The ICOMOS-UK annual Christmas Lecture for 2022 was given by Professor Christoph Mick, who spoke on the subject of ‘The Fight for the Past: Contested Heritage and the Russian Invasion of Ukraine’.

This very topical and important talk explored Russian and Ukrainian conflicting views of the past. Some sites, such as the L’viv and Kyiv World Heritage sites are equally significant for both Ukrainians and Russians and control over them can become a major aim of the conflict.  It also discussed what impact the conflict has had on monuments and heritage sites, including the deliberate destruction of monuments and the capture and removal of artifacts and relics.

About The Speaker:

Professor Mick is Professor of Modern European History at the University of Warwick. His publications include Lemberg, Lwów, L’viv, 1914-1947: Violence and Ethnicity in a Contested City (Lafayette: Purdue University Press, 2016).