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Borders
The period covered by the films made in the Upper Rhine, from 1900 to the 1980s, saw the geopolitical challenge represented by the river intensify. Reunited with France by the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, Alsace became a military and cultural battlefield between 1870 and 1945. Seen from Paris and Berlin, the question of belonging arises in terms of language, religion and political affiliation. But this conflict between nations ignores the reality of a border that is not reduced to a fortified boundary that is crossed in fire and blood. The regions on either side of the Rhine share a culture dating back to the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Above all, since ancient times, they have been a hub of economic exchanges, a major transport axis in Europe, and a fertile territory for the exploitation of natural resources.
War
The Rhine, cross-border symbol
