Organiser: Arbeitskreis Großbritannien-Forschung; Institut für soziale Bewegungen, Ruhr-Universität Bochum
Host: Institut für soziale Bewegungen, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, im Haus der Geschichte des Ruhrgebiets, Clemensstr. 17-19
Postcode: 44789
City: Bochum
Country: Germany
Takes place: In attendance
Dates: 16.07.2026 - 17.07.2026
Website: https://www.hgr.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/hgr/isb/
German Association for British Studies, and Institute for Social Movements of the Ruhr-University of Bochum, Bochum: Annual Conference 16-17 July 2026, im Haus der Geschichte des Ruhrgebiets, Clemensstr. 17-19, 44789 Bochum, Germany
Concepts of Freedom and the Development of Democracy in Great Britain in Historical Comparison
Registration:
birgit.bublies-godau@rub.de
nobfabian@t-online.de
The participation is free of charge.
Programme
Thursday, July 16, 2026
9:00 – 9:30 Arrival and registration
9:30 – 9:45 Welcoming speeches: Stefan Berger (Bochum), Marius Guderjan (Berlin)
9:45 – 10:30: Introduction
Norbert Fabian (Bochum), The early English Revolution of 1381 and the European History of Freedom and Emancipation
Chair: Stefan Berger (Bochum)
10:30 – 11:00 Coffee break
11:00 – 12:00 First keynote lecture:
Nicholas Vincent (East Anglia), The Magna Carta of 1215 and the History of Liberty
Chair: Birgit Bublies-Godau (Bochum)
12:00 – 13:00 Lunch
13:00 – 14:00 Second keynote lecture:
Lyndal Roper (Oxford), For liberty! The German Peasant’s War of 1525 and the Twelve Articles.
Chair: Stefan Berger (Bochum)
14:00 – 15:30 Panel 1: Conceptualising Liberty
- Andrew Wells (Kiel), Freedom’s Parish: Liberty in the Urban British Atlantic, 1660-1760
- Brigitta Schvéd (Budapest), Public Opinion, Political Media, and the Language of Freedom: Conceptualising Liberty and the Balance of Power in Early Eighteenth-Century British and Habsburg Contexts
Chair: Mathis Gronau (Bochum)
15:30 – 16:00 Coffee break
16:00 – 17:00 Third keynote lecture:
Alan S. Kahan (Paris), ‘Freedom from Fear’. Transatlantic Concepts of Liberalism
Chair: Mathis Gronau (Bochum)
17:00 – 18:30 Panel 2: Socialism and Social Movements in Europe
- Jan de Graaf (Bochum), A Model for All? European Responses to Labour’s 1945 Victory
- Alberto Pantaloni (Turin), Social Movements and Struggles in Britain and Italy at the End of the ‘Golden Age’: a Comparative Study
Chair: Stefan Berger (Bochum)
19:30 Conference dinner
Friday, July 17, 2026
9:00 – 10:30 Panel 3: Political Debates on Freedom, Democracy, and Revolution in the ‘long’ 19th century
- Vicente Pons Marti (Frankfurt am Main), Freedom, Parties, and Opposition. Political Party Debates in Britain from the French Revolution to the Reform Act of 1868
- Birgit Bublies-Godau (Bochum), The European Revolution of 1848/49 and the debate on Christopher Clark, ‘Revolutionary Spring. Fighting for a New World’
Chair: Norbert Fabian (Bochum)
10:30 – 11:00 Coffee break
11:00 – 12:30 Panel 4: Modern Conservativism and Democracy in the ‘short’ 20th century
- Christina Sigrid Schlaich (Freiburg/ Br.), The Politics of ‘Freedom’ in the Making of Democratic Order: Stanley Baldwin and Transnational Public Spheres, c. 1922–1939
- Edmund Neill (London), Conservatism’ Adaption to Democracy in Mid-Twentieth Century Britain
Chair: Mathis Gronau (Bochum)
12:30 – 13:30 Lunch
13:30 – 15:00 Round table and open final discussion: Theories and Concepts of Freedom and Revolution, Democracy and Reform - Comparisons and Responsible Learning from History
Lyndal Roper, Norbert Fabian, Mathis Gronau, Birgit Bublies-Godau
Chair: Marius Guderjan (Berlin)
Contact
Birgit Bublies-Godau, M.A., birgit.bublies-godau@rub.de, und Dr. Norbert Fabian, nobfabian@t-online.de.