Writing (Past) Empires as National Histories: Legacies of Colonialism and Violence in the Netherlands and Germany – in an international comparative context

Followed by the Association of Political History’s international conference, “Dynamizing and Decentring Empires: A Recalibration of the History of the Political”, Münster (D), 11-13 June 2026.
For updates on this conference, please keep an eye on the APH website.

Supervisors	prof. dr. Jacco Pekelder (University of Münster)
Date	9-11 June 2026
Location	Münster
Credits	5 ECTS (3 is optional)

In the academic year of 2025-2026 the RSPH Summer School will focus on how historians have been studying Dutch and German colonialism. Especially the interaction between historical narratives and societal and political dealings with the legacies of colonialism and, especially, experiences of violence in colonial contexts are discussed. Without claiming to name all aspects here, one question to be considered certainly is how the writing of specific colonial empires relates to the general analysis of submissive systems in international politics, in past and present. Another question regards the positionality of the author: can all historians study colonialism or should of them best avoid the topic? Related to that is the question if and how national histories, especially those told in schools and museums, must incorporate the colonial past. Must the state, i.e. must official history politics play a role, e.g. in efforts to create a new, or: postcolonial, national identity? Or should we rely on those in society who in a sense incorporate the legacies of former colonial bondage? Is it them who are best placed to voice the agency and imagination of the oppressed and their resistance?

To explore these questions in-depth and learn to work with them the 2026 Summer School invites its participants to dive into more recent developments in the Netherlands and Germany: pathbreaking research projects, controversial debates and the professional and/or moral dilemmas behind them – and compare these with international developments in the field.

The Summer School is combined with the Association of Political History’s international conference, “Dynamizing and Decentring Empires: A Recalibration of the History of the Political”, that will directly follow it, and will also take place in the historic city of Münster, Germany. For updates on this conference, please keep an eye on the APH website.

Requirements: TBA (You may expect assignments, active participation, written reflections and a presentation to be part of the assessment.)