Skip to main content
This article focuses on the shift toward post-revolutionary politics supported by reform-minded aristocratic clans and their bourgeois allies. Using the example of the Balbo family-one of the leading aristocratic families in... more
This article focuses on the shift toward post-revolutionary politics supported by reform-minded aristocratic clans and their bourgeois allies. Using the example of the Balbo family-one of the leading aristocratic families in Sardinia-Piedmont-I will argue that the quest for stability and pragmatism is crucial to understanding the political, cultural, and ideological reorientations within the noble-bourgeois elites in the first age of global revolutions. Family history is a lens through which it is possible to look afresh at this vital period of social transformations, state expansion, and political modernization. The article explores the Balbos' family history across generations and genders, not only in the revolutionary and Napoleonic period, but also in the decades after the Congress of Vienna. In doing so, it sheds new light on the course of state-building processes, constitutional reforms, and the formation of a new, composite elite, which would largely dominate European politics until the end of the nineteenth century.
The article examines the state of emergency in Saxony during the Prussian occupation in the summer of 1866. I will put forward the thesis that the successful crisis management of the state's internal affairs was decisive for the survival... more
The article examines the state of emergency in Saxony during the Prussian occupation in the summer of 1866. I will put forward the thesis that the successful crisis management of the state's internal affairs was decisive for the survival of Saxony as an independent kingdom. The Politics of Crisis Management are analysed in six points: the preservation of political-administrative indipendence under Prussian occupation, the promotion of a cooperation-oriented de-escalation policy towards the occupiers, the effective crisis communication, the activities of nonstate organisations and crisis response at the diplomatic level. Finally, conclusions are drawn in relation to modern crisis policy and its effects on the stabilisation of society or the exacerbation of conflict. The course of the state of emergency in 1866 shows that the foreign policy dimension of modern crises is often overestimated and that successful crisis management relies primarily on financial, administrative-technical and socio-political measures.
In the late-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Europe experienced labour conflicts, unprecedented in their character, intensity and scope. From the waves of strikes and social conflicts of the pre-war era, through the ordeal of the... more
In the late-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Europe experienced labour conflicts, unprecedented in their character, intensity and scope. From the waves of strikes and social conflicts of the pre-war era, through the ordeal of the First World War, and the extraordinary violence of the post-1917 upheavals, the revolutionary potential of mass strikes never ceased to torment those who were assigned, or self-appointed, to protect the threatened order. The purpose of this article is to analyse the repertoire of actions and ideas of right-wing civil defence leagues, vigilante organisations, private police and yellow unions which emerged at the end of the century, and most noticeably in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution of 1905. This phenomenon is considered in a comparative and transnational perspective, with a particular focus on the most industrialised societies of pre-war Europe: France, Germany and Great Britain. The article provides a systematisation and assessment of the different forms, types and characteristics of this process of relative privatisation and realignment in security roles, outlying trends and shared clusters of ideological beliefs in violent activity across various industries and national contexts. The article shows how the pre-war experience of vigilantism, anti-socialism and nationalism would represent a key incentive to the development of governmental strikebreaking schemes as well as an important situational antecedent for citizens’ militias and right-wing paramilitary organisations in the aftermath of the Great War.
Looking at crucial periods in the history of early twentieth-century Germany, this chapter investigates how the governing apparatus responded to social unrest and political protest. It focuses on the legal framework under which emergency... more
Looking at crucial periods in the history of early twentieth-century Germany, this chapter investigates how the governing apparatus responded to social unrest and political protest. It focuses on the legal framework under which emergency powers operated and the "mentality" behind the use and abuse of exceptional powers in the late Wilhelmine and early Weimar period. In doing so, the chapter draws attention to the short-term continuities between the semi-authoritarian German Empire, especially after the declaration of the state of siege in 1914, and the construction of Weimar democracy in a near civil war situation after the November Revolution. Both regimes were confronted with a sense of political crisis, which reached its full expression after 1917 and was exacerbated by fears of Bolshevism and the shock of military defeat. The chapter also looks at the long-term patterns and discontinuities in the conception and implementation of emergency powers in the period between the Bismarck era and the collapse of the Weimar Republic. The German Empire, created in 1871, was an authoritarian monarchy, with influential political and social milieus that were openly against.
