Hoeders van de Staat. Burgemeesters in bezet en bevrijd België en Noord-Frankrijk (1914-1921). (Guardians of the State. Mayors in occupied and liberated Belgium and northern France (1914-1921)).

Conference (in Dutch) with as guests
Jan Naert, Sophie De Schaepdrijver and Luc Vandeweyer.
A discussion moderated by Nico Wouters.

During World War I, at a time when Belgium and northern France were under particularly harsh occupation and in the absence of a national political level, mayors and town councils were given crucial responsibility for the organization of daily life. As ultimate representatives of Belgian and French state authority, they remain in post. For four years, they try to represent the interests of the population. The challenges are enormous: maintaining food supplies, managing public life, maintaining order but also participating in German occupation politics. Mayors must constantly navigate between the interests of the local population and the demands of the occupying forces. This applies to the large and densely populated city centers such as Antwerp, Lille, Brussels or Ghent, medium-sized industrial cities such as Aalst but also the small rural village communities. Difficult choices must be made everywhere.

Within the framework of the Public History Meetings, CegeSoma and the non-profit organization "Friends of CegeSoma" invite you to come and discover Jan Naert's doctoral research on this topic on Wednesday, 13 December 2023.

Jan Naert will introduce his book followed by a conversation with WWI experts Sophie De Schaepdrijver and Luc Vandeweyer. This discussion moderated by Nico Wouters, will focus on the importance of local power in times of occupation and the current state of WWI research after the big wave of publications during the centennial commemoration. It will also address the question of which major challenges remain and where WWI research is heading.

'Hoeders van de Staat. Burgemeesters in bezet en bevrijd België en Noord-Frankrijk (1914-1921)', published in the series 'Standen en Landen (ASP)' , will be for sale after the conference.

• Jan Naert holds a doctorate in history. His book 'Hoeders van de Staat. Burgemeesters in bezet en bevrijd België en Noord-Frankrijk (1914-1921)' is the published version of his doctoral dissertation which he defended at Ghent University in early 2020 (promoters Prof. Antoon Vrints and Prof. Nico Wouters). He then spent two years at the FelixArchief (Antwerp City Archives) where he focused his research on Second World War victims. Since May 2022, he has been working as an archivist at the General State Archives 2 (Depot Cuvelier). There, he mainly focuses on the study and the opening up of the sources from the military justice.
• Sophie De Schaepdrijver is Professor of Contemporary European History at Pennsylvania State University (USA). She specializes in the social and cultural history of the First World War. Her latest work is a biography and memorial study on spy Gabrielle Petit. She is currently working on a collective research project on occupation regimes and the experience of occupation in Europe during WWI.
• Luc Vandeweyer is a historian (KULeuven) and archivist (State Archives) in retirement since 2021. He is a specialist of the history of the Flemish Movement and of both World Wars.
• Nico Wouters is head of CegeSoma, and a specialist in the history of World War II and the politics of remembrance. He co-promoted Jan Naert's doctorate.