This sounds a bit "Rick Steves" to me. Europe has a violent past, generally fueled by antagonisms with roots in the even deeper past. The 16th C bridge at Mostar, destroyed and rebuilt in the last couple of decades, is an example of built heritage as a hostage to violent forces in the present.

Tangible heritage of all kinds is at risk (of rising sea levels, of war) and it doesn't mean a lot to most people because they have no direct involvement with it. There's an increasing awareness that it is the intangible and living aspects that really must be preserved:

http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/