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Once upon a time ...
Fairy tales by the brothers Grimm were already more than one hundred years old. Just like today, they were part of the collective memory and belonged to the classic canon of folktales, alongside stories of Hans Christian Andersen and Charles Perrault. In times of war, fables and fairy tales could brighten up a ...
The first Christmas at the front, in 1914, passed in a remarkable atmosphere. At the start of hostilities, the soldiers had hoped for a short war. They had expected to be home long before Christmas and were surprised to find themselves still in the trenches. This is why there was little will to fight amongst many of the soldiers. This attitude was ...
In January 1919, representatives of 32 countries travelled to Paris to re-draw the map of the post-war world, and to discuss what was to happen to the losers of the war. Each country brought its own agenda to the negotiating table.
Ultimately, the conference would be dominated by the visions of the ‘Big Three’: the American president ...
In January 1919, representatives of 32 countries travelled to Paris to re-draw the map of the post-war world, and to discuss what was to happen to the losers of the war. Each country brought its own agenda to the negotiating table. Belgium and Serbia were hoping for reparations, Polish and Irish nationalists sought recognition for their countries, ...
Before the war, Émile Verhaeren (1855-1916) was a celebrated symbolist author. The work of the French-speaking Flemish writer was highly acclaimed in the Francophone world, and Verhaeren became an urbane public figure with an extensive network of acquaintances in international cultural circles. He also made friends with King Albert I of Belgium ...
Émile Verhaeren (1855-1916) était un illustre auteur symboliste. Lorsque la guerre éclata, Verhaeren était désemparé. La guerre allait à l'encontre de tous les idéaux auxquels il croyait et qui inspiraient son œuvre. En 1916, le peuple belge était en deuil après une chute dans la gare de Rouen était mortelle pour le poète.
Pour ...
Émile Verhaeren (1855-1916) was a celebrated symbolist author. When war broke out, Verhaeren was devastated. War went against all ideals he believed in and which inspired his work. Belgium was in mourning when the poet died tragically at a train station in Rouen in 1916.
To find out more, read our blog: 'Emile ...
The International Woman Suffrage Alliance (IWSA) was founded by leading feminists in 1904. The organisation was devoted to securing women's suffrage and held regular international conferences. In 1915, it was due to take place in Berlin but was cancelled because of the war.
On a proposal by the Dutch feminist Dr. Aletta Jacobs, the ...
Am Vorabend des Ersten Weltkriegs herrschte Unruhe in Russland. Immer mehr Russen äußerten öffentlich ihr Missfallen über Zar Nikolaus II. und dessen autoritäres Regime. Bei Ausbruch des Krieges wurde dieses Missfallen vorübergehend von einer Woge des Patriotismus überlagert. Die starken antideutschen Gefühle brachten eine rasche und ...
Weil die Briten über eine mächtige Kriegsflotte verfügten, beschlossen die Deutschen, bei der Kriegsführung auf See eine neue Waffe einzusetzen: das Unterseeboot. Spätestens seit die deutsche Armee am 1. Februar 1917 den uneingeschränkten U-Boot-Krieg ausgerufen hatte, spielten U-Boote eine wichtige Rolle. Militärisch war die Waffe recht ...
In the face of Britain's powerful war fleet, the Germans decided to bring a new weapon into action: the submarine. Especially once the German army declared unrestricted submarine warfare on 1 February 1917, submarines started playing an important part. From a military point of view, the weapon was a success, with German submarines sinking ...