Re-examining Empires from the Margins: Towards a New Imperial History of Europe
This workshop will bring together scholars working at the forefront of new research into the imperial entanglements of European spaces not conventionally thought of as major imperial powers (e.g. the Nordic countries and parts of Central and Eastern Europe). The purpose of the event is to provide an opportunity to take stock and learn from each other, but also to identify gaps in the emerging literature and push the field into fruitful new directions transcending individual national contexts.
Re-examining Empires from the Margins: Towards a New Imperial History of Europe
The last decade or so has seen the emergence of a body of literature examining the imperial entanglements of such ‘marginal’ or ‘minor’ countries as, for example, Norway (Kjerland & Bertelsen, 2015) or Switzerland (Purtschert & Fischer-Tiné, 2015). In addition to English-language works, this has also included a number of publications in smaller languages, including dedicated special issues on Finland (Lahti & Kullaa, 2020) and Sweden (Für & Hennessey, 2020). Simultaneously, the latest historiography on major empires (e.g. Schär, 2019) has also tended to emphasise their nature as transnational entities shaping global flows of people, goods and ideas, rather than merely national enterprises, opening up space for a ‘view from the margins.’
Our workshop will bring together scholars working at the forefront of this new research in a range of European contexts. The purpose of the gathering is to provide an opportunity to take stock and learn from each other, but also to identify gaps in the emerging literature and push the field into fruitful new directions. Three issues in particular will guide the discussion: