The 17th issue of Parlement[s], Revue d'histoire politique deals with parliamentarian diplomacy in France. It is coordinated by Christian Wenkel and Emilia Robin Hivert and supported by the German Historical Institute in Paris.

Does “parliamentarian diplomacy” exist? Parliamentarians defend this expression, diplomats contest it. What is it used for? Focused on the Cold War, this issue gathers studies of its different expressions: parliamentary delegations, friendship groups, personal and unofficial commitment of non-professional diplomats. It brings to light that parliamentarian diplomacy helped the reestablishment of relations with such states as GDR, China and South Africa, and that foreign policy is not a “reserved domain”.

This issue also contains an article about the French Senate and child labour in factories during the Second Empire and an essay gathering elements for a history of the Parliaments in Middle East (1850s-1970s).

Abstracts of the articles in this 17th issue of March 2012, coordinated by Émilia Robin Hivert and Christian Wenkel, are available online in both English and French:

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