The “Places of Peace” application for the European Heritage Label was submitted on 30 January in Croatia, a Member State of the European Union.
The European Heritage Label, established in 2011 by a joint decision of the European Parliament and the European Commission, aims to distinguish “sites that symbolise important stages in the creation of today’s Europe and the role they played in the history and culture of Europe”
The “Places of Peace” is a transnational application which includes 7 sites associated with the signing of Peace Treaties located in 6 Member States of the European Union: Monastery of St. Francis of Zadar (Croatia), Park of Historical Fountain of Kaynardzha (Bulgaria) , Paço dos Henriques of Alcáçovas (Portugal), Convento de San Francisco/Historic Complex of Alcañices (Spain), Convention House of Évora Monte (Portugal), House of Peace of Vasvár (Hungary) and Trencin Castle (Slovakia).
The application highlights the importance of the Intangible Heritage associated with these sites – Peace – as well as the way in which they combine this Heritage with the active pursuit of promoting a Culture of Peace and the fact that they are all currently accessible to the public, housing diverse facilities: interpretation centers, art exhibitions related to its Heritage, public libraries, tourist offices, conference rooms and auditoriums, among others.
The application has as coordinator Municipality of Zadar, Croatia, and will now be assessed by the Government of this Member State and, if approved, will then be submitted to the European selection.
The “Places of Peace” application was sponsored by the European Network of Places of Peace (ENPP) since the vast majority of public entities that currently manage the candidate sites are members of this European Association, based in Portugal, in the historic village of Évora Monte.