Liesbeth Corens
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onslies.bsky.social
Liesbeth Corens
@onslies.bsky.social
7.2K followers 1.3K following 6.7K posts
Historian: mobility & recordkeeping of #earlymodern Catholic minorities. Book: confessional mobility and English Catholics in Early Modern Europe. Also grumpy about the state of UK Higher Education so likely to talk about how it is being failed...(She/Her)
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onslies.bsky.social
Liesbeth Corens @onslies.bsky.social · Nov 10
About me: I'm really interested in how (Catholic) minorities persevere.
Confessional Mobility: oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093...
Archives & Information: britishacademy.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.5871...
Social History: academic.oup.com/past/issue/2...
book cover Confessional Mobility and English Catholics in Counter-Reformation Europe Book cover archives and information in the early modern world book cover the social history of hte archive: record-keeping in early modern europe
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
loreandordure.com
Now I’m worried IKEA have found a source of sapient pearwood…
February 15, 2026 at 4:09 PM
onslies.bsky.social
oh! hayyyyy! Spa in the news!

May I offer some further academic writing on this topic? My 2022 @pastpresentsoc.bsky.social article: academic.oup.com/past/article... -- fascinating town which bracketed out the tensions of the rest of the world for the season to enable healthcare.
The town that launched a global self-care industry
Long before wellness became a global industry, a small town in eastern Belgium shaped how Europeans thought about health, leisure and water.
www.bbc.co.uk
February 15, 2026 at 8:08 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
jaykaydee.bsky.social
Also, by reducing professorship to just the teaching, that makes it much easier to replace with contingent labor. After which it's that much easier to tell them what to teach.
design-law.bsky.social Sarah Fackrell @design-law.bsky.social · 9h
What I need people to understand is when legislators argue that professors should teach more and research less, it's not because they think our research is actually worthless. It's because they don't want anyone to be able to develop or disseminate expertise that goes against their party line.
February 15, 2026 at 6:10 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
qmucu.bsky.social
A couple of years ago someone got sight of senior managers' appraisal at renumeration committee which showed that they were being rewarded for their cutting, and how those cuts were part of the job expectations.

Was it Aberdeen?
February 15, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
qmucu.bsky.social
Students continue to be brilliant: confirmed.

Someone please obtain or leak (1) which agency led the search for the new VC at Essex, (2) what their criteria were, (3) what expectations of the new VC coming in to ruthlessly was already part of the negotiation last Spring.

#SaveHE #UKHE
ucuessex.bsky.social UCU Essex @ucuessex.bsky.social · 1d
Our incredible students have written a letter of support to the VC and are asking students to co-sign their petition - a few extracts from their Instagram post here, and links below! ✊
February 15, 2026 at 12:06 PM
onslies.bsky.social
Oh, Frances has lost this fight already.
qmucu.bsky.social QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · 14h
IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE CAMPUS CAT IS IN SOLIDARITY WITH @ucuessex.bsky.social.

If you chose destructive marketisation, you disappoint Pebbles. And you don't want to do that. #CatsAgainstCasualisation
February 15, 2026 at 3:52 PM
onslies.bsky.social
Does anyone remember which university this was? It was such a clear way of cutting through the 'our poor hands are tied' narrative that senior managers are spinning: they accepted the job in the full knowledge of slashing jobs/departments, and make good money off of it.
qmucu.bsky.social QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · 14h
A couple of years ago someone got sight of senior managers' appraisal at renumeration committee which showed that they were being rewarded for their cutting, and how those cuts were part of the job expectations.

Was it Aberdeen?
February 15, 2026 at 12:53 PM
onslies.bsky.social
We’re OFF! I can still sneak you in!

Very excited to hear all about future thinking!
onslies.bsky.social Liesbeth Corens @onslies.bsky.social · Jan 15
Come & learn all things #LowCountries @ihr.bsky.social this term! We've got lace! We've got the future! We've got disability history! We've got divergence! We've got museums! Everything happens in the #LowCountries!

Fridays, 17:30, in person & on zoom: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/... #SkyStorians
IHR Low Countries programme 30 January David Hopkin: Christ in the Flemish Lace Schools: Craft, Gender and Religion 13 February Jeroen Puttevils: Back to the Future: What can we Learn about Future Thinking from Late Medieval and Early Modern Merchant Correspondences from the Low Countries 27 February Feike Dietz: Blindness, Writing and Knowing: Visually Impaired Female Authors in the Netherlands (1770-1840) 13 March Sam Geens: Reassessing the Little Divergence: Evidence from the Medieval Southern Low Countries 22 May Valika Smeulders: The Rijksmuseum: New Horizons
February 13, 2026 at 5:35 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
onslies.bsky.social
I’ve got the zoom link and can still sneak you in!
onslies.bsky.social Liesbeth Corens @onslies.bsky.social · Jan 15
Come & learn all things #LowCountries @ihr.bsky.social this term! We've got lace! We've got the future! We've got disability history! We've got divergence! We've got museums! Everything happens in the #LowCountries!

