XXXV International Congress of Military History

The International Commission for Military History held its 35 th congress in Porto, Portugal August 30 to September 4 th, 2009. The theme of the congress was ‘Warfare in the Age of Napoleon: Precedents, military campaigns and lasting impacts.’ President J. David Markham represented the INS and used the opportunity to meet with scholars from around the world to promote INS activities and encourage them to host future INS congresses. He had fruitful discussions with delegations from Austria, Portugal, Israel, Germany, Greece, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. President Markham also met with current INS Fellows, including Jacques-Olivier Boudon of the University of Paris Sorbonne (co-chair of the INS Awards Committee), Charles Esdaille of the University of Liverpool, (recent recipient of the INS literary award), Don Bittner of the USA and Allon Klebanoff of Israel.

Over 300 delegates attended the congress representing Angola, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cameron, China, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, South Africa, Switzerland, Sweden, Tunisia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The presented papers dealt with a wide range of Napoleonic topics from many different points of view. The academic portion of the congress ended on Friday with a summary presentation by Professor Esdaile on ‘The Napoleonic Wars in a Global Context.’ This was followed by an address by INS President Markham on the history of the INS and ways that the INS and the ICMH can cooperate in the future, including submission of articles for the journal and the website, participation in INS congresses, and hosting and/or joint sponsorship of congresses. The talk was well received and afterwards many delegates expressed interest in becoming Fellows of the INS and playing an active role in future activities.

The congress, which was funded by the ICMH, the city of Porto, the Portuguese Department of Defense and the Portuguese Army, featured several tours of important areas and numerous receptions and meals, all of which gave delegates opportunities to establish personal and professional relationships with fellow scholars.

The next ICHM Congress will be in Amsterdam 29 August to 3 September 1010. The theme will be ‘Insurgency and Counterinsurgency: irregular warfare from 1800 to the present.’ INS Fellows who have an interest in this area are encouraged to attend. Further information can be found on their website, http://www.cihm2010.nl/