Cornelius Goop, MA

Dissertation project

The Microstate and the Nation. The Principality of Liechtenstein between German nationalism and the construction of its own national identity

The Principality of Liechtenstein is an exception to the typical state development patterns observed in Central Europe. Unlike almost all former parts of the Holy Roman Empire and the German Confederation, it was not incorporated into a larger nation-state. Instead, it remained an independent small state. Despite, or perhaps because of, this non-national development, there have been private and public initiatives in Liechtenstein since the late 19th century that have sought to create an independent regional or even national identity. The objective of this dissertation project is to investigate this process in the period from 1847 to 1945. It raises the question of how European microstates reacted to the nation-building process, which actors were involved, and how small-scale identity was legitimized in the age of the nation state, as well as the limits it encountered. The study focuses on the development of academic and public historical discourse, the organization and influence of the “Heimat”-movement and education policy. It also takes a comparative perspective on other European small states.

Doctoral School of Historical and Cultural Studies, Universität Wien