Fridays, 17:30, in person & on zoom: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/... #SkyStorians
IHR Low Countries programme 30 January David Hopkin: Christ in the Flemish Lace Schools: Craft, Gender and Religion 13 February Jeroen Puttevils: Back to the Future: What can we Learn about Future Thinking from Late Medieval and Early Modern Merchant Correspondences from the Low Countries 27 February Feike Dietz: Blindness, Writing and Knowing: Visually Impaired Female Authors in the Netherlands (1770-1840) 13 March Sam Geens: Reassessing the Little Divergence: Evidence from the Medieval Southern Low Countries 22 May Valika Smeulders: The Rijksmuseum: New Horizons
February 13, 2026 at 1:04 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
simonfd.bsky.social
A volume of essays I edited some years ago on news in #earlymodern Europe is now available open access 📖
Featuring chapters by @lenaliapi.bsky.social, @emmawhipday.bsky.social, among others!
brill.com/edcollbook-o...
February 13, 2026 at 11:16 AM
onslies.bsky.social
WHOA!!! #OpenAccess!!! One of these Brill investment funds in open access! And a spectacular one at that!
simonfd.bsky.social Simon Davies @simonfd.bsky.social · 2d
A volume of essays I edited some years ago on news in #earlymodern Europe is now available open access 📖
Featuring chapters by @lenaliapi.bsky.social, @emmawhipday.bsky.social, among others!
brill.com/edcollbook-o...
February 13, 2026 at 4:22 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
qmucu.bsky.social
The building works on this are still not resumed. But now every other building on the campus is being turned into a coffee shop, cutting drastically in academic office space, to create more 'student space'.

All without mentioning the large elephant on campus which would host student space.
qmucu.bsky.social QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · Jun 24
There should be a rule that you have to finish your megalomaniac building work before you can start another one.

Funnily enough, we feel like that's an unspoken rule among investors... my.qmul.ac.uk/news-and-eve...
screenshot from a QMUL webpage. the title is 'constructin work in the Queens' Building' and hte sentence highlighted is 'all of hte building works should be completed by the second quarter of 2025." Construction work in the Queens’ Building We are pleased to announce that Planning and Listed Building consent has been granted to begin major construction works in the Grade II listed Queens’ Building. Published:23 May 2023 Now that Planning and Listed Building consent has been granted, major construction works in the Grade II listed Queens’ Building will start within the next few weeks. There will be preliminary enabling works from early June to mid-September 2023, followed by a major refurbishment which will transform the courtyard, basement, and ground floor spaces of the building. These essential works will transform the look and feel of the building, greatly enhancing student experience, to turn it into a vibrant, accessible student hub combining support services, informal study spaces and breakout areas for students. We know that when student services are co-located, teams become more integrated and work together more collaboratively. Areas impacted include the east, west and cross block of the ground floor, including the main reception, which will become a virtual function for the entire duration of the works. Regular updates will be shared with stakeholders to inform them of planned works in the building which may cause disruption. All of the building works should be completed by the second quarter of 2025. We apologise in advance for any inconvenience during the more disruptive phases of the construction. Here’s a reminder of which services have been relocated during the refurbishment: Student Enquiry Service – IQ East Court Building (Ground Floor) Careers and Enterprise Services – IQ East Court Building Fees Office – IQ East Court (Ground Floor) Global Opportunities – Graduate Centre If you have any questions, contact: Gerry Ackerman or Emmanuel Nibo.
February 7, 2026 at 12:35 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
qmucu.bsky.social
Hey! Remember this?

Senior Management claims they'll find millions of investment for this 'Life Sciences' project. Yet they're planning to close our fully accredited Pathology Lab: www.qmul.ac.uk/blizard/rese...

