The 2021 Historical Research lecture: Historians, accountabilities and judgement

Abstract

Abstract ‘Accountability’ may be a useful notion for reflecting on historians’ responsibilities, not just to students and peers but to their audiences, to ideas and to the past itself. The roles historians play in public life are of considerable interest given current controversies about ‘contested heritage’ that are strikingly polarized, with the lives of historical figures in the dock. To assess such roles, it is worth making comparisons with the situation a century ago, when the Institute of Historical Research was in its infancy. Furthermore, it may be productive to enlist the help of other disciplines. All such practices involve matters of judgement.