German Historical Institute Washington DC

Historian Hartmut Lehmann became the official founding director a year later and helped establish its academic independence and acceptance into American academia.

[4] Since 1991, GHI Washington DC has maintained relations with American scholars through the "Friends of the German Historical Institute.

[7] The focus of GHI Washington DC's research and conference programs has reflected the interests of the institute's directors.

Under the direction of Hartmut Berghoff (2008–2015), the institute continued research on transatlantic studies, but focused more on economic history and consumerism.

In line with this broader approach, the GHI Washington established a Pacific Office at Berkeley in 2017, emphasizing migrant history.

Natoble guest speakers have included Helmut Schmidt, Joachim Gauck, Joschka Fischer, Gerhard Schröder, Ralf Dahrendorf, Marianne Birthler, Timothy Garton Ash, Rita Süßmuth, Jutta Limbach, Hans Küng, Wolfgang Huber, Michael Blumenthal, Kurt Masur, Kurt Biedenkopf, Jens Reich, Bärbel Bohley, Markus Meckel and Heinz Riesenhuber.

Notable historian speakers have included Heinrich August Winkler, Bernard Bailyn, Wolfgang Mommsen, Felix Gilbert, Stephan Kuttner, Stig Förster, Roger Chickering, Jürgen Kocka, Margaret Lavinia Anderson, and Gerhard A. Ritter.