Prospero Balbo, the head of a leading Piedmontese noble family, followed a career path similar to that of the versatile French statesman Talleyrand. In the aftermath of 1789, Balbo served under four different regimes: the Old Regime... more
Prospero Balbo, the head of a leading Piedmontese noble family, followed a career path similar to that of the versatile French statesman Talleyrand. In the aftermath of 1789, Balbo served under four different regimes: the Old Regime monarchy, the Russian provisional administration of Piedmont in 1799, the Napoleonic empire, and the restored Savoy monarchy. After the short-lived revolutionary movement of 1821 in Sardinia-Piedmont, Prospero lost his job as interior minister and his son, Cesare, was forced into exile. The revolutionary waves of 1820-1821 were the most recent of numerous disruptive events and regime changes that jeopardized Europe and the Atlantic world between the late 1770 s and the early 1820 s. These five decades of revolutionary upheavals, wars, and persistent insecurity forced the traditional elites to mobilize their material, cultural, and social resources to preserve their prestige and power. Based on extensive archival research, this article examines the resilience-strengthening resources and strategies implemented by members of the Balbo family during periods of political turmoil. In doing so, the article aims to develop an analytical and conceptual framework to describe historical processes in terms of resilience and vulnerability. This new approach enables us to look afresh at elite transformations and at the dynamics of political change and continuity in early nineteenth-century Europe.
Special issue of the JMIS: "Divided Unities. Nineteenth-Century Italy and Germany beyond National Narrative"
This article offers a comparative and transnational analysis of the Yellow counter- internationalist movement. Created in France at the turn of the twentieth century, this movement rapidly expanded beyond the national framework,... more
This article offers a comparative and transnational analysis of the Yellow counter- internationalist movement. Created in France at the turn of the twentieth century, this movement rapidly expanded beyond the national framework, particularly in Germany in the years preceding the First World War. The comparative approach reveals how this movement developed on both sides of the Rhine in keeping with different political contexts – variations underscored by the movement’s transnational connections.
In looking back at the European and Atlantic Revolutions between 1770 and 1850, a rapidly growing audience in Italy and Germany imagined new ways of patriotism, loyalty, and political participation. The transnational circulation of... more
In looking back at the European and Atlantic Revolutions between 1770 and 1850, a rapidly growing audience in Italy and Germany imagined new ways of patriotism, loyalty, and political participation. The transnational circulation of experiences and narratives of revolution generated new discourses of political legitimacy and deeply influenced the controversial relation between change and continuity in nineteenth-century Europe. Fear of revolution and disorientation coexisted with an increased belief in progress and with teleological concepts of modernization and nationalism. 1 This chapter aims to understand how the monarchical states in Prussia and Sardinia-Piedmont—the leading players in Germany and Italy respectively—were able (at least in the medium-term) to deal with the big impact of the revolution of 1848 on the transformation of political sentiments , argumentative patterns, and communication forums. The resilience of the monarchical state included the reinvention of historical continuity as well as the rearrangement of the leading concepts of
Research Interests:
This essay analyses the history of the modern monarchical state in nineteenth century Saxony and Wurttemberg. It examines a long period of time between the Napoleonic Wars and the end of the First World War with the aim of shedding light... more
This essay analyses the history of the modern monarchical state in nineteenth century Saxony and Wurttemberg. It examines a long period of time between the Napoleonic Wars and the end of the First World War with the aim of shedding light on both short-term and long-term transformations that had an impact on the monarchy’s political and cultural role. The fall of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and the collapse of the German Empire in 1918 marked two major turning points in the history of Saxony and Wurttemberg. In the period between these disruptive events the monarchical state managed to achieve successful reforms and showed resilience in the face of major threats such as the liberal revolutions at the mid-century, the rise of nationalism, social change, the emergence of the labour movement and the political mass market during the last decades before the outbreak of the First World War. The article aims at describing historical processes of transformation in terms of resilience and vulnerability; notably, the continuity through change in two medium-sized European monarchies.
This article examines the anti-liberal and anti-feminist message spread by literary best sellers like those of German writers Luise Hensel, Ida Hahn, and Marie Nathusius. After the turning point of 1848 and until the first decades of the... more
This article examines the anti-liberal and anti-feminist message spread by literary best sellers like those of German writers Luise Hensel, Ida Hahn, and Marie Nathusius. After the turning point of 1848 and until the first decades of the twentieth century, the numerous translations of these three women writers (one Protestant and two Catholics) dissemina- ted and readapted profoundly conservative visions through popular literature. Their not explicitly political message was able to underpin traditional gender roles, Christian values, confessional identities, and anti-liberalism in an age of progress and modernisation. The extraordinary success of these German-language novels was based on well-established networks of translators, publishers, religious organizations and conservative politicians that went far beyond the borders of the German states. This article not only investigates literary expressions of popular conservatism and its transnational dissemination but it also shed new lights on the conservative mobilization against women’s emancipation in late nineteenth century Germany.
