Peter Longerich
Encyclopedia
Professor Peter Longerich (born 1955, in Krefeld
, Germany
) is a German historian
.
In 2002-03, Professor Longerich was the third holder of the Visiting Chair at the Fritz Bauer
Institute in Frankfurt
. In 2003-04, he was J.B. and Maurice Shapiro Senior Scholar in Residence at the Centre for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
in Washington DC
, where he worked on a biography
of Heinrich Himmler
. In 2005-06, he was a Fellow at the Wissenschaftszentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen.
Professor Longerich is the Director of the Research Centre for the Holocaust and Twentieth-Century History at Royal Holloway, University of London
(RHUL), where he works alongside David Cesarani
. His major research interests include the history of the Weimar Republic
, the Third Reich, the Second World War, the Holocaust, Heinrich Himmler, and Joseph Goebbels
.
He has appeared in the media to comment upon the links between Adolf Hitler
and the Holocaust, which he believes implicitly exist, as well as on related topics. He published a book on this topic in 2001 titled The Unwritten Order: Hitler's Role in the Final Solution
. This stance has given him some notoriety amongst Holocaust deniers
, and also led to his calling as a major witness in the libel trial between David Irving
and Deborah Lipstadt
. (The trial took place between January and March the previous year).
Historian Ian Kershaw
called Peter Longerich "one of the leading German authorities on the Holocaust and the author of an outstanding study of Nazi extermination policies".
Krefeld
Krefeld , also known as Crefeld until 1929, is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, its centre lying just a few kilometres to the west of the River Rhine; the borough of Uerdingen is situated directly on the Rhine...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
) is a German historian
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
.
In 2002-03, Professor Longerich was the third holder of the Visiting Chair at the Fritz Bauer
Fritz Bauer
Fritz Bauer was a German judge and prosecutor.-Life:Bauer was born in Stuttgart, Kingdom of Württemberg, German Empire to Jewish parents. He attended Eberhard-Ludwigs-Gymnasium and studied business and law at the Universities of Heidelberg, Munich and Tübingen. After receiving his Doctorate of...
Institute in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
. In 2003-04, he was J.B. and Maurice Shapiro Senior Scholar in Residence at the Centre for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust history...
in Washington DC
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, where he worked on a biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
of Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
. In 2005-06, he was a Fellow at the Wissenschaftszentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen.
Professor Longerich is the Director of the Research Centre for the Holocaust and Twentieth-Century History at Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London is a constituent college of the University of London. The college has three faculties, 18 academic departments, and about 8,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from over 130 different countries...
(RHUL), where he works alongside David Cesarani
David Cesarani
David Cesarani OBE is an English historian who specialises in Jewish history, especially the Holocaust. He has also written several biographies, notably Arthur Koestler: The Homeless Mind.-Early life:...
. His major research interests include the history of the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
, the Third Reich, the Second World War, the Holocaust, Heinrich Himmler, and Joseph Goebbels
Joseph Goebbels
Paul Joseph Goebbels was a German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. As one of Adolf Hitler's closest associates and most devout followers, he was known for his zealous oratory and anti-Semitism...
.
He has appeared in the media to comment upon the links between Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and the Holocaust, which he believes implicitly exist, as well as on related topics. He published a book on this topic in 2001 titled The Unwritten Order: Hitler's Role in the Final Solution
Final Solution
The Final Solution was Nazi Germany's plan and execution of the systematic genocide of European Jews during World War II, resulting in the most deadly phase of the Holocaust...
. This stance has given him some notoriety amongst Holocaust deniers
Holocaust denial
Holocaust denial is the act of denying the genocide of Jews in World War II, usually referred to as the Holocaust. The key claims of Holocaust denial are: the German Nazi government had no official policy or intention of exterminating Jews, Nazi authorities did not use extermination camps and gas...
, and also led to his calling as a major witness in the libel trial between David Irving
David Irving
David John Cawdell Irving is an English writer,best known for his denial of the Holocaust, who specialises in the military and political history of World War II, with a focus on Nazi Germany...
and Deborah Lipstadt
Deborah Lipstadt
Deborah Esther Lipstadt, Ph.D. is an American historian and author of the book Denying the Holocaust and The Eichmann Trial. She is the Dorot Professor of Modern Jewish and Holocaust Studies at Emory University...
. (The trial took place between January and March the previous year).
Historian Ian Kershaw
Ian Kershaw
Sir Ian Kershaw is a British historian of 20th-century Germany whose work has chiefly focused on the period of the Third Reich...
called Peter Longerich "one of the leading German authorities on the Holocaust and the author of an outstanding study of Nazi extermination policies".