Treason and Sex: The Case of Colonel Redl
by Laurence Georgin
The case of Colonel Alfred Redl, who betrayed Austrian military secrets to the Russians before the First World War, is one of the most notorious cases of high treason. Despite this, and despite numerous academic and popular works about Redl, the homosexual dimension of the case has received little treatment (or has constantly been distorted and simplified by commentators). This research project of Mark Cornwall is part of his larger project about Loyalty and Treason in the late Habsburg Monarchy.
Women travellers exploring gender in the Canadian North at the beginning of the 20th century
by Laurence Georgin
Laurence Georgin’s PhD research looks at British women who travelled to the Canadian North at the beginning of the 20th century, particularly women who travelled on their own or with a female companion. Very much like their male counterparts had done for centuries, these women travelled to Canada in order to discover new territories and explore unfamiliar places.
Sodomy and Dishonour in Eighteenth-Century Hampshire
by Laurence Georgin
The history of homosexuality eighteenth-century England has been so far dominated by fascinating studies of the rich array of London resources. Perceptions of same-sex sexual activity in the provinces, in contrast, has been relatively overlooked. Dr Julie Gammon’s study takes a case study of trials and court martials for sodomy and attempted sodomy in the county of Hampshire over the long eighteenth century to consider whether sexual behaviour and attitudes towards gay sex in port cities such as Southampton and Portsmouth and county towns such as Winchester and Salisbury differed from the models traditionally constructed through metropolitan sources.
âExiles of Loveâ: LĂda MerlĂnovĂĄ and the World of the Czech Lesbian
by Laurence Georgin
Homosexuality in Czech culture and society is only recently being explored by Czech historians and usually the focus is on the homosexual male. Prof Mark Cornwall’s research project focuses instead on Czech lesbians during the period 1918-1945 and especially the work of the popular (yet now largely unknown writer) LĂda MerlĂnovĂĄ.
The Pet Shop Boys, Gay Sexuality and the Knowingness of Popular Culture in 1980s and 1990s Britain
by Laurence Georgin
Dr Eve Colpus’ project is an attempt to rethink gay culture in late twentieth century Britain, moving away from the notion of gay community towards an understanding of how gay sexuality and culture was both part of mainstream popular culture and took it in distinctive directions. Political narratives of gay life in this period have tended to focus on the concept of marginalisation. By exploring messages about gay sexuality in the Pet Shops Boysâ music and videos and in the contemporary music press, I suggest an alternative story: that gay sexuality and culture was knowingly explored in 1980s and 1990s popular culture, which was a space where a range of sexualities were interrogated and commemorated.
If you are interested in finding out more about the project, please contact Dr Eve Colpus
Southampton’s Hidden Past and Present: project materials available to download
by Laurence Georgin
Sebastian Buckle’s project explores how gay men and lesbians experienced and understood life in the city of Southampton both in the past and the present.
Supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s Cultural Engagement Fund, the project was required to help support the University’s engagement with the wider cultural and civic context of Southampton. It has produced 18 interviews which have been deposited at the Southampton City Archive as part of their oral history collection for use by future researchers. The interviews have highlighted a series of common experiences and concerns which were explored in a recent exhibition.
Read more about the project and download the related posters
History Professor publishes new book
by Laurence Georgin
Southampton historian Professor Mark Cornwall has published his latest book ‘The Devil’s Wall, The Nationalist Youth Mission of Heinz Rutha’.
Legend has it that twenty miles of volcanic rock rising through the landscape of northern Bohemia was the work of the devil,who separated the warring Czechs and Germans by building a wall. The nineteenth-century invention of the Devilâs Wall was evidence of rising ethnic tensions. In interwar Czechoslovakia, Sudeten German nationalists conceived a radical mission to try to restore German influence across the region.
Mark Cornwall tells the story of Heinz Rutha, an internationally recognized figure in his day, who was the pioneer of a youth movement
that emphasized male bonding in its quest to reassert German dominance over Czech space.
LGBT History at Southampton
by Laurence Georgin
The annual Southampton Stonewall Lecture on 21 February 2013 was delivered by Professor George Chauncey (Yale University) on âGay Culture in Postwar New Yorkâ.
This was a highly innovative exploration of the world of the gay male in New Yorkâs cultural and commercial scene, explaining how men fashioned their identity in a vibrant but often hostile environment, and the codes and manoeuvres they used to avoid persecution. It was a tantalizing glimpse into Professor Chaunceyâs forthcoming book on the shaping of American gay identity between 1945 and the Stonewall riots.
We had an extremely diverse audience of about 100 for the event (academic and non-academic), and a lively Q & A session ensued, chaired by Dr Kendrick Oliver. In short this fully fulfilled the Southampton Stonewall lectureâs remit of publicizing a facet of LGBT history to a public audience while promoting the university principles of equality and diversity. It is expected that next yearâs lecture will be on an early modern history theme in order further to diversify the audience.
History also ran the 3rd LGBT History Workshop on 20 February, with a very varied programme of talks and some of the best discussions we have had at this annual event. This year it was truly interdisciplinary, with papers ranging from US gay poets (Peter Middleton), to homosexual Stalinist crooners (Dan Healey); from the music of the Pet Shop Boys (Eve Colpus), to an analysis of the German lesbian film âAimee und Jaguarâ (Neil Gregor). A special highlight was the paper of English PhD candidate James Cole who read to us vividly from his own short story âBe My Lennonâ. The quality of the discussion/debate owed much to those who were able to attend for the whole workshop (including the incisive commentators Joan Tumblety and Julie Gammon).
Listen to George Chauncey speaking about the history of Gay New York.
Welcome to the LGBT Research Community
by Laurence Georgin
The LGBT Research Community website is the hub for LGBT research, teaching and enterprise at the University of Southampton.
We want to engage with researchers from across the University and we invite you to get in touch with if you want to share your LGBT-related work with the wider University community.