Brunhart was born on 23 January 1952 in Balzers to the son of plasterer Andreas Brunhart and his mother businesswoman Rosa Frick as one of eight children, including his brother Hans Brunhart. He attended secondary school in Mörschwil from 1965 to 1973.[1]
From 1973 to 1982 he studied history and ethnology in Freiburg im Breisgau and worked as a research assistant there from 1982 to 1984.[2] He worked in various research positions in Rome, Paris, Dublin and London.[1]
Historian career
From 1985 to 1990 he worked as a freelance historian.[1] From 1990 to 2000 he was editor and chief, then project manager from 2001 to 2013 of the Historical Lexicon of the Principality of Liechtenstein, which was published in 2013.[3] Supported by a scientific advisory board that meets twice a year, Brunhart was the sole editor responsible for implementing the project from 1990 onwards.[4] He initiated four Liechtenstein seminars ranging from 1994 to 1996 held at the universities of Zurich, Freiburg, Innsbruck and Salzburg respectively.[1]
From 1985 to 1994 he was a member of the board of the Liechtenstein National Museum and then from 2000 to 2011 he was a research assistant and deputy director. He was also the vice-president of the Independent Commission of Historians Liechtenstein Second World War from 2001 to 2005 and board member of the Association for the History of Lake Constance and its Surroundings from 1995 to 2012.[1][5] Since 2020, Brunhart has been the co-chairman of the Liechtenstein-Czech Commission of Historians, succeeding Peter Geiger.[1][6][7]
Brunhart married librarian Ulrike Banzer (6 November 1959 – 14 March 2006) on 30 September 1988 and they had three children together. He has a domestic partnership with businesswoman Vera Thöny (born 8 March 1960).[1]
^Derschka, Harald (2018). Der Verein für Geschichte des Bodensees und seiner Umgebung. Ein Rückblick auf einhundertfünfzig Jahre Vereinsgeschichte 1868–2018 (in German). Schriften des Vereins für Geschichte des Bodensees und seiner Umgebung. p. 223.