Diplomacy at war and peace: Workshopping approaches to the history of international politics after 1815’

Beginning with a review of Maartje Abbenhuis’ own work on neutrality, internationalism and The Hague conferences, this masterclass investigates the ways in which historians construct the history of international politics, the sources they use, the lenses of interpretation they prioritise and the methodologies they apply.

Research School Political History in cooperation with Utrecht University

Supervisor: Beatrice de Graaf

Questions to be addressed include: How do we account for power in international history? How do we assign relevance to concepts and ideas? How can we describe systemic developments ‘from above’ and ‘from below’? How do we account for the ‘power of the people’ in a field that is so often defined by the ‘power of the state’?

In preparation, participants have to read two samples of Abbenhuis’s work and to consider how their own research projects connect methodology to historical framing: How does your work address power, agency and historical context? How does it assert historical and historiographical relevance?

Dr. Abbenhuis (University of Auckland) is a historian of European history (1815 – 1918). Her work is on the history of   neutrality, diplomacy and international law; war and society history; history of peace, internationalism and globalization.

Location: Utrecht, Drift 23, room 2.07

Date: 13 May 2019, 13.00 – 17.00 hrs

Registration: send an email to Annejet Landman:  bureau@onderzoekschoolpolitiekegeschiedenis.nl before 10 May 2019

After you have registered, the literature will be mailed to you

1 ECTS

Open for PhD candidates and Research Master Students

Information: e.deLange@uu.nl