
Professor Richard Vinen
Professor of History
Research interests
- History
Biography
Richard Vinen is a Professor in History. Prior to joining the department in 1991, he was a Fellow at Trinity College, Cambridge and lecturer at Queen Mary College.
Research interests and PhD supervision
- 20th century French history
- Modern Europe
- Modern Britain
Richard Vinen specialises in twentieth century history. His current research is on Modern Britain He published Thatcher’s Britain (Simon and Schuster, 2009) and is currently working on a study of military service in post-war Britain. Previously he has worked mainly on twentieth century France and produced a number of publications on Vichy, the fourth republic and the Algerian War. These researches culminated in the publication of The Unfree French: Life under the Occupation (Penguin, 2006) which looks at the consequences of the French army’s defeat in 1940 through the daily lives of those caught up in the horrors of war. He has also written a general book on twentieth century Europe, A History in Fragments: Europe in the Twentieth Century (Little Brown, 2000).
Professor Vinen would particularly welcome applications from research students interested in working on topics relating to:
- Twentieth Century France, specifically Vichy France (1940-1944) and the Fourth Republic (1944-1958)
- The Algerian war of 1954-1962
- The pan-European protest movement of 1968
- The social and political aspects of British history throughout the period since the Second World War, particularly Thatcher and Thatcher’s Britain
For more details, please see his full research profile.
Expertise and public engagement
Richard Vinen has written essays, reviews and opinion pieces for The TLS, The London Review of Books, The Independent, The Boston Globe, The Financial Times, The New York Times and the Nation.
He has appeared on radio and television - frequently talking on contemporary British politics.
He has written introductions to novels by Georges Simenon and programme notes for a London musical. He was, very briefly, academic advisor to those compiling The Sun’s History of the world.
Research

Sir Michael Howard Centre for the History of War
The centre promotes the scholarly history of war in all it's dimensions, trains research students and hosts research projects and conferences
Status not set
King's Contemporary British History
The study of Contemporary British History goes back to the 1960s, and was consolidated with the establishment of the Institute of Contemporary British History in 1985 by (Sir) Anthony Seldon and (Lord) Peter Hennessy. The Institute moved to King’s College London in 2010, and the new King’s Contemporary British History builds on this by creating a larger and more diverse enterprise, building on that distinguished tradition.
Status not setNews
Inside the world of national service
Professor of History Richard Vinen discusses his latest book, which explores conscription in Britain between 1945 and 1963.

Professor Richard Vinen wins Wolfson Prize and Templer Medal
Congratulations to Professor Richard Vinen, who has won a Wolfson History Prize and the Templer Medal for his book, National Service: Conscription in Britain...

Professor Richard Vinen in BBC News Magazine
Professor Richard Vinen discusses National Service and the purpose it served at different times in a BBC News Magazine article.

Five fantastic History Department books available/arriving Spring 2019
Highlighting a selection of exciting books from Department of History staff members, currently or soon to be available.
Reflecting on the 45th anniversary of Margaret Thatcher becoming the first female leader of the Conservative Party
Margaret Thatcher became leader of the Conservative Party on 11 February 1975 (forty-five years ago).

Research

Sir Michael Howard Centre for the History of War
The centre promotes the scholarly history of war in all it's dimensions, trains research students and hosts research projects and conferences
Status not set
King's Contemporary British History
The study of Contemporary British History goes back to the 1960s, and was consolidated with the establishment of the Institute of Contemporary British History in 1985 by (Sir) Anthony Seldon and (Lord) Peter Hennessy. The Institute moved to King’s College London in 2010, and the new King’s Contemporary British History builds on this by creating a larger and more diverse enterprise, building on that distinguished tradition.
Status not setNews
Inside the world of national service
Professor of History Richard Vinen discusses his latest book, which explores conscription in Britain between 1945 and 1963.

Professor Richard Vinen wins Wolfson Prize and Templer Medal
Congratulations to Professor Richard Vinen, who has won a Wolfson History Prize and the Templer Medal for his book, National Service: Conscription in Britain...

Professor Richard Vinen in BBC News Magazine
Professor Richard Vinen discusses National Service and the purpose it served at different times in a BBC News Magazine article.

Five fantastic History Department books available/arriving Spring 2019
Highlighting a selection of exciting books from Department of History staff members, currently or soon to be available.
Reflecting on the 45th anniversary of Margaret Thatcher becoming the first female leader of the Conservative Party
Margaret Thatcher became leader of the Conservative Party on 11 February 1975 (forty-five years ago).
