A collaboration between historical research and cartography: a look back at a partnership at Sciences Po’s Cartography Workshop

Amy: "I had applied for assistance from the mapping workshop to create maps for my dissertation, which focuses on American funeral and commemorative practices and the handling of bodies by the United States during the Second World War, with a case study on the American cemetery at Saint-Avold in Lorraine (supervised by Guillaume Piketty).

The monthly workshop takes place one Thursday a month and it was Mr Martin who looked after me. Whilst discussing my topic to gather as much information as possible for creating the maps, he told me about a call for applications for a conference on the visualisation of time and space in the humanities and social sciences, and we realised that my chapter and my maps fitted this theme perfectly.

We then produced the poster and the maps in about a fortnight, before revising the work so that it could be incorporated into my thesis.‘

Benoît: ’The Cartography Workshop organises monthly ‘workshops’ open to students, lecturers or researchers seeking guidance on processing and visualising their data. The formats vary widely: the main aim is to troubleshoot, provide guidance, or suggest cartographic methods suited to ongoing research.

In Amy’s case, I spotted a call for papers for the MATE-SHS conference on the visualisation of time and space, and I thought her work would fit in perfectly. The idea of producing a poster came about quite naturally.

The schedule was very tight, however, as we were just a few days away from the submission deadline. This led to an intense, almost frantic, effort to produce the maps on time. But Amy fully understood what was at stake, and we managed to carry out this collaboration efficiently and quickly.

Amy: "The first chapter of my thesis focuses on the management of bodies during the war – a war of movement – from the Normandy landings until the end of hostilities in Europe.

The aim is to show how funeral practices adapted to this military context: bodies had to be evacuated quickly, gathered at collection points, then buried temporarily before being transferred to permanent cemeteries. These arrangements thus followed the advance of the troops.

When distances became too great, new cemeteries were created. This allows us to trace the military advance spatially, but also its temporality through the dates of opening and closing.

As we put it on the poster: “The establishment of cemeteries and their filling trace a spatial chronology of the fighting, where every kilometre conquered is also measured in bodies to be managed. ‘

The case of the Saint-Avold cemetery is particularly telling, as it was open for only three weeks due to the very rapid advance of the troops.’

Benoît: "Mapping is an essential tool for historians, even if its use is sometimes less visible than its role in disseminating knowledge, particularly through atlases.

In the case of Amy’s work, the main challenge is to represent two dimensions simultaneously: space, with the advance of Allied troops, and time, with the speed (or sometimes the slowness, or even the halts and retreats) of this progress.

This type of representation is particularly stimulating because it forces us to consider together dynamics that do not naturally overlap. The poster does not offer a single answer, but explores several avenues of representation, some of which are fairly conventional in cartography.

It is also a demanding exercise: in data visualisation, clarity is essential, but it can sometimes oversimplify complex phenomena. A balance must therefore be struck between readability and fidelity to historical dynamics."

Amy: "Mapping first helped me to better understand my own subject. The archives list information, but visualising it spatially completely changes one’s perception of the dynamics.

Seeing the collection points and how they evolved in relation to the advance of the troops helped me understand just how much the management of bodies was shaped by the war itself.

What was already striking in the sources becomes even clearer and more evident through the maps. I think this can also be very illuminating for the reader.‘

Benoît: ’Mapping is both a research tool and a means of dissemination. Whilst its role in publication is well known, particularly through atlases, its use during research is just as important.

In this work, it allows us to link two essential dimensions: the spatial progression of military advances and the temporal nature of operations, with their accelerations, slowdowns, and occasional interruptions.

It is precisely this interconnection that makes the analysis more nuanced and intuitive."

Amy: "I was responsible for compiling the data into a structured database, along with existing maps from atlases, to enable the creation of visualisations.

I also wrote a text in French to introduce my chapter and explain the relevance of my topic within the context of the time/space theme, as my dissertation was written in English.

It was a very rewarding experience, even though some of the verification stages were complex, particularly because of the many places with the same name, which sometimes made pinpointing locations difficult.

But the end result is very satisfying: seeing the maps take shape is impressive, especially as this is my first project of this kind. I also discovered a field I knew little about, and I learnt a great deal through the workshop.

I am very grateful to have been able to collaborate with Mr Martin, who placed his trust in my work and supported me throughout this project.‘

Benoît: ’Working with Amy went very smoothly, despite a very tight schedule.

In fact, to my knowledge, this is the first time a monthly workshop has resulted in such a polished output, going beyond mere ad-hoc support. This was a genuine co-production between the Cartography Workshop and the School of Research, with a presentation in an academic setting.

If this collaboration has enabled a young researcher to present her work under favourable conditions, then the objective has been fully achieved.

This is also in line with the Atelier’s mission and, more broadly, with the DNA of the Institute for Skills and Innovation (ICI): to provide cross-disciplinary support to the various communities at Sciences Po."

Amy: "This will be my first time presenting at a one-day conference. It’s both exciting and a little nerve-wracking, especially as I won’t have defended my dissertation by then.

But above all, it’s a very stimulating experience. I’m looking forward to discovering the work of the other participants and discussing ideas with researchers from different areas of history.

I hope this will be the start of a career in research. I’d like to continue my work on the management of bodies by doing a PhD, probably abroad, for example in Australia or the United States, so that I can continue to study American practices or adopt a comparative perspective.

The Pacific theatre of operations, in particular, remains understudied in this regard, which opens up some interesting avenues.”