Security politics and conspiracy theories in the emerging European state system (15th/ 16th c.)

"The article develops a new definition of conspiracy theory more apt for historicizing purposes than the existing systematic and philosophical ones. It shows that modern conspiracy narratives do appear only with the Renaissance. Also, 'security' as the aim of state and international politics became important only now during the Italian Renaissance while the term and concept had been nearly forgotten during the Middle Ages. The article shows then that both, security politics in practice and political language as well as modern conspiracy narratives belong to the new type of political communication which emerged with inter-territorial diplomacy in 15th century Italy (example: Lorenzo de' Medici) and with the first emerging information public sphere in 16th century Europe (example: conspiracism during the French Wars of Religion). The narrative modus of analyzing the present state of affairs, of constructing reality and of planning and conjecturing in that form of political communication is highly similar to the construction of conspiracy narratives. All modern forms of opposition between security and conspiracy theories can be seen as derivatives of that Renaissance constellation." (author's abstract

Insurances as part of "human security", their timescapes and spatiality

"In the present discussion on 'Human Security', Insurances have been only lately involved. The contribution starts with the assumption that Insurances are historically an especially fruitful object of research for the general question of the history of security regimes. It shows that, contrary to some suggestions held in risk sociology, early Mediterranean maritime insurances are to be judged rather as something completely different than the modern insurances from the 17th century onwards managed by merchants' companies and states. The latter belonged to a secular process of constructing a 'normal secure society' during enlightenment. The relationship between Timescapes, Spatiality and Insurances is analyzed: are Insurances per se an instrument of colonizing 'the future' because they are instrumental in calculating and constructing clearly defined 'risks'? or is that future orientation just one element, but is perhaps the wider socio-political context with its prevailing timescapes in which the insurance operations were embedded a changing one from pre- to postmodernity? Asking those questions the article contributes to an approach of using 'human security' as a heuristical device to explore the history of security production." (author's abstract)"In die gegenwärtige Diskussion über Human Security wurden Versicherungen erst spät einbezogen. Der Beitrag geht von der Annahme aus, dass Versicherungen ein historisch besonders fruchtbares Untersuchungsobjekt für die generelle Frage der Geschichte von Sicherheitsregimen ist. Er zeigt, dass, im Gegensatz zu dem, was die Risikosoziologie suggeriert, die frühe Seeversicherung im Mittelmeer heuristisch fruchtbar als etwas ganz anderes als neuzeitliche Versicherungen seit dem späten 17. Jh. zu begreifen sind, die nun von Versicherungsgesellschaften und Staaten eingerichtet und betrieben wurden. Die letzteren gehörten zum säkularen Prozess der Konstruktion einer 'sicheren Normalgesellschaft' während der Aufklärung. Das Verhältnis von Timescapes, Räumlichkeit und Versicherungen wird dann analysiert: Sind Versicherungen per se ein Instrument der Kolonisierung von Zukunft, weil sie die Kalkulation und Konstruktion klar definierter Risiken operationalisieren? - Oder ist diese Zukunftsausrichtung nur ein Element, und muss man nicht den weiteren soziopolitischen Kontext mit seinen vorherrschenden Timescapes, in die die Versicherungsoperationen eingebettet sind, ein sich wandelnder von der Vor- zur Spätmoderne? - Indem diese Fragen gestellt werden, trägt der Artikel dazu bei, human security nicht nur zu historisieren, sondern Elemente des gegenwartsbezogenen Konzepts als heuristischen Ansatz für die Geschichte von Sicherheitsproduktion zu benutzen." (Autorenreferat

Mediterranean transformations: From the security of mercantilist trading empires to a modern security regime.

