ABSTRACT
The post-1989 municipal commemorative practices initially focused on the representation of the national historical narratives of the newly liberated nation-states. This re-composing of the past was achieved by the renaming of public space, by the removal of old and installation of new monuments and by revising the list of collectively commemorated anniversaries. However, the focus of commemorative practices has increasingly been shifting and the specificity of the urban landscape, the distinctive population make-up and the mass memory of the inhabitants of the municipality has become central to cities’ remembering. This change in the dominant strategy of municipal remembrance has been propelled by a number of developments. Apart from the administrative and territorial reforms of 1990 and 1999 that created stronger self-governing municipalities, which needed to respond to a historical heritage that impacts upon their socio-economic future, there are developments which are directly stimulating the process of municipal remembrance focused on local history. As local authorities seek political legitimisation and try to increase community cohesion, they have to take into consideration the present needs of their electorate when advancing particular images of the past. Cooperation with agencies of civil society is crucial in this process.
