Monuments and Counter-Monuments: Memory Politics and the Production of Space in Budapest’s Liberty Square

This thesis undertakes a theoretical and empirical exploration of Liberty Square in Budapest, examining it as a key site of contested memory. By analysing the square’s sites of memory (lieux de mémoire), it traces the socio-historical transformations of the city and the evolving milieu of Hungarian identity. The study combines memory studies and critical spatial thinking to investigate how monuments, memorials, and architectural interventions function as instruments of power in shaping collective memory. Drawing on the works of Henri Lefebvre, Pierre Nora, Aleida Assmann, Jas Assmann, Maurice Halbwachs, Edward Soja, and Doreen Massey, it situates Liberty Square within broader debates on the production of space, cultural memory, and memory politics. Methodologically, the research relies on archival sources, media analysis, and photographic documentation to reconstruct the historical layering of the square and to interpret its contemporary meanings. By focusing on the tension between...Show moreThis thesis undertakes a theoretical and empirical exploration of Liberty Square in Budapest, examining it as a key site of contested memory. By analysing the square’s sites of memory (lieux de mémoire), it traces the socio-historical transformations of the city and the evolving milieu of Hungarian identity. The study combines memory studies and critical spatial thinking to investigate how monuments, memorials, and architectural interventions function as instruments of power in shaping collective memory. Drawing on the works of Henri Lefebvre, Pierre Nora, Aleida Assmann, Jas Assmann, Maurice Halbwachs, Edward Soja, and Doreen Massey, it situates Liberty Square within broader debates on the production of space, cultural memory, and memory politics. Methodologically, the research relies on archival sources, media analysis, and photographic documentation to reconstruct the historical layering of the square and to interpret its contemporary meanings. By focusing on the tension between state-sanctioned narratives and grassroots acts of counter-memory, this thesis demonstrates how Liberty Square operates as both a symbolic and lived space where power is exercised and contested.Show less

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Monuments and Counter-Monuments: Memory Politics and the Production of Space in Budapest’s Liberty Square