
wha co up ion and mic opoli ics a e oday, bu he medial deba e as well. In his espec , bo h wo ks
encou age he eade o sc u inise he manne in which we ollow and in e p e news, no only ega ding
co up ion, bu in gene al.
The his o y o co up ion c i icism can maybe encou age a g ea e sensi i i y ega ding he ques ion who
c i icises co up ion and why, ins ead o assuming imp o iden ly ha when he e is smoke he e is i e.
E en when he allega ions p o e jus i ied i canno be dis ega ded ha whis le-blowe s, jou nalis s, an i-
co up ion agencies and scandalis s ha e conc e e and sel -se ing in e es s. This is inciden ally especially
impo an when hese mo i es a e honou able.
4
The con en and in o ma ion in bo h books a e comp ehensi e: While he i s encompasses
nume ous in e na ional cases om he ea ly mode n pe iod o he 20 h cen u y, he second de ails Ge -
man cases me iculously and wi hin a la ge con ex o in e na ional de elopmen s. We e i no o he
compelling language, ollowing he de ailed analyses could p o e a he challenging. Ins ead, Engels suc-
ceeds in depic ing a ple ho a o e en s and complica ed deba es, shi ing be ween di e en ac o s and
coun ies while keeping he eade engaged. The humo is ic unde ones ha occasionally shine h ough
his s yle ne e beli le his o ical ac o s o po ay hem in a condescending ma e . Bo h wo ks emain
e y much scien i ic analyses despi e he ac ha hey a e a pleasu e o ead.

ENNEN JA NYT: HISTORIAN TIETOSANOMAT • 5/2021
KIRJA-ARVOSTELU • Mi iam Rönnq is : Engels on Co up ion
125
1
h ps://s enska.yle. i/a/7-455692
2
“Dieses Buch is keine Geschich e ,de Ko up ion‘ sei 1945. S immenkau , Bes echung, Ve ilzung, Pa onage, Mik opoli-
ik, Hin e zimme gesp äche und die e schwiegenen P ak iken de Mach sind nich Gegens and diese Un e suchung. Jeden-
alls sind sie es nich di ek : Es wi d um Deba en und Skandale gehen, die sich mi diesen Phänomenen beschä igen.” Engels,
Jens I o, Alles nu gekau ? P. 12.
3
“Opposi ionen anse a Ma i Vanhanen ä så komp ome e ad a al inansie ngsskandalen a ba a hans a gång kan ena
demok a in.“ Published 24 h o Sep embe , 2009. Blässa , E a, “Opposi ionen k ä e Vanhanens a gång“
h ps://s enska.yle. i/a/7-344486
4
“Vielleich kann die Geschich e de Ko up ionsk i ik dazu an egen, sensible ü die F age zu sein, we wa um Ko up ion
k i isie , s a e lexha da on auszugehen, dass do , wo Rauch au s eig , ein Feue sein muss. Selbs wenn die Vo wü e
ge ech e ig sind, schließ das keineswegs aus, dass Whis leblowe , Jou nalis en, An iko up ionsagen u en und Skandalie e
konk e e eigennü zige Mo i e e olgen. Dies is im Üb igen auch dann wich ig, wenn diese Mo i e eh enwe sind.” Engels,
Jens I o, Die Geschich e de Ko up ion. Von de F ühen Neuzei bis in s20. Jah hunde .F ank u am Main 2014, p.372.