A l’edat moderna, les relacions dels estats europeus amb l’Imperi otomà i el món mediterrani es caracteritzaven per una complexa xarxa de consolats que gaudien de privilegis atorgats mitjançant capitulacions pel sultà o els deys i beys nord-africans. La qüestió de la «seguretat» era sobretot entesa com a tranquil·litat en la pràctica lliure dels negocis i del comerç. La transformació d’aquesta situació entre finals del segle XVIII i fins aproximadament 1840 es caracteritza per una complexa superposició de continuïtat i ruptura entre les realitats de l’època moderna i les de la contemporània: la infraestructura del sistema consular va persistir durant molt de temps, mentre que la invasió d’Egipte (1797), les guerres napoleòniques, la guerra d’independència grega (iniciada el 1822) i la invasió d’Algèria (1830) van canviar profundament la regió. «Seguretat», de la manera que la van concebre polítics liberals com Chateaubriand, Benjamin Constant i Jeremy Bentham, es va convertir en un terme central per ordenar les noves realitats emergents en termes de política nacional i internacional. Al mateix temps, mentre la invasió de Grècia pels aliats europeus podria ser concebuda com la primera intervenció humanitària moderna, un tipus d’intervenció militar semblant a Algèria es concep com el primer acte modern de colonització amb ús de forces militars per part de França. Aquesta dialèctica entre les dues cares de l’intervencionisme sota diferents etiquetes com a excepció en les regles del sistema de relacions internacionals posteriors al Congrés de Viena produïa noves concepcions sobre la seguretat dins i fora del Mediterrani.In early modern times, European international relationships with the Ottoman Empire and in the Mediterranean were characterized by a complex system of consular networks privileged by the sultan or the North-African deys and beys by way of capitulations. Security was mostly addressed in terms of safety for the free practice of trade and commerce. The transformation of this situation between the late eighteenth century until around 1840 is characterized by complex entanglements of continuity and rupture between early modern and modern realities: the infrastructure of the consular system persisted for a long time, while the invasion of Egypt (1797), the continental Napoleonic Wars, the Greek War of Independence (starting 1822) and the invasion of Algeria (1830) were profoundly changing the region. «Security», as conceived by liberal men of politics like Chateaubriand, Benjamin Constant and Jeremy Bentham, became a central term to order the emerging new realities in terms of state and international politics. At the same time, while one conceives of the European allies’ invasion of Greece as perhaps the first modern humanitarian intervention, more or less the same type of military intervention in Algeria is conceived of as France’s first modern act of colonization by military forces. This dialectic of the two-sided face of interventionism under different labels as an exception from the rules of the post-Vienna system of international relations was producing new conceptions of security in and of the Mediterranean.En la Edad Moderna las relaciones de los Estados europeos con el Imperio otomano y el mundo mediterráneo se caracterizaron por una compleja red de consulados que gozaron de privilegios otorgados mediante capitulaciones del sultán o de los deys y beys del norte de África. La cuestión de la «seguridad» era entendida sobre todo como tranquilidad en la práctica libre de los nego- cios y del comercio. La transformación de esta situación entre principios del siglo XVIII hasta aproximadamente 1840 se caracterizó por un complejo entre- lazamiento de continuidad y ruptura entre las realidades de la época moderna y las de la contemporánea: la infraestructura del sistema consular persistió durante un largo tiempo, mientras que la invasión de Egipto (1797), las guerras napoleónicas, la guerra de independencia griega (iniciada en 1822) y la invasión de Argelia (1830) cambiaron profundamente la región. «Seguridad», tal como la concibieron hombres de política liberales como Chateaubriand, Benjamin Constant y Jeremy Bentham, se convirtió en un término central para ordenar las nuevas realidades emergentes en términos de política nacional e internacional. Al mismo tiempo, mientras que la invasión de Grecia por los aliados europeos podría ser concebida como la primera intervención humanitaria, una intervención militar parecida en Argelia se concibe como el primer acto de colonización con uso de fuerzas militares por parte de Francia. Esta dialéctica entre las dos caras del intervencionismo bajo diferentes etique- tas —como excepción en las reglas del sistema de relaciones internacionales posteriores al Congreso de Viena— produjo nuevas concepciones de la seguridad dentro y fuera del Mediterráneo

