2026 School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry Annual Lecture

Empires Striking Back?

Presented by Professor Andrew Bonnell.

The University of Queensland's School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry invites you to join us for the 2026 School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry Annual Lecture delivered by Professor Andrew Bonnell.

A fake (or "reconstructed") Royal Palace has been constructed in the middle of Berlin, while descendants of the Hohenzollern dynasty sued the German government for restitution of properties confiscated in the late 1940s. A French government law passed in 2005 mandated teaching on the positive sides of French colonialism. Conservative British historians run a website dedicated to "Reclaiming History". The Trump administration orders the removal of exhibits on the history of slavery from historic sites.

What is going on? Are we looking at tit-for-tat exchanges in apparently never-ending "history wars", or is there a deeper reaction against the expansion of historical knowledge and awareness of the histories of colonialism and slavery?

About the presenter

Professor Andrew Bonnell is a Professor in History at UQ, and holds a BA (Hons) (Sydney) and a PhD (Sydney). His research interests include modern German and European history, German cultural and intellectual history in social and political context, and the history of German Social Democracy. His teaching areas include modern German history, European intellectual history, European fascism and the radical right, film and history, and nationalism.

Professor Bonnell’s current research project focuses on the political discontents of modernity and aspects of the history of German Social Democracy. He is also on editorial advisory boards for the journals German History (Oxford UP) and European History Quarterly.