10-Minute Talks: Writing the history of the British Academy

The world’s leading professors explain the latest thinking in the humanities and social sciences in just 10 minutes.

The British Academy is the UK's national academy for the humanities and social sciences and was founded in 1902. In this talk, Professor Sir David Cannadine discusses undertaking the task of writing the history of the Academy and why it is worth doing so, the importance of engaging with the challenging moments it has faced and how these were navigated, and if the history of the Academy is merely the history of a single institution or if it sheds light on how institutions more widely can enhance public understanding of people, cultures and societies.

Speaker: Professor Sir David Cannadine PBA, President, the British Academy; Dodge Professor of History, Princeton University

10-Minute Talks are a series of pre-recorded talks from Fellows of the British Academy screened each Wednesday on YouTube and also available on Apple Podcasts.

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Image: Photo of the unfinished Trompe l’oeil ceiling in the Lecture Room in the British Academy building. Photographed by Marcus Ginns.