The production of human security in premodern and contemporary history

"Since the end of the Cold War, Human Security has become an important approach in international politics, law, and political science. In contrast to the so-called 'Westphalian System' that knows only states as subjects and objects of security, human security aims at the security of individual human beings if failed or failing states do not protect them nor provide for their basic needs. Thereby, such heterogeneous forms of security as security from war, food security, energy security or security from crime and traffic accidents become common problems of international politics. Developing this new concept of security, UN documents as well as some experts suggest that the extended concept of security is a recurrence of the premodern concept of security that prevailed before the clear-cut distinction between domestic and international politics and the evolution of the system of states. This introduction discusses contributions on the premodern and contemporary history of (human) security and tries to assess the heuristic potential of the concept for historical research." (author's abstract)"Seit dem Ende des Kalten Krieges wurde Human Security ein wichtiger Ansatz der internationalen Politik, des Völkerrechts und der Politikwissenschaft. Statt, wie im sogenannten 'Westfälischen System' seit dem 17. Jh., nur Staaten und Regierungen als Akteure und Adressaten von internationaler Sicherheitspolitik zu akzeptieren, zielt Human Security auf die Sicherheitsbedürfnisse der einzelnen Menschen, um gegebenenfalls das Versagen von failing oder failed states hinsichtlich des Schutzes und der Versorgung ihrer Bürger ausgleichen zu können. Auf diese Weise werden so unterschiedliche Formen der Sicherheit wie zum Beispiel Sicherheit vor Kriegsauswirkungen, Nahrungssicherheit, Energiesicherheit, Sicherheit vor Kriminalität oder im Straßenverkehr zu gemeinsamen Problemen der internationalen Politik. In den UN-Dokumenten und in manchen Ausführungen von Wissenschaftlern, die das neue Sicherheitskonzept diskutieren, erscheint dieser weite Sicherheitsbegriff als eine Wiederaufnahme des vormodernen Begriffs von Sicherheit aus der Zeit vor der klaren Ausdifferenzierung von Innen- und Außenpolitik sowie der Ausbildung des Staatensystems. Die Einleitung diskutiert Beiträge zur vormodernen und zur Zeitgeschichte von (Human) Security und versucht das heuristische Potential des Begriffs für die historische Forschung auszuloten." (Autorenreferat

Security and conspiracy in modern history

Security History is a new field in historical research. Conspiracies and Conspiracy Theories have attracted since some years great attention, both in historical and in social research. A thorough study of those both opposed and mirroring key phenomena and concepts does not exist. This contribution tries to outline a sketch of the development of their interwoven history, how (imagined) conspiracies challenged new means of security production and vice versa. The main assumption is that a) a translocal public sphere, b) concepts, practices and means of institutionalized security production, and c) developed narratives that contain conspiracy theories only emerge together from the Renaissance onwards. Only if there is a public sphere in which conspiracy theories can circulate anonymously they become themselves an element of historical agency. Security as a leading principle of politics emerges only with the development of the state. The contribution outlines the steps of change from confessional age to Enlightenment, to the Revolutionary age and to Modernity, identifying mainly two important systematic changings which affect the security/conspiracy combination (Emergence of observability alongside the politics/religion and Ancien Régime/Bourgeois Society distinctions). It finally asks if there is currently happening a third epochal shift of comparable importance

Storia della sicurezza in Europa / Storia europea della sicurezza

L’ambito della storia della sicurezza è cresciuto rapidamente negli anni recenti – nonostante appaia ancora quello meno indagato all’interno dell’ampio contesto interdisciplinare degli studi sulla sicurezza. L’articolo cerca di disegnare un schizzo dello stato dell’arte, sottolineando tre aspetti: in primo luogo, una (tuttora assente) storia della sicurezza di età rinascimentale – la storia dell’iniziale concetto di sicurezza collettiva transterritoriale sviluppato nell’ambito del sistema degli Stati italiani del Quattrocento; in secondo luogo, lo sviluppo della sicurezza come principio guida dell’amministrazione interna allo Stato soprattutto nell’Europa continentale nei secoli XVII e XVIII; in terzo luogo, le sfide di una storia della sicurezza ambientale come storia delle relazioni transterritoriali e transnazionali tra economie politiche, natura e volontà di fornire sicurezza (a esseri umani, Stati, imperi). Parole chiave: Storia della sicurezza, Botero, Lorenzo de’ Medici, Claudio Tolomei, Sicurezza ambientale, Relazioni internazionali The field of the History of Security has quickly grown in recent years - though it still seems the least researched within the wider transdisciplinary context of security studies. The article tries to draw a sketch of the state of art and is highlighting three aspects, first a (still lacking) comprehensive Renaissance history of security - the history of the early concept of transterritorial collective security as developed within the quattrocento Italian State system -, second the development of security as a guiding principle of internal state administration mostly in continental Europe during the seventeenth and eighteenth century, and third, into the challenges of a history of environmental security as a history of transterritorial and transnational relationships between political economies, nature and the want to provide security (for human beings, states, empires). Keywords: History of Security, Botero, Lorenzo de’ Medici, Claudio Tolomei, Environmental Security, International relationship