What are they going to put in the shiny building if they're cutting all the content?
qmucu.bsky.social QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · Jun 20
When the message is this defensive, you know the multi-million pound purchase of land is going to be a doozy, don't you?
Today, QM signed an agreement with the Department of Health and Social Care to acquire significant land in Whitechapel, adjacent to our existing campus. This acquisition is a strong statement of our commitment to East London, to world-class research, education and civic engagement, and it will future-proof our University at a time of considerable change and challenge to the sector. This investment will enable us, working with partners from all sectors, to develop significant multi-disciplinary life sciences capacity in East London, driving better outcomes for local people and for communities across the globe. Along with the entire UK higher education sector, we continue to operate in a financially challenging environment, and I know there will be questions about the decision to acquire this land at this time. Acquiring this land in Whitechapel now has a number of important long-term strategic benefits: We expect the value of this land, in a part of London where transport links have recently been significantly upgraded, to increase over time; By controlling all of the site that surrounds our existing Whitechapel campus, we are able to shape its development at our own pace and in the interests of us and our partners; and owning this coveted site will help us attract investment from both existing and new national and international partners to curate a multi-disciplinary, multi-sector life sciences campus, which will address health inequalities for communities in East London and across the globe. We are buying this land using a low-cost and long-term form of borrowing, which we previously arranged a few years ago, when the markets were in our favour, to enable us to invest in our physical estate for the long-term without impacting on the money we use for our day-to-day operating costs. The conditions of the long-term loan mean we can only use the money in this way, and it cannot be used for normal running costs. Having access to this low-cost finance allows us to invest
February 7, 2026 at 12:32 PM
onslies.bsky.social
I missed that this was Matt Goodwin.

He was an academic. Used to teach these young women he’s now degrading. Does Kent have anything to say?
February 13, 2026 at 4:20 PM
onslies.bsky.social
I’ve got the zoom link and can still sneak you in!
onslies.bsky.social Liesbeth Corens @onslies.bsky.social · Jan 15
Come & learn all things #LowCountries @ihr.bsky.social this term! We've got lace! We've got the future! We've got disability history! We've got divergence! We've got museums! Everything happens in the #LowCountries!

Fridays, 17:30, in person & on zoom: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/... #SkyStorians
IHR Low Countries programme 30 January David Hopkin: Christ in the Flemish Lace Schools: Craft, Gender and Religion 13 February Jeroen Puttevils: Back to the Future: What can we Learn about Future Thinking from Late Medieval and Early Modern Merchant Correspondences from the Low Countries 27 February Feike Dietz: Blindness, Writing and Knowing: Visually Impaired Female Authors in the Netherlands (1770-1840) 13 March Sam Geens: Reassessing the Little Divergence: Evidence from the Medieval Southern Low Countries 22 May Valika Smeulders: The Rijksmuseum: New Horizons
February 13, 2026 at 1:04 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
eicathomefinn.bsky.social
CFP for 5-minute lightening talk proposals (due 13 March) for the IHR's British History in the Long 18th Century seminar is now live. Come introduce your PhD project to an enthusiastic group of fellow historians. Contact Brendan Tam ([email protected] ) for more details. #Skystorians
long18thsem.bsky.social IHR British History in the Long C18th Seminar @long18thsem.bsky.social · 2d
18TH CENTURY BRITISH HISTORY PHD LIGHTNING TALKS CFP

Are you at the start of your PhD? Want to tell an eager and engaged audience about it in 5 mins? We want to hear the best PGR research about 18th Britain at our #LightningTalks event 29 April 2026.

Please see the poster for further information!
February 13, 2026 at 10:14 AM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
qmucu.bsky.social
Fascinating (genuinely!) discussion of the implications of the High Court proceedings. Quite revealing about the slapdash way the Office for Students was set up (do they have the power over governance documents? Which governance documents?) and how they fail to consider the wider #UKHE sector.
There is higher education legislation on the way – a Skills Bill, which would straighten up some of the more egregious problems with HERA and the OfS. Some of Justice Lieven’s judgement – particularly if she gets as stuck in to the visitorial jurisdiction issue – is an intervention in the evolution of higher education regulation that would shift us from the Behanite “it would be nice if” to a situation where changes had to be made to ensure OfS can continue to regulate in the way it has come to assume it has. Much like in the aftermath of Office for Students vs Bloomsbury College, already knowable issues with OfS become pressingly urgent, and the government will be forced into action via primary legislation. A crisis can drive needed change, but it can also drive measures to shore up systems that need a more considered rethink.
February 8, 2026 at 10:57 AM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
qmucu.bsky.social
Quick check, what is the nature of Notifications to the Office for Students? www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications...

It's completely discretionary and if it doesn't give them a stick to hit people with in their Culture War BS, they just won't bother?

May we have an actual regulator, please?
Notification – a way for students, staff members or others to let us know about an issue at a university or college. Notifications are sent to us by email. When we receive a notification, we will review it and we may decide to investigate further, to take regulatory action, or both. Notifications help us to regulate universities and colleges that are registered with the OfS in the interest of students.
February 12, 2026 at 5:37 PM
onslies.bsky.social
I will never get over how government keeps feigning ignorance, as if these universities were not explicitly set up to regenerate regions. They know the vast societal impact universities have, and yet keep feed the ivory tower narrative.

