Un historien dans son siècle. L’engagement politique de Jacques Pirenne durant l’Entre-deux-guerres en Belgique

Abstract

Jacques Pirenne is a major figure with regard to the political commitment of Belgian historians during the interwar period. The second son of the famous historian Henri Pirenne was himself an historian and a fervent defender of the unity of the nation and bilingualism in Flanders. He does not hesitate to engage with pressure groups and political parties. He uses the past as well as his various networks to defend his political project. So far, the political commitment of historians remains a neglected topic in the history of intellectuals in Belgium. In order to fill this historiographical gap, this article aims to reflect on this subject by focusing on the case of Jacques Pirenne, This study explores the influence of Pirenne’s networks on his political commitment. This contribution further explores how Pirenne made use of the past in order to serve a political project as well as the methods he used to defend Belgian unity and bilingualism in Flanders.