Beispiel Frankreich: Der Bologna-Prozess im Nachbarland

Ausgehend von einer Skizzierung der französischen Hochschullandschaft wird zunächst die Reformdebatte beleuchtet, die vor allem eine stärkere Hierarchisierung des Hochschulsystems, aber auch einen Ausbau und eine Stärkung der Elite-Universitäten diskutiert. Im Weiteren wird das Modell des MA-Studiengangs für Geschichte in Tours vorgestellt. Abschließend werden mögliche Konsequenzen für den deutschen Reformprozess erörtert; folgende Aspekte fallen dabei ins Auge: Die Verschulung der Universität muss in eine stärkere Differenzierung zwischen BA- und MA-Studiengang hinauslaufen, auch die Rolle des Hochschullehrers sollte neu überdacht werden. In Deutschland gibt es allein aufgrund der föderalen Struktur viel mehr Potential für Experimente; hier wie in Frankreich bleibt jedoch die Lehrer-Ausbildung aus dem Reformprozess (vorerst) ausgeklammert. Die Verschulung ist insgesamt als problematisch zu betrachten, vor allem wenn sie bis in die Promotionsphase hineinreicht. Die Elite-Förderung ist in Frankreich sehr viel nachhaltiger organisiert als in Deutschland und prägt in seiner Ausstrahlung viel stärker auch das übrige Bildungssystem, im Positiven wie im Negativen. Nachahmenswert scheint ein Master-Modell, das neben der Spezialisierung auch die Auslandskooperation direkt in den Studiengang integriert

Deutsche und Italienische Staatsbeschreibungskunst. Die Einkünfte aller Reichsstände, ca. 1547/48 nach einer unbekannten Quelle

Measuring the State in Early-Modern Germany and Italy. The incomes of the Imperial Estates c. 1547/48 according to a newly discovered source According to the common historiography, the Holy Roman Empire formed an exception among the other Early Modern European fiscal systems: While France, England, Spain, and other kingdoms and republics developed early forms of more or less central fiscal administrations that were oriented at estimations of the overall revenues of the state and that developed anticipatory budgets for planning the expenses, the Holy Roman Empire never knew such procedures. All fiscal communication, namely the estates' contributions to the Empire's war faring costs, functioned, from 1521 to 1806, by using a somewhat strange repartition list, the “Reichsmatrikel“. Originally (since 1422) put together to determine the quota of horses and men owed by each estate per month to the emperor when he had to cross the Alps to be crowned by the Pope in Rome with an important entourage, this list of quotas (“Römermonat“/“Roman month“) became quite fix after 1521 and was used in general in every moment when a prorated contribution to whatever political goal was at demand. But due to that quota system, the Holy Roman Empire's administration seems not to have had any auto-consciousness and description tools to grasp empirically the amount of revenues of each estate and of the Empire as a whole; the fixed quotas did not say anything specific about the real financial potency of an estate. This contribution presents and analyses a newly discovered source, a list in Italian language from 1547/48 of the revenues of all the Imperial Estates, showing detailed knowledge of the changings since 1545. The list circulated among Italian diplomats, Venetian intellectuals (Accademia Veneziana), and was printed in 1558. This contribution investigates the contexts of its circulation and analyzes its content. For the first time in over 100 years of professional historical research on the Holy Roman Empire, we may deduce from that source a – certainly approximate and estimated – account of the financial power of the Empire and each of its estates. That knowledge seems to have been lossed quickly during the second half of the 16th century right upto the end of the Empire in 1806