Current challenges for a war museum?

This fifth Public History Meeting organised by CegeSoma took place in two stages: on 20 May 2019, a private visit to the new permanent exhibition War – Occupation – Liberation at the Royal Museum of the Armed Forces / War Heritage Institute, and on 19 June 2019, a panel discussion with Wannes Devos and Kevin Gony, interviewed by Chantal Kesteloot at CegeSoma, on the theme: “What are the current issues and challenges for a war museum?”

On 8 May 2019, the brand-new galleries of the Museum of the Armed Forces / War Heritage Institute dedicated to the 1939–1945 period were inaugurated—without a doubt, a long-awaited event. This opening marked the beginning of a new phase of commemorations: first the 75th anniversary of the Liberation, and then the anniversary of the end of the Second World War.

After discovering the very rich content of these new galleries (unique visual documents, testimonies, and more than 2,000 objects displayed across 3,000 m²) of the largest exhibition devoted to the Second World War in Belgium, participants were invited back to CegeSoma for a reflection on the experience. It was an opportunity to discuss the exhibition with the people who made it happen. The guests, Kevin Gony and Wannes Devos, sought to answer, among others, the following questions: why are these new galleries important for the future of the Royal Museum of the Armed Forces / War Heritage Institute? What missions are assigned to museums of war history? etc. They also presented the synthesis publication devoted to the exhibition: War. Occupation. Liberation. Belgium 1940–1945.