Informal spaces and practices of diplomacy, 1750–1850
Two-day symposium on the spaces and practices of diplomacy, to be held at The Oxford Research Centre for the Humanities (TORCH), 21–22 September 2023.
Diplomacy is not always, nor solely, performed at formal summits with (mostly male) actors seated around a table of negotiation. The “Sattelzeit” of change in the decades before and after the French Revolution saw a formalization of diplomacy, yet diplomats and ministers still met in the salons of the Congress of Vienna. Recent research has indeed shown that premodern diplomacy was frequently practised on an informal level, through personal relations and by actors “beyond ambassadors” – including women, whose roles have received increased attention. Moreover, the importance of the material environments of premodern diplomatic encounters at all levels is receiving increased historical attention.
But where did these informal practices take place, and did they change with the transformation to a new international order?
Uncovering the informal spaces of diplomacy in this transformative time in history may lead us to reconceptualize what constitutes diplomatic practices.
This two-day symposium will seek to stimulate discussion on the spaces and practices of diplomacy in the time of transition from c. 1750–1850. Therefore, we invite proposals related (but not limited) to the following topics: