Annual History Lecture: ‘Gendering History, Historicising Gender’

Join us for our tenth annual lecture. Following our focus on medieval rulers last year, this year we will concentrate on an emerging area of strength: the history of gender. I am delighted that we will be bringing into dialogue three eminent historians whose work traces the history of the roles and relationship between men and women from the seventeenth to the twentieth centuries.

King’s has an impressive team of historians working on gender across a wide range of periods, working on questions which range from images of motherhood in medieval Byzantium to changing male and female roles in English schools in the 1960s.

In the last few years we have also been at the forefront of work on gender equality within history and at Kings. Spurred on by Emeritus Professor Jinty Nelson’s work on the Royal Historical Society Gender Equality report, the department has recently applied for an Athena Swan bronze award for gender equality. In March this year we ran a symposium at the Institute for Historical Research, accompanied by a pop-up exhibition of twentieth-century London women historians. This was a great opportunity to applaud the achievements of the capital’s women historians and discuss how we can best promote women within the discipline. With more initiatives to look forward to, we have reaffirmed our commitment to furthering gender equality within the department and discipline in the years to come.

The alumni lecture this year will examine the role of gender in a series of transformative moments within history. Professor Laura Gowing will examine the world of women’s work in London during the seventeenth century, a period when demographic and physical expansion was helping the metropolis take on its modern form. Dr Chris Dillon will focus on the masculinities of guards and prisoners in German concentration camps. Finally, Dr Alana Harris will conclude by looking at sex, gender, and religion in the unruly 1960s. These three short talks will be followed by a period for questions, discussion and debate, during which we look forward to your participation.

The evening will begin with an update from the department on the latest departmental news. It has been an exciting year, during which we have continued to appoint new staff, launched new centres in Contemporary British History and the History of Warfare, and developed an exciting collaboration with the Black Cultural Archives. The lecture will be followed by a drinks reception in the Department of History, a beautiful open space on the eighth floor of the Strand Building, which enjoys sweeping views over the Thames and toward Covent Garden.

Important booking information:

If you plan to bring a guest, please add a Guest ticket.

Only three guest tickets per alumnus/a can be reserved. If you need more tickets for guests, please contact the Alumni Office directly at alumnievents@kcl.ac.uk.

FAQs

Where can I contact the organiser with any questions?

King's College London, Virginia Woolf Building, 22 Kingsway, London WC2B 6LE.

For general enquiries please contact alumnievents@kcl.ac.uk via email or by phoning 020 7848 3053.

Can I update my registration information once I have booked?

Yes, but please contact us directly at alumnievents@kcl.ac.uk to do so.

Do I have to bring my printed ticket to the event?

You do not have to bring a printed ticket although we do recommend it as helps us to check people in to the event faster.

The name on the registration/ticket doesn't match the attendee. Is that okay?

No, please make sure all registration information is for the person attending the event. If you would like to give your ticket to someone else then please get in touch with us or log in to your Eventbrite account and edit your registration information.

What time should I arrive?

We recommend that you arrive at the venue 10-15 minutes before the event is scheduled to start in order to check in with the Alumni Office representatives. This will allow us to process all the attendees and answer any questions you may have about the event.

Should you have any queries regarding an event, please contact the Alumni Office prior to the event via alumnievents@kcl.ac.uk or phoning 020 7848 3053.