What is the motivation behind "holy" wars, these at least superficially religious conflicts? We want to look at the interdependencies between questions of faith and other components. To this end, religious conflicts from the Middle Ages to the present day will be analysed. The aim is to show the extent to which questions of faith were simply instrumentalised, contributed to, exacerbated or in some cases were actually constitutive. The aim is also to identify similarities and differences between the specific conflicts.
Cooperation with:
Journal World and Environment of the Bible
Special note:
Partial online participation in the event is possible via livestream on the YouTube channel of the Catholic Academy in Bavaria. You can follow Marina Münkler's lecture online on Thursday, 6 March 2025, from 7 pm.
Programme of the event:
Wednesday, 5 March 2025
2.00 pmWelcome and introduction
2.15 pm
The crusade: Holy War - Pilgrimage - Work of Mercy?
Prof. Dr. Stefan TebruckProfessor of Medieval History at Justus Liebig University Giessen
3.00 pm
Holy or just wars on the
Iberian Peninsula? The many facets
the (Re-)Conquista
Prof. Dr. Klaus HerbersSenior Professor for
Medieval History at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg
3.45 pmCoffee break
4.15 pm
Between war and peace. Ottoman expansion and European crusades
endeavours in the later Middle Ages
PD Dr. Tobias Danielsresearch assistant at the Department of History at LMU Munich
5.00 pm Plenary discussion
5.45 pm Dinner
7.00 pm Eucharistic celebration on Ash Wednesday
Thursday, 6 March 2025
9.00 a.m.
War against invented heretics?
The Albigensian Crusade (1209-1229)
Dr. Markus Krumm, Academic Councillor at the
Historical Seminar of the LMU Munich
9.45 a.m.
Religious division, religious violence and
Crisis of kingship: the French
Religious wars and how to overcome them
Prof. Dr. Lothar SchillingChair of Early Modern History at the University of Augsburg
10.30 a.m.Coffee break
11.00 a.m.
The importance of religion in the Thirty Years' War
Prof. Dr. Franz BrendleAssociate Professor in the Department of History at the University of Tübingen
11.45 a.m.Plenary discussion
12.30 pmMidday prayer
12.45 pmLunch
14.30 to 17.15
Working groups:
- Crusades to the Holy Land
- Iberian Peninsula
- Turkish crusades
- Albigensian Crusades
- French confessional wars
- Thirty Years' War
5.30 pmDinner
7.00 pm
Holy or secular wars? The wars against the Ottomans in the 16th century
Prof. Dr. Marina MünklerProfessorship for Elderly and
Early Modern Literature and Culture at the TU Dresden
7.45 pmDiscussion
Friday, 7 March 2025
8.45 a.m.Lauds
9.00 a.m.
"Holy" war in ancient Egypt - to
Royal ideology, judgement of the gods and
Displays of power in the pharaonic era
Prof. Dr. Julia BudkaUniversity Professor for
Egyptian Archaeology and Art History at
of the LMU Munich
9.45 a.m.
The importance of religion in
the justification of war
in ancient Assyria
Dr. Mary FrazerAcademic Counsellor at the Department of History at LMU Munich
10.30 a.m.Coffee break
11.00 a.m.Plenary discussion
11.45 a.m.
Between glorification and warning.
Holy wars in film
Prof. Dr. Reinhold ZwickProfessor emeritus of Catholic Theology and its Didactics at the University of Münster
12.45 pmLunch
2.30 pm
Suffer and fight - because it is God's will. Catholic clergy in the First World War
Dr. Annette Jantzen, theologian, Aachen
3.15 pm
The role of religion in current wars
Prof. Dr. Markus VogtProfessor of Social Ethics at
of the LMU Munich
4.00 pmCoffee break
4.30 pm
Closing panel: "Holy" wars and
no end?
5.30 pmDinner - end of the event