Labour willing to let those regions crumble, and for what?
Essex university’s success story stymied by politics of immigration
Overseas enrolments plummet amid government’s hostile tone, sparking financial uncertainty
giftarticle.ft.com
February 13, 2026 at 10:37 AM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
ellydezateux.bsky.social
Violent Waters: Environmental Politics in Early Modern England is out now with Cambridge University Press: www.cambridge.org/core/books/v...

This watery, riotous book has been more than a decade in the making, and I'm delighted to see it out in the world to live its own life!
Front cover of Violent Waters: Environmental Politics in Early Modern England by Elly Robson Dezateux. Blurb of Violent Waters: How were environments and politics remade by sovereigns, floods, mapmakers, migrants, rioters, and writers during wetland improvement projects in early modern England? Violent Waters examines flagship ventures which promised to transform unruly fenland fringes into orderly terrain at the heart of national power and productivity. In practice, these projects sparked constitutional controversy, new floods, and huge riots. The first state-led project in Hatfield Level brought local, national, and transnational interests into contact and conflict for almost a century. Elly Robson Dezateux traces the environmental politics that emerged as water and land were constructed and contested, both mentally and materially. These disputes pivoted on urgent questions about risk and justice, which became entangled in civil war conflict and exposed the limits of central authority and technology. Ultimately, improvement was destabilised by a lack of legitimacy and the dynamism of local custom as a method of environmental management and collective action. Wetland communities, as much as improvers and sovereigns, remade the terrain of politics and the future of the fens.
February 13, 2026 at 8:33 AM
onslies.bsky.social
And it is stunning! Humongous congratulations @ellydezateux.bsky.social! May it end up on every bookshelf and every class reading list because the fireworks it sets off in your brain are such a joy. #EarlyModern #SkyStorians
ellydezateux.bsky.social Elly Robson Dezateux @ellydezateux.bsky.social · 3d
Violent Waters: Environmental Politics in Early Modern England is out now with Cambridge University Press: www.cambridge.org/core/books/v...

This watery, riotous book has been more than a decade in the making, and I'm delighted to see it out in the world to live its own life!
Front cover of Violent Waters: Environmental Politics in Early Modern England by Elly Robson Dezateux. Blurb of Violent Waters: How were environments and politics remade by sovereigns, floods, mapmakers, migrants, rioters, and writers during wetland improvement projects in early modern England? Violent Waters examines flagship ventures which promised to transform unruly fenland fringes into orderly terrain at the heart of national power and productivity. In practice, these projects sparked constitutional controversy, new floods, and huge riots. The first state-led project in Hatfield Level brought local, national, and transnational interests into contact and conflict for almost a century. Elly Robson Dezateux traces the environmental politics that emerged as water and land were constructed and contested, both mentally and materially. These disputes pivoted on urgent questions about risk and justice, which became entangled in civil war conflict and exposed the limits of central authority and technology. Ultimately, improvement was destabilised by a lack of legitimacy and the dynamism of local custom as a method of environmental management and collective action. Wetland communities, as much as improvers and sovereigns, remade the terrain of politics and the future of the fens.
February 13, 2026 at 9:43 AM
onslies.bsky.social
In case anyone needed a neat encapsulation of how archives are power, in all its messy and dubious ways.

(gift link for non-subscribers)
Belgian museum caught in row over millions of DR Congo records
KoBold Metals and DR Congo are pushing a Brussels museum to release records that would help map valuable metals
giftarticle.ft.com
February 13, 2026 at 9:25 AM
onslies.bsky.social
"It’s not a philosophy but a business model"

Aditya Chakrabortty remains damn good at this thing. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Behold the incredible shrinking Starmer: the PM who promises more while giving less | Aditya Chakrabortty
It is not just this doomed government but the Labour party itself that is disappearing before our very eyes, says Guardian columnist Aditya Chakrabortty
www.theguardian.com
February 12, 2026 at 6:42 PM
Reposted by Liesbeth Corens
hetanshah.bsky.social
The university funding crisis finally starting to make it into newspaper editorials
www.ft.com/content/82f5...
With universities making a loss on teaching domestic graduates, and almost half of universities in England facing deficits this year, student loans need to be reviewed as part of a much broader, and urgent, rethink of how UK universities are funded.
February 5, 2026 at 7:25 AM
onslies.bsky.social
The FT has been good on this from January 2024. Though I'm glad they're now also querying the entire funding system.

It's a mess. It doesn't need to be like this. It's not like this in other countries (stop comparing yourselves solely to the US, UK, I beg of you). Change it now.
hetanshah.bsky.social Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 10d
The university funding crisis finally starting to make it into newspaper editorials
www.ft.com/content/82f5...
With universities making a loss on teaching domestic graduates, and almost half of universities in England facing deficits this year, student loans need to be reviewed as part of a much broader, and urgent, rethink of how UK universities are funded.
February 12, 2026 at 6:33 PM