Dr. Jan Palmowski

Biography

Jan Palmowski is a Professor of Modern History at the University of Warwick, specializing in German political culture and history from the nineteenth century to the present. He was raised in Germany and completed his studies at the University of York, earning a DPhil in Modern History from the University of Oxford in 1995. Palmowski began his academic career as a Lecturer in European Studies at King’s College London, where he served as Head of the Arts and Humanities and was awarded the King’s College London Teaching Award in 2007. In 2009, he was appointed Professor of Modern Contemporary History and joined the University of Warwick in 2013, where he also served as Pro-Vice-Chancellor from 2013 to 2018. His extensive research interests include the everyday life and history of Germany since 1945, particularly the German Democratic Republic (GDR), as well as the political history of the German Empire and the European Union. He explores how political power is expressed and refracted through popular practice, rhetoric, and symbolic action. Palmowski has published numerous works, including books on the socio-political fabric of the GDR and German citizenship, and continues to supervise PhD students, contributing significantly to the understanding of German national identity and political dynamics through interdisciplinary approaches.

Research Interests

Experience