CFP: International Approaches to Naval Cities and Dockyards

Swedish Naval Museum, Karlskrona

We invite proposals for papers related to naval cities and dockyards from any time period. Researchers in all fields are encouraged to participate, including ethnologists, archaeologists, sociologists, economists, and historians from any relevant sub-fields, including but not limited to social, cultural, urban, economic, strategic, and naval history. We welcome papers from research students, early career scholars and established academics.

Naval cities are a deeply international phenomenon, and therefore the organisers would like the papers to represent as wide a geographical range as possible. We encourage papers that take an international approach, as well as those that examine the spread of maritime culture and technology. The emergence of early modern naval cities such as Karlskrona represented a dramatic change in the logistics and technology of the age of sail. Today, naval cities remain hubs of the global economy. Comparing naval cities in a variety of contexts and time periods will allow us to discuss the role these cities played in shaping naval power and international politics. But naval cities were also important as regional centres. How have naval bases and dockyards influenced the local and regional environment socially, culturally and economically through the centuries?

Karlskrona is an exceptionally well-preserved example of an early modern naval city. Conference attendees will be given a unique opportunity to see parts of the city and the base not open to the public. 2018 marks the 20th anniversary of Karlskrona’s UNESCO World Heritage status, and a selection of papers given at the conference will be published in a book celebrating this momentous date.
Proposals should be no more than 300 words in length, accompanied by a one-page CV, and sent to the organisers before March 30, 2017 at: Andreas.linderoth@maritima.se

Successful applicants invited to speak at the conference will be given twenty minutes to present their research, with time for questions.