All history is contemporary history”.  This dictum is true in the sense that the work of the historian is not only to preserve past events from oblivion, but also to understand the past and to use this knowledge to understand our own world.

In order to deal with this challenge, the Department of General History strives to provide a comprehensive programme, not only in terms not only of geographical areas (European history, American history, Russian history and Global history) but also of historical periods and questions we ask about the past. Faculty members’ academic specialisations include military and diplomatic history, intellectual history, gender, cultural history, economic and social history, the history of nationalism, imperialism and colonialism, and comparative history.

We study and teach at all three degree levels, from BA to PhD (doctorate), and students enjoy individual attention and support on their paths of study.  This programme not only imparts knowledge through its framework of courses and lectures, but also promotes research skills through the provision of exercises, seminars and pro-seminars in which the students learn to carry out their own research and reach their own conclusions about the past.

Some of our graduates work in research and teaching, but the skills acquired in these studies provide an infrastructure for many to work in professions within fields such as journalism, politics and social leadership, areas that require general education and depth of character.