December 2011
	Foreword by Carla van Baalen
	A lot has happened since we issued our previous newsletter in June. During the EuParl working conference in London in August, the board members took the first steps in designing a EuParl.net manifesto (of which you will hear more later on) and a business plan, including a proposal for a cooperative research programme. Also, the Montesquieu Institute decided to appoint a coordinator for the network to further elaborate the plans. From the EuParl.net members, we received plenty of contributions to this newsletter, many of which already show cooperation between the different members. Please keep on sending us the information on your research projects, publications, seminars and so on! Best wishes, Carla van Baalen
Working Conference in London: opportunities for deeper cooperation The time is ripe to transcend the traditional, nationally oriented perspectives on parliamentary historiography and to place the comparative and transnational approach firmly on the research agendas. New research projects will take this into account and focus on the 'European dimension' of parliamentary history. During the EuParl.net working conference in London (24/25 August 2011), the board of the European Information and Research Network on Parliamentary History (EuParl.net) decided to coin an appropriate label for this European approach: New Parliamentary History. The conference was highly successful and some major decisions about the future of the network were made. First of all, the ambitions and plans of the EuParl network will be stated in a manifesto. This manifesto will be presented in early 2012 and will present the common new approach towards parliamentary history writing of the members of the network. It aims to address questions concerning the historical development of parliaments in Europe from the 18th century onwards. Also a business plan will be presented containing a proposal for a common research project. Within the scope of this research project international conferences and workshops will be organised. This common research project will focus on comparing parliaments and the idea of parliamentarism in Europe. It will take into account both national parliaments as well as the European Parliament. It will focus on the historical development of these parliaments and how they are related. Another decision that has been taken is that conferences which are organised by EuParl members will bear the label of supported by EuParl and will be labeled with a logo. To this end a new EuParl logo has been designed.     EuParl coordinator appointed to deepen and expand cooperation In January 2012 Joris Oddens will start working as coordinator of the EuParl network. He has been appointed by the Montesquieu Institute to deepen and expand the cooperation between the EuParl network members, set up a transnational research project and organise related events. As a PhD candidate at the University of Amsterdam he has a keen interest in parliamentary history.  "As coordinator of EuParl, I see it as my responsibility to give the network a more permanent presence." An interview with Joris Oddens. Read the entire interview     News: Centre for Parliamentary History (The Netherlands) Dutch yearbook of parliamentary history 2011 presented The CPG has published its annual parliamentary yearbook titled: "Where vision is lacking, the people perish". Read more News: Prosoparlam (Spain) Prosoparlam researches MPs elected in the Basque Country in 1977-1982 Spain's EuParl member has received funding to start researching MPs elected in the Basque Country. Read more       News: University of Luxembourg (Luxembourg) New Chair in Legilsatives Studies Philippe Poirier, coordinator of the European Governance programme at the University of Luxembourg, is responsible for implementing a research convention between the University of Luxembourg and the Luxembourgish Chamber of Deputies. Read more News: Comité d'histoire parlementaire et politique (France)  'Les présidents de l'Assemblée nationale de 1789 à nos jours' On 24-25 November the Comité d'histoire parlementaire et politique organised the conference 'Les présidents de l'Assemblée nationale de 1789 à nos jours' in Paris. Representatives of several EuParl member organisations were present. Read more       News: KGParl (Germany) “Lebenswelten” of Parliamentarians in Europe On 26-27 October 2011 parliamentary historians from several European countries discussed the “Lebenswelten” of parliamentarians at an international conference in Prague. Read more     Upcoming Events Expert seminar on Erich Salomon as parliamentary photographer 14-16 December 2011 in Nymegen, The Netherlands Organised by KGParl and CPG More information Conference on Parliamentary Means of Conflict Resolution in a Comparative Perspective 16-17 March 2012 in Freiburg, Germany Organised in part by the University of Jyväskylä More information Nations within the nation-state - The making of the cultural and political nations in contemporary Europe (Call for Papers) 3-4 July 2012 in Bilbao, Spain Organised in part by Prosoparlam More information Conference on The Cortez of Cadiz and the First Spanish Liberal Constitutionalism, and its International Impact (Call for Papers) 5-8 September 2012 in Cádiz, Spain Organised in part by Prosoparlam More information Conference 'Parliamentarism in Europe: Perception, Interpretation, Remembrance' Spring 2013 in The Hague, The Netherlands Organised by KGPArl and the Montesquieu Institute     News: The History of Parliament (UK) Namier goes digital: The History of Parliament Online The History of Parliament's biographical, constituency and introductory survey articles made available online on a brand new website: HistoryofParliamentOnline.org   Read more Lord Norton of Louth gives the History of Parliaments Annual Lecture The Lecture focussed on the Parliament Act 1911. Read more News: Institute for Parliamentarism and Democracy Questions (Austria) Participation in EC Training Seminar IPD president participates in a Training Seminar organised by the European Commission. Read more Book publication forthcoming from Austrian EuParl member A book publication on "Culture of Governance" will shortly be released. Read more Paper on the role of political parties Melanie Sully presented a paper on a Friedrich Ebert Stiftung conference. Read more       News: The Hellenic Parliament Foundation for Parliamentarism and Democracy (Greece) Successful conference on the 1911 Constitution of Greece The Constitution of 1911 was the cornerstone in establishing the Rule of Law in Greece. Read more Parliamentary and constitutional history of Greece in print The Hellenic Parliament Foundation published a series of books on the parliamentary and constitutional history of Greece. Read more  News: Montesquieu Institute (The Netherlands) The Presidents of the European Commission On 18 and 19 November a conference took place in Groningen, The Netherlands, with the authors of the forthcoming publication 'The presidents of the European Commission, 1958-2012'. Read more        Research Projects by EuParl members Europe and the Consensus Politics of the Low Countries Montesquieu Institute and the University of Luxembourg (The Netherlands/Luxembourg) Will the consensus tradition in Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg be enhanced or weakened by European integration? That is the central question of a cooperative research project of universities from the three Benelux countries. A project meeting took place on October 14th and 15th in Luxembourg and a book will be presented mid 2012. Read more  The Politics of Dissensus: Parliamentarism, Rhetoric and Conceptual History  Centre of Excellence in Political Thought and Conceptual Change (Finland) The project renders intelligible the political theory of parliament as a dissensual assembly and studies the procedural principles, conceptual commitments and rhetorical moves that are distinctive to parliamentary politics. Read more Parliamentary proceedings of 1624 History of Parliament  (UK) The History of Parliament obtained a grant from the Leverhulme to publish the parliamentary proceedings of the 1624 Parliament, one of the most puzzling and controversial of all the early Stuart Parliaments. Read more  Political and Cultural Pluralism and Monism in 20th Century Slovenia Institute of Contemporary History (Slovenia) The ever changing concept of democracy is researched by the Institute for Contemprary History in Slovenia. It does not only research the concept itself, but also its influence on Slovenia. Read more The meanings of 'to be a leftist' Institute of Political History, Budapest (Hungary) Being leftist: is it mere voting behaviour or is it identity? This research project by the Institute of Political History in Budapest looks at the broader picture of the left side of the political spectrum. Read more Oral History Project History of Parliament (UK) The History of Parliament records the reminiscences of former MPs and provides a unique record of post-2nd World War British political history. Read more   Biographical Dictionary of the Spanish Parliament Prosoparlam (Spain) Prosoparlam's biographical dictionary of the Spanish Parliament contains biographies of nearly 3800 MPs. Read more
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