Pragmatism and progress. The Political discourse in Europe between Juste milieu and Realpolitik (1830-1860). The emerging political culture of Juste Milieu and the career of the «moderate» project of politics were two main agents of... more
Pragmatism and progress. The Political discourse in Europe between Juste milieu and Realpolitik (1830-1860). The emerging political culture of Juste Milieu and the career of the «moderate» project of politics were two main agents of change in nineteenth-century Eu-rope. The article analyses the plurality of argumentative patterns and semantic transformations around the concept of «middle way» from the French Revolution up to the Ital-ian and German nation building after 1860. The controversial juxtaposition between the conservative-based symbolic language of politics and the growing expectation of liberal reforms led to a widespread debate across Europe. Especially after the July Revolution in 1830, country specific terms and political discourses on the paradigm of moderatism emerged not only in France but also in Germany, Italy and in the Iberian Peninsula. Liberal and conservative moderates were successful in initiating and implementing constitutional reforms and nation building. They convincingly proclaimed to prevent future instability and to refuse to comply with the two opposite extremisms of revolution and reactionary conservatism. This paper proposes to reassess the Age of Revolution paradigm and to examine the first half of the nineteenth century as a period of moderatism-led crucial transformations of modern political discourse.
The decision makers at the Congress of Vienna were not true pacifists but they wanted to prevent future wars in Europe. Metternich, Lord Castlereagh, Tsar Alexander I and Tailleyrand did not really believed in liberalism but in... more
The decision makers at the Congress of Vienna were not true pacifists but they wanted to prevent future wars in Europe. Metternich, Lord Castlereagh, Tsar Alexander I and Tailleyrand did not really believed in liberalism but in Realpolitik. They aimed to uphold the monarchical principle but, at the same time, they supported the modernisation of international order. After the turmoil of the French Revolution and the collapse of the Napoleonic Empire, they attempted to stabilize Europe within a balance of power system. The present paper aims at providing a critical review of the most important contributions on the occasion of the bicentennial anniversary of the Congress. Was the partial restoration of European monarchies simply a source of oppression or, by contrast, the continuation of revolution by other means? This paper examines the positive achievements of the Congress system such as moderate constitutionalism and the emerge of a Euro-pean culture of peace and security, on the one hand, and the negative consequences of 1815 including strong limitations on freedom and relocation of conflicts outside Europe on the other.
Zugleich mit ihren unmittelbaren Konsequenzen für den politischen Kontext transferierte die Rezeption der italienischen Nationalstaatsgründung einen diskursiv-intellektuellen Impuls, der in Preußen nach einem Jahrzehnt latenter Spannung... more
Zugleich mit ihren unmittelbaren Konsequenzen für den politischen Kontext transferierte die Rezeption der italienischen Nationalstaatsgründung einen diskursiv-intellektuellen Impuls, der in Preußen nach einem Jahrzehnt latenter Spannung entscheidend zur Beschleunigung und Vervielfältigung der konservativen Auseinandersetzung mit der nationalen Frage beitrug. Angesichts der italienischen Entwicklung artikulierten die preußischen Konservativen heterogene Antworten und Assoziationen, die sich in divergierenden Semantiken, Ideologien und politischen Handlungsoptionen widerspiegelten.
The two main purposes of this chapter are to highlight the persistence of methodological nationalism and to present some “best practices” employed by the new historiography that has moved on from purely national histories. I start by... more
The two main purposes of this chapter are to highlight the persistence of methodological nationalism and to present some “best practices” employed by the new historiography that has moved on from purely national histories. I start by discussing the impact of comparative and transnational history on the traditional interpretative paradigms of Italian and German nation-building and, in particular, on more recent approaches such as gendered and Jewish perspectives. I then analyze the way that national histories have been constructed in time and space. In my third section, I explore the issue of whether methodological nationalism can be avoided by using combined approaches, such as that of comparison, transfer, and entanglement history. How can this three- step method be employed in practice? My concluding remarks examine the vitality of national history, which still tends to overlook the manifold foundations and plurality of collective identities, not just national, in nineteenth-century Italy and Germany.
This article analyzes the public debate around the protection of “willing workers” as well as concrete episodes of antilabor violence in a transnational framework. It offers a reassessment of social conflicts in the period following the... more
This article analyzes the public debate around the protection of “willing workers” as well as concrete episodes of antilabor violence in a transnational framework. It offers a reassessment of social conflicts in the period following the 1905 social mobilizations in central Europe, and it explores the circulation of antilabor measures between Germany and Austria-Hungary, their radicalizing impact, and their connections with labor migration patterns.
