Wednesday 28 August 2013

Popular vs Academic History

My article on the debate about popular vs. academic history was published today on the University of Sheffield's History Matters Blog. You can find the article here: http://www.historymatters.group.shef.ac.uk/popular-vs-academic-history/

I was asked to write the article as I am somewhat unusual in having a foot in both camps of the debate. My academic work at King's College, London (which will hopefully eventually result in a PhD) is on the Blount family of Shropshire in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, looking in particular at aspects of their religion, as well as economic interests and patronage, in order to further inform on the gentry in the period. My books on the other hand, would be considered popular in tone (wide topics, aiming for a large audience, telling a story more than focussing on analysis etc.). It is my belief that the two should not be considered entirely separate and that they are, largely, two sides of the same coin. There is certainly enough history to go around!

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