Histories Old and New
Damien Gregory's new history for the new Europe
Students of history from all over Europe and as far apart as Moscow, Jerusalem and Los Angeles have met in Budapest to discuss the possibilities arising out of the 'new Europe'. The first conference of the International Students of History Association (ISHA) took place from May 7th to the 11th, an event that had both ambition and realism.
With as many as five ministerial posts in the new Hungarian government held by historians, the choice of location was apposite. John Hadden and Matthew Trimming, history students from St. Andrews who attended the conference, believe that this grouping of young historians could play a useful role in shaping events in the new Europe.
'A small, but not insignificant step in this direction was taken by the conference providing many Eastern European students with their first taste of active democracy. For four days they debated and voted on the content of the association's constitution, alongside their western contempories.'