This article examines the blurred boundaries between public and private repressive practices in Wilhelmine Germany with a special focus on the legal and administrative framework drawn up to redistribute security tasks and delegate the use... more
This article examines the blurred boundaries between public and private repressive practices in Wilhelmine Germany with a special focus on the legal and administrative framework drawn up to redistribute security tasks and delegate the use of violence to non-state actors. While the rapid escalation of political violence in Central and Eastern Europe after 1917 has been widely discussed in the recent historiography, the structure of violence in the prewar period remains less explored, especially with regard to the public-private interplay in the policing of popular protests. After the first massive strike by Ruhr miners in 1889, the Prussian authorities began to support the formation of semi-private armed protection groups in an effort to tackle 'strike terrorism'. The idea of privatizing repressive practices arose as a result of widespread fears of social and political disintegration. Yet, although it may seem paradoxical, the precondition for delegating the use of violence to non-state actors was Prussian administrators' confidence in the state's solidity and efficiency. The ambivalence in contemporary discourses concerning the vulnerability of the existing social and political order is crucial to explaining why the Prussian authorities implemented strategies for legally distributing arms to those groups that were considered part of the 'loyal classes'. The mobilization against 'strike terrorism' involved not only officially organized armed groups, such as the Zechenwehren, but also more informal or extra-legal strategies such as private use of the municipal police, the distribution of arms to strikebreakers and the militarization of white-collar workers and supervisors.
It was both an aversion and alienation that catholic intellectuals and conservative politicians experienced when confronted with the emerging problems of constitutional reforms and nation-state building in Europe. This article will... more
It was both an aversion and alienation that catholic intellectuals and conservative politicians experienced when confronted with the emerging problems of constitutional reforms and nation-state building in Europe. This article will disclose what factors did stay behind recognition and vanishing of the competing social value systems and legitimacy discourses. The argumentative strategies of catholic intellectuals and conservative politicians in the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont between 1848 and 1860 create a field of special interest.
Auch 150 Jahre nach der Reichsgründung von 1871 werden die Weltmachtambitionen, das Demokratiedefizit und die Reformfähigkeit des ersten deutschen Nationalstaats nach wie vor intensiv diskutiert. Die Geschichte der Gewalt im... more
Auch 150 Jahre nach der Reichsgründung von 1871 werden die Weltmachtambitionen, das Demokratiedefizit und die Reformfähigkeit des ersten deutschen Nationalstaats nach wie vor intensiv diskutiert. Die Geschichte der Gewalt im wilhelminischen Kaiserreich fand hingegen bislang erstaunlich wenig Beachtung, was vor allem an der retrospektiven Einordnung der Epoche vor dem Ersten Weltkrieg als »Zeitalter der Sicherheit« (Stefan Zweig) liegt. Amerigo Carusos Studie zeigt indessen, dass die Erosion der Sicherheit ein wesentliches Merkmal dieser Epoche war und wirft so neues Licht auf soziale Konflikte, Protestbewegungen, staatliche Repression und Privatisierung von Gewalt in den letzten Jahren des Kaiserreichs. Im Fokus stehen dabei die »reale« Bedrohung der wilhelminischen Ordnung durch Massenstreiks und demokratische Partizipation einerseits und die Konstruktion von Unsicherheit andererseits, wie sie in der Kriminalisierung politischer Gegner, in der Medialisierung von Gewalt, in der Militarisierung »loyaler« Bürger und in der Verbindung zwischen Antisozialismus und Radikalnationalismus ihren Ausdruck fand.
Frisch bei Wallstein erschienen
„Ein Meilenstein in der Aufarbeitung der Geschichte des Konservativismus.“ Manfred Hanisch in: H-Soz-Kult, 01.08.2018. „Questo volume apre con successo una pagina nuova di quel tradizionale confronto tra le due unificazioni nazionali,... more
„Ein Meilenstein in der Aufarbeitung der Geschichte des Konservativismus.“
Manfred Hanisch in: H-Soz-Kult, 01.08.2018.

„Questo volume apre con successo una pagina nuova di quel tradizionale confronto tra le due unificazioni nazionali, che ha una lunga storia pregressa nella storiografia tedesca e in quella italiana.“
Marco Meriggi in Quellen und Forschungen aus ital. Archiven und Bibliotheken 98 (2019).

„Der Vergleich zeigt einen europäischen Kommunikationsraum, in dem sich die Konservativen beobachteten und austauschten.“
Dieter Langewiesche in Historische Zeitschrift 307/3 (2018), S. 854–856.

„Caruso non only rediscovers the conservative discourse as a dynamic force within society, but also makes clear its transnational character.“
Maria Stella Chiaruttini in European Review of History, 10.12.2018.

„Argumentiert auf höchstem analytischem Niveau und setzt Maßstäbe für die weitere Forschung zum Konservatismus.“ Siegfried Weichlein in Francia-Recensio 4 (2018).
