Sounds of Loss: Church Bells, Place, and Time in the Habsburg Empire During the First World War*

Abstract

Abstract This article examines the rupture created by the First World War in towns and villages of the Habsburg Empire by focusing on the requisition of church bells, which were melted for the production of munitions. Bells performed an important social function for both rural and urban populations in the early twentieth century. They gathered communities at important times, stood as symbols of local identity, and gave a structure to the days and lives of rural inhabitants. Their removal generated an intense emotional response among parishioners, which is documented in newspapers, parish newsletters or chronicles, and petitions to the Ministry of Religion. These various reactions shed light on the difficult conciliation between local identity, religiosity, and imperial patriotism during the war. The requisitions contributed to the de-legitimization process experienced by the Habsburg Empire at the end of the war, as well as in the disruption of soundscapes in the region. The sense of time was also disturbed as daily rhythms, religious celebrations, and death rituals changed. This exploration of material culture draws on insights from the history of emotions and sensory history to study the changes in the sense of place that the war provoked in local communities.