It’s safe to say that the middle of the twentieth century was not a high point for inter-European relations. The previous few decades had seen the deadliest wars in human history rage on the continent and as hostilities subsided people began to contemplate how such tragedies could be prevented in the future. While we are all familiar with large international organisations like the UN and NATO, there were also grassroots efforts made to connect ordinary people across different countries. One of those was town twinning, an idea that actually predates the war but one that gathered a lot more momentum after 1945.

The idea was that a town in one country would become linked with another and that would be the fulcrum of cultural exchange. Initiating visits to the respective towns, language exchanges in schools and the occasional giving of gifts (ideally based on the locality). The first of these town twins was actually between Coventry and Volgograd (then known as Stalingrad), established as an act of solidarity in 1944 as two cities devasted by the Nazi war machine. Over time this expanded out to more cities, Coventry in time was also twinned with Dresden, a German city famous for its devastation at the hands of allied bombers, and other cities began to build their own connections. This was done through an organisation structure which matched up suitable towns who were looking for a partner.

My hometown of Hitchin is twinned with two towns - Bingen am Rhein in Germany & Nuits St George in France and for the past several decades trips have been arranged in alternating years. One year people from Hitchin visit Bingen and the people from Nuits come to Hitchin and the next year people from Bingen come to visit and those from Hitchin visit Nuits. Going back to the 1960s and 70s these organisations proved a popular way to go abroad at a time before the internet and cheap flights. A large group of people could hire a coach for a long weekend to make for a cost-effective trip and the long journey was just part of the adventure.

However, the vast changes in travel over the past few decades have resulted in a drop of popularity for town twinning, with most of the dwindling membership made up by the older generations. People see less need to club together for a coach when flying has become so cheap and the internet has allowed an unprecedented amount of cultural exchange that town twinning can hardly compete again. It doesn’t help either that funding from the local government has long dried up in the UK meaning each association is having to do a lot of fundraising to keep themselves afloat. So does that mean town twinning is little more than a thing of the past?

I really hope not because it offers an experience that few people engage in these days, spending time with other ordinary people away from the tourist traps. Yes, everyone goes to Paris, Berlin and so on but much like London these cities are not a reflection of their respective countries. By going to these smaller towns you get to have a much more authentic experience and better your understanding of the local culture. Even better when it’s spent with warm, accommodating and enthusiastic people who are equally keen on where you’ve come from. Many lifelong friendships have been formed through these events, fed and watered through years of visits and that carry on outside of the formal trips.  

I myself am relatively new to town twinning but I’ve enjoyed my experiences so far, including my first trip to Bingen am Rhein. I got to see a part of Germany I knew very little about and had a good chance to further practice my German. Hopefully some day soon I’ll be able to visit Nuits St George as well. But like many other town twinning associations there is a need for new blood to ensure it carries on for the next several decades. I think a big part of the problem is that there is simply a lack of awareness that these organisations continue to exist and what the offer. Something I hope to help change with this and the next two blogs.

Interested in furthering your French or German? Or maybe another language, after all some towns and cities have links even further afield. Unfortunately, there is no one resource I can point to about town twinning but do a little research where you live and I’m sure you’ll find something to get you started. You won’t regret it. You can read more about my trip to Bingen in next week’s blog.

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