Obiettivo del progetto è indagare la circolazione tra le due sponde dell’Atlantico di uomini e donne, idee e pratiche rivoluzionarie e contro-rivoluzionarie dalla Rivoluzione americana (1776) alla Comune di Parigi (1871). La ricerca... more
Obiettivo del progetto è indagare la circolazione tra le due sponde dell’Atlantico di uomini e donne, idee e pratiche rivoluzionarie e contro-rivoluzionarie dalla Rivoluzione americana (1776) alla Comune di Parigi (1871). La ricerca prenderà in esame i casi di studio italiano, francese e tedesco e studierà nello specifico il movimento di protagonisti, testi e modelli politici e istituzionali non solo tra Italia, Francia e Germania ma anche da e verso questi tre paesi nello spazio euro-atlantico.

"Révolutions en mouvement. Circulation des idées et des pratiques dans les espaces euro-atlantiques entre 1776 et 1871"
Ce projet vise à étudier la circulation entre les deux rives de l'Atlantique des hommes et des femmes, des idées et des pratiques révolutionnaires et contre-révolutionnaires depuis les débuts de la Révolution américaine (1776) jusqu'à la Commune de Paris (1871). La recherche collective ainsi entreprise examinera des études de cas italiennes, françaises et allemandes et appréhendera plus spécifiquement la circulation des protagonistes, des textes et des modèles politiques non seulement entre l'Italie, la France et l'Allemagne, mais aussi depuis et vers ces trois pays et aires géographiques dans la zone euro-atlantique.

"Transnationale Revolutionen. Ideen und Praktiken im euro-atlantischem Raum (1776-1871)"
Das Projekt setzt sich zum Ziel, die Zirkulation von politischen Ideen, Akteuren und Praktiken im atlantischen Raum zu untersuchen. Im Fokus stehen sowohl revolutionäre Bewegungen als auch Revolutionsgegnerschaft. Der Untersuchungszeitraum umfasst die Jahrzehnte zwischen der Amerikanischen Revolution (1776) und der Pariser Kommune (1871). Ausgehend von Italien, Frankreich und Deutschland wird das Projekt nicht nur der Ideentransfer und die gegenseitige Beeinflussung der politischen Systeme innerhalb Europas berücksichtigen, sondern auch die transnationalen Verflechtungen zwischen Europa und der atlantischen Welt analysieren.
Research Interests:
Obiettivo del progetto è indagare la circolazione tra le due sponde dell’Atlantico di uomini e donne, idee e pratiche rivoluzionarie e contro-rivoluzionarie dalla Rivoluzione americana (1776) alla Comune di Parigi (1871). La ricerca... more
Obiettivo del progetto è indagare la circolazione tra le due sponde dell’Atlantico di uomini e donne, idee e pratiche rivoluzionarie e contro-rivoluzionarie dalla Rivoluzione americana (1776) alla Comune di Parigi (1871). La ricerca prenderà in esame i casi di studio italiano, francese e tedesco e studierà nello specifico il movimento di protagonisti, testi e modelli politici e istituzionali non solo tra Italia, Francia e Germania ma anche da e verso questi tre paesi nello spazio euro-atlantico. 

Das Projekt setzt sich zum Ziel, die Zirkulation von politischen Ideen, Akteuren und Praktiken im atlantischen Raum zu untersuchen. Im Fokus stehen sowohl revolutionäre Bewegungen als auch Revolutionsgegnerschaft. Der Untersuchungszeitraum umfasst die Jahrzehnte zwischen der Amerikanischen Revolution (1776) und der Pariser Kommune (1871). Ausgehend von Italien, Frankreich und Deutschland wird das Projekt nicht nur der Ideentransfer und die gegenseitige Beeinflussung der politischen Systeme innerhalb Europas berücksichtigen, sondern auch die transnationalen Verflechtungen zwischen Europa und der atlantischen Welt analysieren.

Ce projet vise à étudier la circulation entre les deux rives de l'Atlantique des hommes et des femmes, des idées et des pratiques révolutionnaires et contre-révolutionnaires depuis les débuts de la Révolution américaine (1776) jusqu'à la Commune de Paris (1871). La recherche collective ainsi entreprise examinera des études de cas italiennes, françaises et allemandes et appréhendera plus spécifiquement la circulation des protagonistes, des textes et des modèles politiques non seulement entre l'Italie, la France et l'Allemagne, mais aussi depuis et vers ces trois pays et aires géographiques dans la zone euro-atlantique.
Online-Podiumsdiskussion am Montag, 16. Januar 2023, 18:00-19:30 Uhr s.t. via Zoom
Research Interests:
Delphine Diaz et Sylvie Aprile (dir.), Les Réprouvés. Sur les routes de l’exil dans l’Europe du XIXe siècle, Paris 2021.
