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Professor of German History in UCL鈥檚 School of European Languages, Culture and Society, Mary Fulbrook is a leading authority on German history. She was selected from a shortlist of six authors to win the 拢40,000 prize.

鈥楻eckonings鈥� is a study of the legacy of the Holocaust, exploring the extent to which Nazi persecutors were brought to account, and how myths of justice being done developed in the years following the Second World War. Illuminating the stories of those who have until now remained outside the media spotlight, the book draws on personal accounts of both victims and perpetrators, exploring issues of suffering and memory, and asking difficult questions of the reader.

Historian and award judge Diarmaid MacCulloch announced the winner at a ceremony at Claridge鈥檚 in London, commenting: 鈥淔ulbrook journeys into some very dark places with the human sympathy that marks the best historical writing.鈥�

Awarded annually to a work of historical writing that combines excellence in historical research with readability for a general audience, the Wolfson History Prize is the UK鈥檚 most prestigious history writing and most valuable non-fiction prize. The prize is run by the Wolfson Foundation, an independent charity awarding grants in the fields of science, health, education, arts and humanities.

Commenting on the prize, Professor Mary Fulbrook said: 鈥淚t was a horrible book to write, it was about a ghastly subject and I was filled with moral outrage a lot of the time I was writing. I was either agonised and upset or moved by the people鈥檚 fates that I was writing about and felt almost as if it was impossible to do justice in the writing to the people who had so signally failed to obtain justice in their lives.鈥�

She added: 鈥淭hank you to the Wolfson Foundation for understanding that it鈥檚 really important that we not merely understand the past but write to make it accessible.鈥�

The Wolfson History Prize judges commented:听鈥淨uoting many moving accounts from victims of the extreme cruelty perpetrated by the Nazis, Fulbrook moves through the generations to trace the legacy of Nazi persecution in post-war Germany. A masterly work which explores the shifting boundaries and structures of memory.鈥�

Paul Ramsbottom, chief executive at the Wolfson Foundation, said:听鈥淭he prize celebrates wonderful books which break new ground in understanding the past. Mary Fulbrook鈥檚 book highlights the importance of history 鈥� and debates about history 鈥� to a healthy and flourishing society. It also demonstrates the engaging, accessible writing style which is a hallmark of the Wolfson History Prize: taking high quality, research driven history outside of academia to a diverse audience.鈥�

Links

• About Professor Mary Fulbrook
• UCL鈥檚 School of European Languages, Culture and Society

Image

• Credit: Wolfson Prize

Media contact

• Natasha Downes

  tel: +44 20 3108 3844

  E: n.downes [at] ucl.ac.uk

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