"Austrian Habsburg history tends to be conceived within a European framework with events, people, and places of particular importance centred on the dynasty’s longstanding influence within central Europe." writes Dr. Jonathan Singerton, organizer of the international conference "Global Approaches to Habsburg History: Perspectives, Potentials, Payoffs, and Pathways" in his report.
On 2-3 June 2022, the two-day conference occurred at the University of Innsbruck to discuss the global potential for Habsburg history among a community of leading expert scholars. In total, eighteen papers were presented on themes ranging from transimperial encounters such as Austrian Jesuit imaginaries of Japan to Austria’s role in the definition of the Australian continent to orientalism in the Austrian expeditions to Turkestan or the materiality of museum collecting and royal gift exchanges to the emergence of economic ties from Ostend—once a part of the Austrian Netherlands—and the Atlantic slave trade.
Two keynote speakers, Dr. Alison Frank Johnson from Harvard and Prof. Walter Sauer from the University of Vienna, provided exemplary talks on the Austria’s role in Indian cocaine epidemics and in European colonials respectively. A former host partner of BritInn, Dr. William O’Reilly from the University of Cambridge was invited to present a paper on political economic ideas between Spain and Austria during the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries.

"The aim as we go forward is to continue the dialogue on Habsburg Global history as we fashion a new, wider appreciation for the worldwide impact from and on the Habsburg lands in central Europe." summarises Dr. Jonathan Singerton.

BritInn supported this event with a fund and is happy to have helped making this important dialogue among scholars possible.

Read Dr. Singerton's report here: Report on the International Conference - Global Approaches to Habsburg History: Perspectives, Potentials, Payoffs, and Pathways

In June 2022, the 5th Young European Law Scholars Conference (YELS Conference) took place at the University of Innsbruck. This conference aims to bring together young European law researchers from across the EU to share and develop their ideas and approaches.

After the 4th YELS Conference 2021 was held online due to COVID-19, young researchers and professors from various EU Member States as well as the United Kingdom and Switzerland met again in person in Innsbruck this year. For the first time, the conference was co-organized by two universities, namely the University of Innsbruck and King's College London.

"Against the background of Brexit, the continuous and active involvement of researchers from the UK in discussions about EU law constitutes an important sign. Intensive exchange was already promoted on the evening before the conference where all participants were invited to meet for drinks at the Paninothek Innsbruck." reported Mag. Mag. Dr. Clara Rauchegger, LLM, one of the organizers of the conference.

BritInn was happy to contribute with a fund.

Read the full report by Mag. Mag. Dr. Clara Rauchegger, LLM, here:
Young European Law Scholars Conference 2022

After several postponements due to Covid-19, Prof. Christian Thomas Leitmeir from the University of Oxford was finally able to visit the University of Innsbruck. His host, Dr. Milijana Pavlović from the Department of Music Studies, was thrilled to welcome him in May 2022.

During the research visit, Prof. Leitmeir managed to intensify existing collaborations with Dr. Pavlović as well as the Brenner-Archiv and also foster new partnerships. He said he is particularly grateful to Dr. Pavlović for facilitating explorative conversations with Dr. Franz Gratl (Curator of the Music Department at the Tiroler Landesmuseum Ferdinandeum) and Prof. Kurt Scharr from the Department of History and European Ethnology at the University of Innsbruck.

​Prof. Leitmeir's public guest lecture was titled ‘Mittelalter und Moderne, Zeichen und Klang: Rudolf von Ficker als Pionier praxisorientierter Forschung’ and created forum for encounters with other colleagues from the Department of Music Studies.

Unfortuntaley, the coordinators of BritInn weren't able to personally meet Prof. Leitmeir that week, because of a business trip outside of Innsbruck. Nevertheless, they were happy to hear that his visit was a great success and hope to welcome him again soon for future collaborations!

Read the full report here:
BritInn Fellow Report

​Supported by “Förderkreis 1669”