Shaping History: The Symbolism of the Urban Destruction and Creation in the Period of World War II and its Aftermath

TALK: This talk is about the rebuilding of European cities that were destroyed or badly damaged in World War Two. In the war, thousands of towns and cities suffered badly from aerial bombardment, shelling, or other forms of demolition. These included several capital cities, as well as places of immense cultural and historical value. Sometimes, whole communities were displaced and destroyed. The story of the rebuilding, and the choices taken by those responsible, is fascinating: the solutions taken by governments, councils, occupying powers, architects and local people varied to a remarkable extent. Some were driven by poverty or sheer practicality, some adopted sentimental views of history, others were obsessed with utopian modernism. In some cases, pure fantasies have ensued. Memorials are everywhere. In most cases there was some attempt to reflect the time and the culture. We will range between Coventry and Minsk, with detours to places such as Oradour, Valletta, Rothenburg, Berlin and Warsaw. Many of the controversies that raged at the time of the rebuilding are echoed in the debates in our own times.

SPEAKER: Christopher Moule, the Head of History at Marlborough College.