History@Portsmouth

University of Portsmouth's History Blog

Author Archive | Fiona McCall

Photos of Wehrmacht soldiers

Germans coming to terms with the crimes of the past: the role of the Wehrmacht in World War II

By on June 19, 2020 in Learning in Focus, Research in Focus

In his dissertation third-year history student Tim Marsella studied the changing understandings and representations of the role of the Wehrmacht (German armed forces in World War II) within modern Germany.  He shows how a landmark exhibition in the 1990s challenged perceptions about the breadth of involvement in war crimes, but also how coming to terms with painful memories allowed German society to move on. Most students are aware when they start their degrees that they will be required to complete a dissertation in the final year of their course, and this prospect can seem quite daunting.What I would like to share is both my inspiration for this work and what […]

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Hans Holbein ship with sailors

Cut-throat communities, angry noblemen, and a noseless pirate! My journey through the joys and horrors of writing a dissertation

By on June 16, 2020 in Learning in Focus, Research in Focus

Below, the first of a series on this year’s bumper crop of student dissertations, from my own supervisee Tom Underwood.  Tom was one of the most prepared and organised students I’ve ever supervised, but as he mentions below, also still honing his dissertation down to the wire, and we were blown away with the results.  Tom is planning to continue onto an MRes, where his impressive skills at reading early modern handwriting, and patience with sifting his way through basement archives should come to further good use. – ed Whether its Errol Flynn’s smooth-talking Captain Blood, or Johnny Depp’s rum-soaked Jack Sparrow, the pirate occupies a special place within popular […]

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stalin cropped

Sinister Stalin, the Cold-War Octopus

By on June 10, 2020 in Learning in Focus

The cartoonist David Low’s depiction of Stalin as an octopus, published in 1948, sits within a long-standing tradition of monstrous, dehumanised depictions of political enemies.  Octopi in particular have been used in the past to represent the sinister ambitions of Prussia, Britain, France, Nazi Germany, America and the oil industry, amongst others.  But as second-year UoP History student Georgia Hutton explains, Low’s octopus critiques both Soviet policy and contemporary Western-bloc attitudes towards it.  Georgia wrote this piece for the second-year module, Danger! Censorship, Power and the People. A cartoon by David Low for the Evening Standard, on 15 April 1948, reveals a great deal about the British, contemporary Western, perspective […]

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1837_Liberator_Cornhill_Boston resized

Young people need to learn more about the history of racism in the US and Britain

By on June 8, 2020 in Learning in Focus, News

In the light of the worldwide anti-racists protests taking place across the world, two current UoP students, Lois Marriott and Becca Francis, argue passionately for the need to educate young people about the history of black people’s experience of racism. We both chose to take units during our history degree that would help us understand issues on race and white privilege. This included “ Racism and Anti-Racism in Postwar Britain” taught by Dr. Jodi Burkett and “African American History and Culture” taught by Dr. Lee Sartain. We also learned about the history of slavery on the core units of our degree, as well as the impact of Imperialism. A combination […]

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Census form 1911 cropped

The 1911 census: the government and the suffragettes have a conversation

By on May 19, 2020 in Learning in Focus

A 1911 census form provides evidence of the ways in which the suffragettes challenged state authority.  This piece was written by second-year UoP history student Ashleigh Hufton for the second-year module, Danger! Censorship, Power and the People. Forms articulate conversations between two parties, argues Dobraszczyk, in an article on the Victorian census. [1]  A 1911 census return form is a useful document to view when analysing the relationship between the liberal government and individual social actors. [2]  This was the first census to be completed by the homeowner, allowing individuals to choose what information the government attained.[3] The suffragettes utilised this power to challenge state authority through their “census boycott”. […]

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From fresher to history graduate to financial consultant

By on May 14, 2020 in Alumni, Learning in Focus

Below, former student Connor Jones reflects on his time at Portsmouth.  Like many history students, Connor did not come to university with a strong idea of his intended career, but this did not matter so much, because our Portsmouth history degree provides many of the skills employers are looking for.  We note that Connor’s role now involves speaking to audiences of up to a hundred people, demonstrating that all those history presentations provide useful transferable skills!  It has been a delight to teach Connor, and to meet up with him again at open days.  I spent some of the formative years of my life at the University of Portsmouth where […]

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