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This case study concerns the public understanding of history as a practical discipline. Through a series of high-profile research publications, popular articles, and textbooks, Professor John Tosh's research has had an impact in two distinct ways. Firstly, these publications have been incorporated into teaching and lecturing practice internationally, influencing students' understanding of the discipline. Secondly, they have had an impact on wider public understanding of history as a practical discipline. The reach and significance of this impact is demonstrated by publication sales and readership figures, high-profile critical reception, political debate and wider public discourse.
This case study draws upon the research of the internationally renowned scholar, Peter Hennessy (http://www.parliament.uk/biographies/lords/lord-hennessy-of-nympsfield/4189), and the public engagement organisation that he established, the Mile End Group (MEG — http://www.mileendgroup.com/). Hennessy's historically-informed understanding of constitutional and governance issues has enabled him to make direct interventions in key debates in the House of Lords and affect public debate and parliamentary democracy. Similarly, MEG has played a critical role in generating popular and public interest in its events and thus in the modern and contemporary history of British constitutional affairs and governance. MEG is a trusted environment in which historians, civil servants and politicians can frame decision-making with a proper appreciation of precedent, contingency and comparative studies. It has provided historical research and expertise in its work with No. 10 Downing Street, the Cabinet Office on the Cabinet Secretaries Project and with the Treasury for its in-house seminars `Learning the Lessons of Past Spending Reviews'.
The Better History Forum (BHF), based at Anglia Ruskin University, has had significant influence on the formation of government policy on the teaching of history in schools, and was instrumental in shaping the current revision to the National Curriculum for history during 2011-13. Research undertaken by the BHF has changed the parameters of debate about the place of history in the classroom. Expert advice has been provided to the government through consultation with ministers and senior civil servants.
Professor Rainer Schulze's research on the history of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp provided a new analysis of the singular role of Bergen-Belsen in the system of Nazi concentration camps. This research informed a new permanent exhibition at the Gedenkstätte (memorial site) at Bergen-Belsen. The new exhibition has educated hundreds of thousands of visitors since it opened in 2007, and has improved the reputation of the Gedenkstätte, allowing it to secure a donation from the Berlin Bundesregierung of €1million and to incr ease its permanent staff number. In the UK, Schulze's work has had effects on the teaching of Holocaust history in the UK, achieved through his participation in the annual University of Essex Holocaust Awareness week, his Key Stage 3 and 4 and A-Level workshops, and the establishment of the Dora Love Prize for schools in 2012.
Research into the history of the emotions undertaken by members of the QMUL Centre for the History of the Emotions has made possible a series of impacts of local, national and international reach and significance, on public understanding of emotions, on contemporary art and culture, and on political debates about public policy, emotions and wellbeing. Impacts have been achieved through a range of activities, including practical interventions in schools, input into radio and television broadcasts, an artist in residence scheme, an international email list and blog, and policy discussions with think tanks such as the Young Foundation.
The Exhibiting Europe project has generated change in the museum world with a pan-European reach. It has had significant impact on museum organizations, by helping them to improve their networking and lobbying activities; museum professionals, by suggesting ways to `transnationalize' their activities and historical narratives; and policy-makers in the cultural and museum field, by contributing to a high level policy dialogue with the European Parliament, the European Commission and EU member-states about ways to `narrate' Europe and European integration.
This case study describes how the research of Justin Champion (Professor of the History of Early Modern Ideas) into political and religious freedom in the seventeenth century and the public responsibilities of Enlightenment intellectuals has had a ground-breaking impact on the ethics of public engagement in today's historical profession. The process of making his research findings comprehensible to a broader public has led directly to the development of ideas, theories and activities centred on `Public History', and has included important interventions in matters of public historical import which have affected practitioner understanding. The case study presents the structural and individual activities which have shaped this impact.
Keele University's long-standing research expertise in local history, particularly that of its immediate region, has had a significant and enduring impact on professional practice, community resilience and individual well-being. Keele historians have provided vital assistance to local archivists and heritage practitioners in the preservation and public dissemination of the region's history and cultural heritage through the provision of substantial works of reference and support for study-days and community `road shows'. Their research has helped sustain local societies and encouraged a variety of volunteering initiatives, whereby groups and individuals are empowered to engage in their own study of the past.
Diarmaid MacCulloch's lifelong research in Church History led to the momentous undertaking of a one-volume History of Christianity (2009). Reviewers agreed that it was not merely a masterly presentation of an immense amount of data but also broke new ground in its novel take on the historical narrative of this religion. This work alerted BBC producers who contracted MacCulloch for a series of six one-hour-long episodes. The series was screened twice on BBC4 in November and December 2009, on BBC2 in January 2010 and on BBC4 again at Easter 2010. It was subsequently issued on DVD in European and US formats. Discussions of the work in the media and extensive viewer feedback testify to its impact on the cultural life in the UK and internationally. Released viewer figures for the TV series and sales figures for the DVD are indicative of the impact MacCulloch's work has had on economic prosperity.
The impact that pertains to this case study is located in three domains. Firstly, lay engagement with the understanding and appreciation of ecclesiastical history via public lectures. Secondly, informing understanding about the historical, theological and philosophical processes attached to the discipline of ecclesiastical history through expert comments in the mass media. Thirdly, through the organisation of conferences leading to the development of international societies, international partnerships, and engagement with the general public and dissemination of original research.