Staging the Nation in an Intermediate Space - Cultural Policy in Luxembourg and the State Museums (1918-1974)

In Luxembourg, the evolution of cultural policy remains underexplored despite its pivotal role in the nation-building process. This book investigates how national cultural policy evolved from the 1920s to the early 1970s, casting Luxembourg as a nationalized intermediate space between French and German influences. Featuring a case study of the history and art section of the State Museums - the precursor to today's Musée national d'archéologie, d'histoire et d'art - the book examines the interplay of structures, actors, and discourses and how a cultural institution was intertwined with cultural policy. The study exposes the tensions between adopting external models, on the one hand, and asserting a distinct national culture amid interventionist policies, on the other hand. By including the occupation period from 1940 to 1944, it illustrates how Nazi policies challenged Luxembourg's nation-building by seeking to integrate it into the Third Reich. Combining theoretical analysis with archival research, this work offers nuanced insights into nation-building processes and is highly relevant for historians, cultural policy scholars, and museum professionals.

About the author

Fabio Spirinelli, Chamber of Deputies, Luxembourg.

Product details

• Authors: Fabio Spirinelli
• Publisher: Oldenbourg
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 13.08.2025
• EAN: 9783119147439
• ISBN: 978-3-11-914743-9
• No. of pages: 557
• Weight: 901 g
• Illustrations: 28 b/w ill., 3 b/w tbl.
• Series: Studien zur transnationalen Zeitgeschichte Luxemburgs
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Regional and national histories; Kulturpolitik, Zeitgeschichte, contemporary history, Cultural Policy, Luxemburg, Luxembourg, HIS037070 HISTORY / Modern / 20th Century, ca. 1940 bis ca. 1949