engleski

In the Cradle of Heroes: Memoryscapes and Mnemonic Practices in Hrvatsko Zagorje

This presentation seeks to explore the production of memoryscapes that stem from hero- making processes, triggered or redefined in post-war Croatia. The authors analyze the intersections of various discourses, naratives and practices that memorialize three renowned historical figures related to different periods of the past: the leader of the 16th century Peasant Revolt Matija Gubec, the lifelong President of Socialist Yugoslavia Josip Broz Tito and the 'Father of the Contemporary Republic of Croatia' Franjo Tuđman. The feature that all those characters have in common is the space of their origin: the predominantly rural region of Hrvatsko zagorje as their homeland. The three places they come from – Gornja Stubica where, according to a legend, Gubec was born, Tito’s Kumrovec and Tuđman’s birthplace of Veliko Trgovišće – are all located within a radius of sixteen kilometers. Taking those case studies and the postsocialist perspective as their starting point, the authors observe the relationship of memory-making and the cultural creation of landscape. They pose the following research questions: how are memories inscribed in space? In which ways are the heroic memoryscapes created? What happens to a landscape where different heroic narratives and attitudes towards the past collide? The main goal of the paper is to discuss how memories materialize and shape the imagery of Hrvatsko zagorje. The authors focus on the architectural production of memoryscapes, by erecting monuments, museums and other mnemonic institutions on the one hand. However, on the other hand, they place an emphasis on mnemonic practices, on what people do, experience and sense in memoryscapes. These include various cultural practices, such as medieval festivals, reenactments of historical battles, birthday celebrations, commemorations, etc. In that way, memoryscapes are treated as affective geographies, as ways of embodying, performing and reviving the past as conceived in the present.

memoryscapes, Hrvatsko zagorje, mnemonic practices, heroes

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