Major publications

East Belgium 1920-2020 

East Belgium 1920-2020 is a virtual exhibition about the history of the Eupen-Malmedy-Sankt Vith region since it went from being German to Belgian in 1920. The virtual exhibition, launched on 20 September 2020 with an online event, is the result of a collaboration between the C²DH, the German-speaking Community of Belgium and the Zentrum für Ostbelgische Geschichte. The website addresses a broad spectrum of users with varying levels of expertise.

Esch sur Alzette – Guide historique et architectural

On 9 October 2020, the C²DH, capybarabooks and the Esch-sur-Alzette town council presented the Guide historique et architectural Esch-sur-Alzette at the Infofabrik in Esch.

In this 480-page guide, Georges Büchler, Jean Goedert, Antoinette Lorang, Antoinette Reuter and Denis Scuto look back at the development of the “iron metropolis” and its buildings in their historical context – not just in terms of the history of art, architecture and urban development, but in terms of the town’s social and industrial history. Houses and shops, administrative, political, industrial, religious and cultural buildings, cemeteries, parks and gardens are analysed with detailed texts and illustrated with historical images and contemporary photos by Christof Weber.

ISBN: 978-99959-43-27-1

History of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU): Transnational Techno-diplomacy from the Telegraph to the Internet

Edited by Andreas Fickers and Gabriele Balbi. De Gruyter Oldenbourg | 2020. Part of the series Innovation and Diplomacy in Modern Europe

This book focuses on the history of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), from its origins in the mid-19th century to the present day. ITU was the first ever international organisation and it still plays a crucial role in managing global telecommunications today. Bringing together some of the leading scholars in the field of transnational communication, the book covers the history of ITU from 1865 to the digital age from a truly global perspective, looking at several technologies including the telegraph, the telephone, cable, the wireless, radio, television, satellites, mobile phones and the internet. The main goal was to identify long-term regulatory strategies and techno-diplomatic manoeuvres by ITU, from convincing the majority of member nations to establish the official headquarters of the Telegraph Union in Switzerland in the 1860s to promoting a multi-stakeholder model for internet governance (supported by the US and ICANN).

History of the International Telecommunication Union touches on several disciplines and is of interest for scholars and students in fields including telecommunications, media, international organisations, transnational communication, diplomacy, political economy of communication, and science and technology studies. The aim is for the book to become a reference point in the history of ITU, while also marking a first step towards a more in-depth, inter-technological, political and cultural history of transnational communication to be written in the future.

ISBN Hardcover: 9783110669602

La Luxembourgeoise – 100 ans d’assurances

To mark the hundredth anniversary of insurance company La Luxembourgeoise, C²DH researcher Paul Zahlen looks back over its history in this new book. La Luxembourgeoise was set up in 1920, in the midst of an extremely turbulent period, on the initiative of a group of young investors who wanted to preserve their country’s sovereignty. The company’s development was influenced by Luxembourg’s social, political and economic history. Two richly illustrated volumes explore the workings and governance of La Luxembourgeoise and the decisions taken by its leaders to tackle the challenges and obstacles thrown up by the ebb and flow of history. 

ISBN: 978-99959-0-531-6

Material Cultures of Psychiatry

In the past, our ideas of psychiatric hospitals and their history were shaped by objects like straitjackets, restraining belts and beds with protective bars. These powerful objects often became a synonym for psychiatry and the way in which psychiatric patients were treated, yet very little is known about the agency of the objects and their appropriation by staff and patients. By focusing on material cultures, this book offers a new angle on the history of psychiatry: it suggests a narrative in which the practice of psychiatry is part of a complex web in which power is constantly negotiated. Scholars from various academic disciplines show how this material-based approach opens up new perspectives on the agency and imagination of men and women within the field of psychiatry. Monika Ankele/Benoît Majerus (eds) 

ISBN: 978-3-8376-4788-4

Surveillance, indépendance et intégrité

On 17 October 1945, Luxembourg set up the position of Head of Banking Supervision, marking the start of the modern era of supervision of the Luxembourg financial centre. To coincide with the 75th anniversary of this event, the CSSF decided to publish a book in collaboration with the C²DH. The volume contains a detailed timeline over a hundred pages outlining the milestones that have shaped financial supervision in Luxembourg, the Luxembourg financial centre and the country’s economy in general, together with a series of scholarly analytical articles by authors including historians Benoît Majerus, Benjamin Zenner and Christopher Kopper. 

The book was presented on Tuesday 20 October 2020 at the Bibliothèque nationale du Luxembourg, at a ceremony attended by Sam Tanson, Minister for Culture, Pierre Gramegna, Minister of Finance, Claude Conter, Director of the Bibliothèque nationale du Luxembourg, and Claude Marx, Director General of the CSSF. 

ISBN: 9789995905897

100 Jahre Russen in Luxemburg. Geschichte einer atomisierten Diaspora

The historical research of Russian-born migration researcher Inna Ganschow investigates migration from Russia to Luxembourg in the 20th and 21st centuries. Her broad-based presentation of migration flows between the two countries is illustrated with extensive data and facts and with a wide range of documents and images, many of which had never previously been published. The stories of several individuals and families are described and traced to the present day in the Luxembourg population. This is the first comprehensive publication on the topic. The book is based on several years of research carried out at the C²DH. Thanks to her language skills, the author was able to make use of Russian archives and gain new insights into the history of forced conscripts from Luxembourg who were sent to Tambov. She also made contact with the descendants of emigrants in Luxembourg and discussed their stories in several conversations that are detailed in the book. More recent Russian emigration is also presented.

ISBN: 9782919908172

175 years POST Luxembourg

In 2020, the C²DH and POST Luxembourg launched the virtual exhibition 175 Joër POST, which looks at the history of the Entreprise des Postes et Télécommunications du Luxembourg since it was set up in 1842. The virtual exhibition explores the early days of the Luxembourg postal service and the major milestones in its development, including its involvement in the satellite industry, the digitisation of telecommunications networks and the introduction of mobile telephony and the internet. A wide range of historical documents, maps, photos and films are presented alongside explanatory texts.