References of "Moderne Stadtgeschichte"
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See detailThe Twentieth-Century Ministerial Office Building as a Laboratory of Government
van de Maele, Jens UL

in Moderne Stadtgeschichte (2021), (2), 147-166

Within the historiographical field of “political architecture”, ministerial office buildings have always been a somewhat marginal subject, undeservedly deemed of secondary importance in relation to more ... [more ▼]

Within the historiographical field of “political architecture”, ministerial office buildings have always been a somewhat marginal subject, undeservedly deemed of secondary importance in relation to more “representative” types of political buildings. Dwelling on the insights of the nineteenth-century essayist Bagehot and the office historians Duffy and Gardey, my contribution postulates that from the early twentieth century onward, ministerial office architecture has become an essential functional component of any political configuration, as well as a phenomenon defined by a complex interrelationship between physical realities and managerial norms. Even though various historiographical contributions from the last two decades have successfully scrutinised the reciprocal conceptual relations between politics and architecture in relation to ministerial offices, the huge influence of internationally circulating managerial norms such as Taylorism has strangely remained under the radar. Using the example of Belgium during the interwar period, I seek to demonstrate how such norms were strongly mobilised when new ministerial office buildings were planned, and how their propagators even considered “modern” and “efficient” office architecture to be an agent of broad social reform. With this case study, I would like to call attention to the need for a transnational comparative perspective covering the intermingled domains of politics, architecture, and management. [less ▲]

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See detailTagungsbericht: Rethinking the Histories and Legacies of Industrial Cities
Derian, Maxime UL; van de Maele, Jens UL

in Moderne Stadtgeschichte (2021), (1), 145-150

The history of (Western) European industrial cities is often told as a tragic tale of rise and decline: from rapid industrialisation in the late 19th century and economic prosperity during the Trente ... [more ▼]

The history of (Western) European industrial cities is often told as a tragic tale of rise and decline: from rapid industrialisation in the late 19th century and economic prosperity during the Trente glorieuses to the structural changes of the late 1970s and the subsequent deindustrialisation of the 1980s and 1990s – decades in which most mines and steelworks closed down, unemployment rates went up, new social problems emerged, workers’ identities eroded, and once prosperous urban centres became faced with shrinking populations and empty stores in their shopping streets. Finally, since the 2000s, former industrial towns have tried to reinvent themselves as creative and cultural centres. If we take a closer look, however, we can see that the socio-economic, demographic and cultural transitions were more complex than suggested by a simple rise-and-decline narrative. [less ▲]

Detailed reference viewed: 144 (14 UL)