Rudolf Vierhaus

Rudolf Vierhaus (29 October 1922 – 13 November 2011) was a German historian who mainly researched the Early modern period.

In 1955, Vierhaus received his doctorate under Raumer on the topic Ranke und die soziale Welt.

In 1964, Vierhaus became the first historian to be appointed full professor at the newly founded Ruhr-Universität Bochum.

There he provided fresh impetus for the raising of standards at for the Institute and for the study of history in Germany.

As director at the institution, Vierhaus also played a major role in supporting the establishment of a "Mission Historique Française en Allemagne" in Göttingen (1977-2009).

In 1960, the edition of the diary of Hildegard von Spitzemberg appeared in the series of German Historical Sources of the 19th and 20th Century.

As a methodological foundation, he recommends the reconstruction of historical life worlds, which he describes in his essay Die Rekonstruktion historischer Lebenswelten.

[1] As an academic teacher, Vierhaus supervised works from the late Middle Ages to post-war history.

This led to fundamental studies on the concept of freedom in the 18th century (Jürgen Schlumbohm), on the understanding of humanity and humanity in the late Enlightenment (Hans Erich Bödeker), on the emergence of the concept of absolutism (Reinhard Blänkner) and on the "Ideologie des deutschen Weges" in the historiography of the interwar period (Bernd Faulenbach).

[3] Biographical information on the pages of the Historical Commission for Westphalia] He was a member of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony and Bremen [de] and since 1985 a full member of the Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen [de].

[4] Also in 1986, Vierhaus was awarded the Prix Alexander von Humboldt pour la coopération scientifique Franco-allemande.

[4] The Comillas Pontifical University awarded Vierhaus the "Primer socio de Honor" in 1991.

The Ruhr-Universität Bochum honoured Vierhaus in 2012 with a symposium "Geschichte als erfahrene und gedeutete Vergangenheit".