The VAHS is a British society, but we have long been aware that British history and research is part of a wider picture.
Hofje van Staats almshouse in Haarlem
This was reflected in the strong international presence at our 2008 and 2010 conferences. At our last major research conference, the runner up for the graduate prize was Dutch historian Henk Looijesteijn with his paper ‘‘Charity seems to be very National among them’. Motives for Founding of Almshouses in the Netherlands c.1350-c.1800′. This was also followed by an international conference on almshouse history in the Dutch city of Haarlem in September 2011 and a conference report posted on the VAHS blog.
Signings at the launch of the Beveridge book
A major international collaboration was the symosium on William Beveridge’s influence in Britain and the wider British world. This was a collaboration with the Australian University of New England’s Dr Melanie Oppenheimer and was held in London at the Australian High Commission in November 2008. This led to an edited volume published by Manchester University Press in January 2011 and recently reviewed in the VAHS blog.
The VAHS is hoping to build on these and other previous activities and make transnational histories a core focus of its activities. To facilitate this, we are seeking to establish an international network.
For more information, see the transnational histories and international network pages of this website.
