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Political Science and Political Economy Research Seminar

The Legacy of Church-State Conflict: Evidence from Nazi Repression of Catholic Priests

Didac Queralt (Yale)

Tuesday 14 November 2023 14:00 - 15:30

Many of our seminars and public events this year will continue as in person or as hybrid (online and in person) events. Please check our website listings and Twitter feed @STICERD_LSE for updates.

Unless otherwise specified, in-person seminars are open to the public.

Those unable to join the seminars in-person are welcome to participate via zoom if the event is hybrid.


About this event

We explore the long-term effects of selective repression of local elites on ordinary community members who had not been subject to direct repression. Drawing on the literature on the legacy of violence against civilians, we hypothesize that elite-targeted repression creates a political backlash in the affected communities. Examining the legacy of Nazi-era repression of Catholic clergy in Bavaria we ask whether historical repression against Catholic priests is associated with higher support for Christian Democrats after WWII. We find that municipalities where Catholic priests had been repressed are more likely to vote for Christian Democrats in post-war elections. The legacy of priest repression on voting behavior persists all the way into the present, although its magnitude wanes overtime. These findings shed new light on the long-term political repercussions of the church-state struggle and suggest that selective repression of elites can leave lasting intergenerational legacies on political and social behavior.

The Political Science and Political Economy (PSPE) research group at the LSE brings together faculty and PhD students who do quantitative and/or formal research on political institutions, political behaviour, public policy, and political economy.

The PSPE Research Seminar provides a venue for researchers (mostly from outside of the LSE) to present their work.

These seminars are held on Tuesdays in term time at 14.00-15.30, both ONLINE AND IN PERSON in room SAL 3.05, unless specified otherwise.

Seminar coordinator: Mathilde Emeriau

Contact gov.comms@lse.ac.uk to be added to the mailing list and to recieve the zoom link.

For further information please contact Maddie Giles: gov.comms@lse.ac.uk.