The Liverpool University Centre for Archive Studies seminar series starts next 
week – Monday 2 November and takes as its theme ‘Archives and Conflict’.

The first event in the series will be a paper by Professor Charles Esdaile, of the 
School of History, who will present a paper entitled 

'In search of past experience: re-enactment as virtual archive'

He will be accompanied by members of John Lilburne's Regiment of Foot of the 
Army of Parliament in the Sealed Knot, in full kit.

Professor Esdaile writes: 'There are very few ways in which we can engage 
with the human experience of the past: it is, as they say, another country. 
But, for all that, there are some parts of the human experience of the past 
with which we must try to engage if we are to understand the mechanics of 
particular situations or events. This is particularly so, perhaps, of what 
happens both physically and emotionally on the battlefield. My own specialism 
is the Napoleonic period, but the same point applies to most periods of warfare 
from the ancient period right up to the very near past. If I am involved in 
historical re-enactment, then, it is among other reasons because it is a very 
useful research tool. The dangers and discomforts are infinitely less, of 
course - what happens at Sealed-Knot musters or, indeed, the meetings of 
any other re-enactment group - does not even begin to reflect the realities of
battle: we do but see through a glass darkly. Yet, even so, if Sealed-Knot 
battles are not real, they are not quite 'unreal' either. On the contrary, they 
are very intense experiences that make for very intense emotions. In short, 
what is on offer is a chance of coming as near as any of us can to battle in 
the age of 'horse and musket'; that may not, thank God, be very close, but it 
has yet informed my research in all sorts of way.'

Everyone will be very welcome to join us for what promises to be an 
illuminating event – we hope you will also join us for other seminars in future 
weeks as follows:

9 November: Dr Toby Haggith (Imperial War Museum) - The Film Archives of 
the Imperial War Museum

16 November: Dr Andrew Flinn (University College London) -  “Sites of
Resistance”: Independent and community-led archives, challenging histories 

23 November: Dr Jeremy Ashbee (English Heritage) - Conflict in interpreting 
the English castles of north Wales

Please let me know if you plan to attend.

Please find attached a poster for the whole series.

The first seminar will take place at 6 pm in the Lecture Room in Civic Design,
74 Bedford Street South, Liverpool.  Future seminars will take place in Lecture 
Room 1 in the School of History, 9 Abercromby Square, Liverpool (doors close 
at 6 pm).

Further information about LUCAS events is available on the LUCAS website: 
http://www.liv.ac.uk/lucas/events.htm

For further details, please contact me:

Alexandrina Buchanan (Dr)
Lecturer in Archive Studies
School of History
University of Liverpool
email: [log in to unmask]
Tel: 0151 794 2390

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