ABSTRACT
A conflict that occurred between the primary and secondary schools in Echternach from 1851 to 1852 will serve to illustrate this thesis. The case study of Echternach charts the conflict-ridden creation of a school system as part of a nation building process in an emerging pre-industrial market society. Although the primary and secondary schools were at least theoretically intended to be consecutive and complementary and to represent a smooth educational pathway, the reality was far less harmonious. This was certainly due in part to the fact that the Luxembourg primary school system was failing to cope adequately from 1839 on owing to the sharp increases in school enrollments and the under-qualified teaching staff. Another interesting point to come out of this conflict is the intractability of the originally "German", clerical humanistic educational ideal in the face of such strong opposition from the increasingly influential urban community, especially considering that the municipal council was responsible for supporting the school financially.
