Filip Binder

Czech Academy of Science

Egodocuments Related to the Travels of Bohemian Nobility in the 19th Century and Their Potential for Research (with a Special Focus on British Travels)

The proposed paper explores ego-documents, particularly travel diaries and correspondence, associated with the journeys undertaken by the Bohemian nobility in the long 19th century. The paper will present these documents as valuable sources for interdisciplinary research, from which not only historians may benefit, but also art historians and scholars from other fields. Based on extensive research and analysis of travel-related ego-documents from approximately fifteen nobles, the presentation will illustrate how researchers using them can gain insights into the personality and mental world of the travellers and what topics can be studied through the use of such materials. Hence, the paper will focus on travellers’ perceptions of foreign countries and cultures, on their relationship to landscapes, architecture, history, and art and on the legacies of these journeys which can be traced through the study of ego-documents (for example inspiration regarding building projects). Special attention will be paid to travels to Great Britain, which was a popular destination for the nobility in the long 19th century, and which influenced the culture, architecture, industry, and lifestyle of the Bohemian nobility in significant ways.