Research Interests:
Lehrstuhl für Neuere und Neueste Geschichte - Institut für Geschichtswissenschaft - Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
Seit einigen Jahren beobachten HistorikerInnen ein abnehmendes Interesse an der Zeit vor der sogenannten Hochmoderne und diskutieren „the Vanishing Nineteenth Century in European History“. Diese Debatte nimmt der Lehrstuhl für Neuere... more
Seit einigen Jahren beobachten HistorikerInnen ein abnehmendes Interesse an der Zeit vor der sogenannten Hochmoderne und diskutieren „the Vanishing Nineteenth Century in European History“. Diese Debatte nimmt der Lehrstuhl für Neuere Geschichte und Landesgeschichte an der Universität des Saarlandes (Prof. Dr. Gabriele B. Clemens) zum Anlass, sein DFG-Projekt zur Politischen Partizipation in der Provinz (1815–1845) vorzustellen und weitere Forschungen zum 19. Jahrhundert in den Fokus zu rücken.
Im Rahmen des Workshops werden NachwuchswissenschaftlerInnen ihre Ideen und Konzepte zur Diskussion stellen und neue methodische Ansätze an einzelnen Fallbeispielen aus dem europäischen Raum erproben. Durch den Austausch zwischen DoktorandInnen und ausgewiesenen ExpertenInnen sollen alternative Impulse gesetzt und neue Fragestellungen in die klassische Politik- und Ideengeschichte integriert werden, um historische Akteure in ihren Handlungsspielräumen ernst zu nehmen.
“The Golden Age of Security”. Public Debates about Physical Risks, Accidents and Modernity in Germany before the First World War Conference Report:... more
“The Golden Age of Security”. Public Debates about Physical Risks, Accidents and Modernity in Germany before the First World War
Conference Report: https://www.hsozkult.de/conferencereport/id/tagungsberichte-8225?title=die-welt-der-sicherheit-und-ihre-grenzen-medialitaet-von-unfaellen-und-risikodiskurse-im-deutschen-kaiserreich&recno=2&q=&sort=&fq=&total=7928
Research Interests:
Workshop: “The Golden Age of Security”. Public Debates about Physical Risks, Accidents and Modernity in Germany before the First World War Conference Report:... more
Workshop: “The Golden Age of Security”. Public Debates about Physical Risks, Accidents and Modernity in Germany before the First World War
Conference Report: https://www.hsozkult.de/conferencereport/id/tagungsberichte-8225?title=die-welt-der-sicherheit-und-ihre-grenzen-medialitaet-von-unfaellen-und-risikodiskurse-im-deutschen-kaiserreich&recno=2&q=&sort=&fq=&total=7928
---
DIE WELT DER SICHERHEIT UND IHRE GRENZEN. MEDIALITÄT VON UNFÄLLEN UND RISIKODISKURSE IM DEUTSCHEN KAISERREICH
Tagungsbericht: https://www.hsozkult.de/conferencereport/id/tagungsberichte-8225?title=die-welt-der-sicherheit-und-ihre-grenzen-medialitaet-von-unfaellen-und-risikodiskurse-im-deutschen-kaiserreich&recno=2&q=&sort=&fq=&total=7928
Wer die Feierlichkeiten zu 150 Jahre italienischer Nationalstaatsgründung 2010/11 bzw. zu 25 Jahren Mauerfall und deutscher Einheit 2014/15 genauer verfolgt hat, konnte Erstaunliches beobachten: Längst überwunden geglaubte Mythen und... more
Wer die Feierlichkeiten zu 150 Jahre italienischer Nationalstaatsgründung 2010/11 bzw. zu 25 Jahren Mauerfall und deutscher Einheit 2014/15 genauer verfolgt hat, konnte Erstaunliches beobachten: Längst überwunden geglaubte Mythen und teleologische Meistererzählungen zeigen sich erneut in breiter Öffentlichkeit. Obwohl die Geschichtswissenschaft seit der Jahrtausendwende beispielsweise die Darstellung Verdis als nationaler Barde, der antinapoleonischen Kriege als Befreiungskriege oder die vermeintliche Euphorie am Vorabend des Deutsch-Französischen Krieges zunehmend kritisiert hat, bleibt eine scharfe Diskrepanz zwischen professioneller Historiographie und öffentlicher Debatte. Hier setzt das Panel an: Wie lassen sich diese Spaltungen, die sich teils als latente Konflikte, teils als Kommunikationsbarrieren manifestieren, erklären?
