Building an Oecumene of Historians

«Not only international … œcumenic may in future be the community of our sci entific cooperation!» – In May 1926, in Geneva, scholars from numerous countries founded the Comité international des sciences historiques (CISH). In the after math of the First World War, this initiative sought to restore scholarly exchange and to establish a permanent framework for international cooperation in histor ical research. From the outset, it reflected a tension between national traditions and the aspiration to create a broader community of historians. Over the twentieth century, this network developed despite political crises, ideological divisions and global conflict. Through congresses, commissions and collective projects, CISH helped structure an international space for historical scholarship and gradually expanded its borders to include an increasing number of countries and specialised historical organisations. This volume presents 50 documents and provides access to a total of approx imately 340 documents through the Dodis database, tracing these developments from 1926 to 2026. It brings together sources from several archives showing how cooperation among historians was organised, transformed and sustained across changing political and intellectual contexts.

Documents in the volume / Documents in Dodis

About the Autors

Sacha Zala (*1968): Prof. Dr., Historian, Director of the Dodis research centre and professor at the University of Bern.
Lila Zeller (*1998): Dr., historian, University of Reunion Island.