Eminent historian to speak at Lancaster University Centenary Lecture series

A leading British authority on military history will examine ‘The Ideas of War, 1914’ in the latest of a series of Centenary Lectures at Lancaster University.
Prof Strachen of All Souls Oxford who is expert in War Studies and first WW1.Prof Strachen of All Souls Oxford who is expert in War Studies and first WW1.
Prof Strachen of All Souls Oxford who is expert in War Studies and first WW1.

Eminent historian, Professor Sir Hew Strachan, will give the lecture, which is part of the First World War commemorations that are being co-hosted by the university’s Department of History and the Lancaster Military Heritage Group.

This second event will take place on Thursday, October 23 at the George Fox Building, beginning at 7pm.

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It follows the inaugural lecture by Allan Mallinson, another of Britain’s foremost military historians and author of ‘1914: Fight the Good Fight’. He launched the Centenary Lecture Series at the Storey Institute in Lancaster in June.

The series is the brainchild of the university’s history department and the heritage group and will run from 2014 until 2018 – mirroring the Great War, which took place 100 years ago.

Sir Hew is Chichele Professor of the History of War and fellow of All Souls College, Oxford.

He is an authority on military history since the 18th Century, but has a particular interest in the First World War and the history of the British Army.

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Sir Hew is also a member of the National Committee for the Centenary of the First World War, a Commissioner of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and the author of numerous highly regarded books on war, including The First World War (new edition 2014).

In 2012 he was included in the list of top global thinkers for the year, by Foreign Policy magazine.

Dr Corinna Peniston-Bird, senior lecturer at Lancaster University’s Department of History, said: “We are absolutely delighted that Sir Hew has agreed to be our second Centenary Lecture guest speaker.

“Over the next four years, we aim to look in-depth at all aspects of the 1914-18 conflict with the help of a range of expert voices and opinions.

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“Sir Hew, who is an acclaimed expert in the history of the British Army, will be examining the ideas of war in 1914 in his talk.

“It promises to be a fascinating view of the attitudes and thinking that were held right at the start of the conflict.”

The lecture is free and open to everyone and will be followed by a buffet supper and wine (£19.50).

The evening is being sponsored by the University’s Dynamics of Memory Research Centre with funding support from the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

For more details and to register for a place, please contact Catherine Winterburn at [email protected].

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