Research Interests:
Pandemie gewinnt im historischen Kontext neue Perspektiven
Hat Deutschland gute Chancen, mit einem blauen Auge durch die Corona-Krise zu kommen? Grundsätzlich seien Demokratien besser geeignet als autoritäre Systeme, um mit Krisen umzugehen, sagte der Saarbrücker Historiker Dr. Amerigo Caruso im... more
Hat Deutschland gute Chancen, mit einem blauen Auge durch die Corona-Krise zu kommen? Grundsätzlich seien Demokratien besser geeignet als autoritäre Systeme, um mit Krisen umzugehen, sagte der Saarbrücker Historiker Dr. Amerigo Caruso im SR-Interview.
https://www.sr.de/sr/sr2/themen/politik/20200428_caruso_historiker_demokratien_corona-krise_100.html
Research Interests:
Rezension zu: Bösch, Frank; Deitelhoff, Nicole; Kroll, Stefan (Hrsg.): Handbuch Krisenforschung Wiesbaden  2020. ISBN 978-3-658-28570-8, In: H-Soz-Kult, 14.04.2021, <www.hsozkult.de/publicationreview/id/reb-50298>.
Amerigo Caruso über Aschmann, Birgit (Hrsg.): Durchbruch der Moderne?. Neue Perspektiven auf das 19. Jahrhundert. Frankfurt am Main 2019, in: H-Soz-Kult 01.05.2020.
Research Interests:
Um Bewältigungs-, Anpassungs- und Trans- formationspotentiale bestandsgefährdeter Ordnungssysteme und existenzbedrohter Akteure zu untersuchen, bietet das Resi- lienzkonzept eine solide theoretische und analytische Grundlage. Von dem... more
Um Bewältigungs-, Anpassungs- und Trans- formationspotentiale bestandsgefährdeter Ordnungssysteme und existenzbedrohter Akteure zu untersuchen, bietet das Resi- lienzkonzept eine solide theoretische und analytische Grundlage. Von dem aktuell in der Geschichtswissenschaft eingeführten Begriff der Resilienz ausgehend, setzte sich die 17. Tagung der Arbeitsgemeinschaft für die Neueste Geschichte Italiens zum Ziel, Umdeutungen und Sinnstiftungen krisen- hafter Umbrüche im modernen Italien zu diskutieren.
Research Interests:
Grubenunglücke im Deutschen Kaiserreich. Mediale Resonanz und politische Funktionalisierungen Der Steinkohlenbergbau gehörte zu den Leitsektoren der Wirtschaft im Deutschen Kaiserreich. In der Phase der Hochindustrialisierung stieg die... more
Grubenunglücke im Deutschen Kaiserreich. Mediale Resonanz und politische Funktionalisierungen

Der Steinkohlenbergbau gehörte zu den Leitsektoren der Wirtschaft im Deutschen Kaiserreich. In der Phase der Hochindustrialisierung stieg die Zahl der Bergwerke rasant an, die Produktionsleistung und die Belegschaftsstärken schossen binnen weniger Jahrzehnte in die Höhe. Das Arbeiten unter Tage war traditionell sehr gefahrenträchtig, es kam immer wieder zu Unfällen und Unglücken, bei denen Bergleute ihr Leben verloren.

Zur besonderen Gefahr beim Steinkohlenbergbau wurden ab Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts die so genannten Schlagwetter- und Kohlenstaubexplosionen. Initialisiert durch die Entzündung des im Gewinnungsprozess der Kohle untertägig freigesetzten Methangases hatten diese Vorfälle nicht selten katastrophale Konsequenzen. Insbesondere in den drei Jahrzehnten vor Ausbruch des Ersten Weltkriegs wuchsen sie sich zu Tragödien mit teils mehreren hundert getöteten Bergleuten bei nur einem einzigen Grubenunglück aus.

Der Vortrag befasst sich mit der Frage, wie diese tragischen Unglücke politisch funktionalisiert und medial präsentiert wurden.
