Refugees have permeated European history, and the receiving states and societies have almost always profited from taking them in. The talk analyses at first the major causes of mass flight and the often traumatic experiences on the lengthy routes of flight. Tracing the routes of the refugees, the narrative crosses the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and so provides a wider vision of European history that includes America. Philipp Ther will then discuss why refugees were welcomed in some periods, especially during the Cold War, and rejected in earlier and more recent moments of history. The talk contrasts humanitarian and utilitarian motives for the inclusion and exclusion of refugees, and how they themselves attempted to influence the agenda of the receiving states. The structured account of refugee movements and admission is set against several biographical case studies, which show the itineraries, convictions and agendas of individual refugees, thus adding a strong human touch.

Philipp Ther (* 1967) is professor of Central European History at the University of Vienna, where he also guides the Research Center for the History of Transformations (RECET). Previously he was Professor of Comparative European History at the European University Institute (EUI) in Florence. His book Die neue Ordnung auf dem alten Kontinent. Eine Geschichte des neoliberalen Europa (Suhrkamp) was awarded with the non-fiction book award of the Leipzig Book Fair in 2015. An English version titled Europe since 1989: A history was published by Princeton University Press. Earlier he published The Dark Side of Nation States: Ethnic Cleansing in Modern Europe (2014) and Center Stage: Operatic Culture and Nation Building in 19th Century Central Europe (2014). His most recent book The Outsiders: Refugees in Europe since 1492 (Princeton University Press 2019) is a synthesis on the history of refugees in modern Europe. In 2019 he was awarded with the Wittgenstein Prize of the Austrian Research Fund. The award is endowed with million Euros and is the highest recognition for scientists in Austria.

Moderation by Joanna Urbanek, curator of the House of European History.

Introduction by Dr. Constanze Itzel, Museum Director of the House of European History.