German Historical Institute London Podcast

Jan 24 2025 101 ep. 917

German Historical Institute London Podcast artwork

Welcome to the podcast of the German Historical Institute London, a research centre for German and British academics and students in the heart of Bloomsbury. The GHIL is a research base for historians of all eras working on colonial history and global relations or the history of Great Britain and Ireland, and also provides a meeting point for UK historians whose research concerns the history of the German-speaking lands. In each podcast episode, ranging from interviews to lecture recordings, we take a look at historical research from different periods and areas. Subscribe to our podcast and visit our website at www.ghil.ac.uk to learn more about our research and work at the GHIL.

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Roland Wenzlhuemer: Raise, Reuse, Recycle

Oceans and seas have long been a focal point in historiography, particularly in the field of global history, which emphasizes the connective power of these vast bodies of water. This focus naturally extends to the study of seafaring, shipbuilding, and maritime infrastructures. Yet while global history highlights oceanic linkages, it has also acknowledged the inherent dangers and un

Julia Angster and Kim König: Globalization: a threat to democracy?

Is globalization a threat to democracy? In this podcast interview, PR Officer Kim König is joined by Julia Angster, professor of modern history at the University of Mannheim, to discuss the research behind her GHIL Lecture on globalization, democracy and the nation state in Germany after 1990. They explore the impact of globalization and neoliberalism on the nation state and natio

Julia Angster: ‘Post-Democracy’?

Is ‘globalization’ a threat to democracy? From the 1990s to the late 2010s, social scientists, economists, and historians in Western countries thought so. They worried about a loss of national sovereignty and agency, about national identity, and most of all about liberal democracy, which was based upon the national framing of state and society. This discourse was most prominent

Frederick Cooper: Understanding Power Relations in a Colonial Context: Top-Down, Bottom-Up, In-Between

Some years ago, historians reacted to the elite bias of much historical writing by advocating a ‘bottom-up’ approach focusing on peasants, workers, the urban and rural poor, racial minorities, women, and others of subordinate status in their social contexts. To do so is not only to bring out the violence, exploitation, and suffering to which people at the bottom of a social ord

Matthias Pohlig: Religious Decision-Making in the Reformation

It is a widespread belief that the Reformation introduced the possibility of choosing between different variants of the Christian faith. In contrast, this lecture argues that the early German Reformation created a field of experimentation in which it was disputed who was able, and who was permitted, to decide on which faith options, and how. The Reformation gave rise to new questio

Matthias Pohlig, Michael Schaich and Kim König: Catholic or Protestant in the Reformation

During the Reformation people had to choose between the Protestant and Catholic faith - or so the popular narrative goes. But is it really that simple? GHIL Deputy Director Michael Schaich and podcast host Kim König are joined by Matthias Pohlig, Professor of Early Modern European History at Humboldt University of Berlin, to discuss the research behind his GHIL Lecture on ‘Relig

Radhika Singha, Indra Sengupta and Kim König: Criminology and 'scientific' penology in India, 1894-1955

In this GHIL Podcast episode host Kim König is joined by GHIL Senior Fellow and Head of the India Research Programme Indra Sengupta to talk to Radhika Singha about her recent GHIL lecture and her research on criminology and 'scientific' penology in India, 1894-1955. Their conversation touches on criminal and labour histories, and seeks to answer the question of how the history of

Radhika Singha: International Penology in Colonial India: Too Advanced, Too American, Too Expensive?

The Indian Jail Committee report of 1919–20 is often cast as the turning point in colonial penal policy, when reform and rehabilitation were added to deterrence. But it is also acknowledged that very little changed on the ground. Why after all did a cash-strapped, politically-besieged regime sponsor a globe-trotting tour of jails and reformatories? Why did the committee return to

Stefanie Middendorf: Societies under Siege: Experiencing States of Emergency in the Long Twentieth Century

Today, the state of emergency seems to be as permanent as it is omnipresent. The term became ubiquitous in the early twentieth century and continues to guide the self-description of contemporary societies. Yet, referring to ‘emergencies’ implies a large range of meanings, from actual states of war to moments of humanitarian crisis, from abstract realms of the law to concrete te

Stefanie Middendorf, Clemens Villinger and Kim König: States of Emergency and the Social Dimensions of Administrative Agency

From living through wars to experiencing humanitarian crises, in this podcast episode, GHIL Research Fellow Clemens Villinger and PR officer Kim Koenig talk to Stephanie Middendorf about the research behind her GHIL Lecture on states of emergency and exception. What did they mean for societies in the 20th century and what can we take away for our own current moment? Listen to Stef