Wer die Feierlichkeiten zu 150 Jahren italienischer Nationalstaatsgründung 2010/11 bzw. zu 25 Jahren Mauerfall und deutscher Einheit 2014/15 genauer verfolgt hat, konnte beobachten, dass sich längst überwunden geglaubte Mythen und... more
Wer die Feierlichkeiten zu 150 Jahren italienischer Nationalstaatsgründung 2010/11 bzw. zu 25 Jahren Mauerfall und deutscher Einheit 2014/15 genauer verfolgt hat, konnte beobachten, dass sich längst überwunden geglaubte Mythen und teleologische Meistererzählungen erneut in breiter Öffentlichkeit zeigen. Obwohl die Geschichtswissenschaft seit der Jahrtausendwende beispielsweise die Darstellung Verdis als nationaler Barde oder der antinapoleonischen Kriege als Befreiungskriege kritisiert hat, bleibt eine scharfe Diskrepanz zwischen professioneller Historiographie und öffentlicher Debatte. Die nationalen Integrationsideologien, die sich in der zweiten Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts durchsetzten, wurden hingegen von der damaligen historischen Zunft eifrig unterstützt und trugen von Anfang an ein Janusgesicht: einerseits die beschleunigte, oft diktierte Überwindung von Differenzen; andererseits die Vertiefung bestehender Gräben zwischen sozialen und regionalen Milieus. Die Diskrepanzen heutiger Erinnerungskulturen haben ihren Ursprung in politischen Spaltungen und konkurrierenden Integrationsideologien der gerne als " verspätete Nationen " bezeichneten Länder Deutschland und Italien vor und unmittelbar nach der Gründung der jeweiligen Nationalstaaten. Ziel der Sektion ist es daher, die Vielfalt nationaler Mythologien zu diskutieren und die retrospektiv gewonnenen Rückschlüsse über die nationale Einheit als Telos und einzig legitime Integrationsideologie zu revidieren. Die innovativen Ansätze der Beiträge wollen keine binationale Meistererzählung durch parallel erzählte Erfolgsgeschichten reproduzieren. Vielmehr diskutieren sieben international führende Historikerinnen und Historiker die Prozesse gesellschaftlicher Spaltung nördlich und südlich der Alpen kritisch und tragen derart zu einem vertieften Verständnis der Problemlage bis in die heutige Zeit hinein bei. Schließlich ist der 150. Jahrestag der Gründung des Deutschen Kaiserreichs 2021 nicht mehr fern.
Armed Groups and Political Violence in Belle Époque Europe
Research Interests:
The research associate will prepare a doctoral dissertation as part of the research project "Resilience and Vulnerability. European Noble Families in an Age of Revolutions 1760-1830," which is funded by the German Research Foundation... more
The research associate will prepare a doctoral dissertation as part of the research project "Resilience and Vulnerability. European Noble Families in an Age of Revolutions 1760-1830," which is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). Through case studies of noble family networks in European middle states and smaller empires (Spain, Portugal, Sardinia-Piedmont, Saxony, Denmark) the project examines how aristocratic elites countered increased vulnerability in a period of upheaval and great political instability.
Research Interests:
Within the framework of the European Research Council (ERC) project “The Dark Side of the Belle Époque. Political Violence and Armed Associations in Europe before the First World War” (http://www.prewaras.eu - PI prof. Matteo Millan), the... more
Within the framework of the European Research Council (ERC) project “The Dark Side of the Belle Époque. Political Violence and Armed Associations in Europe before the First World War” (http://www.prewaras.eu - PI prof. Matteo Millan), the Università degli Studi di Padova – Department of Historical and Geographic Sciences and the Ancient World – and the École Française de Rome (EFR) will be holding an international workshop in Rome (EFR) on 23 January 2019. This scientific event aims to create an original
dialogue, both comparative and transnational, around a topic that is relatively new for the period 1870-1914, namely armed groups. This subject will be considered in relation to political violence and with a relatively flexible geography: Euro-Mediterranean spaces, understood in a broad sense. By focusing on armed groups and their forms of legitimization,
action and organization, the study of political violence can empirically deepen our knowledge of the so-called “State monopoly of legitimate violence”. Armed groups and their forms of legitimacy were not unrelated to the power of the State, even though these groups were not integrated into national armies (at least, not directly). The main question to be addressed is the relationship between armed groups and the legitimate use of violence, by analyzing similarities, differences, transfers and their influences on the social world at large (associations, coteries, clans, the nation, etc.), throughout the Euro-Mediterranean region between 1870 and 1914.
Research Interests:
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Europe, North America and large areas of the globe experienced labour unrest and multiple strike waves, some of which developed a quasi-revolutionary momentum. Although considerable... more
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Europe, North America and large areas of the globe experienced labour unrest and multiple strike waves, some of which developed a quasi-revolutionary momentum. Although considerable research has been done on the formation of labour movements and on the social, economic and institutional realities of labour conflicts, rather less attention has been paid to the repressive policies and practices of employers, and of local and national state authorities. In response to the steady growth of socialism and a renewed burst of revolutionary fears, exacerbated by the long drawn-out effects of economic competition, industrial firms and corporations increasingly resorted to the employment of paramilitary units, special police, vigilantes, professional strikebreakers and private detective agencies against organized labour and in the protection of their assets and investments. These groups typically operated on the frontiers between the legal and the extra-legal, drawing their strength from the language of the law, but often stepping outside it to carry out acts of violence, intimidation, and subversion. The ERC-funded research project PREWarAs hosted by the University of Padua, the University of Oxford Faculty of History and the Oxford Centre for European History (OCEH) invite scholars, at any stage of their academic career, to submit their abstract for a conference devoted to a comparative and transnational examination of industrial vigilantism, strikebreaking and labour violence in the
Research Interests: