The Department of History at West Virginia University will feature Jay M. Winter, Charles J. Stille Professor of History at Yale University Tuesday, March 31 at 7:30 p.m. in G9 White Hall. A preeminent historian of his generation of World War I, Winter will present his lecture, “The Great War 100 Years On: A Transnational Approach.” The event is free and open to the public.

Winter will discuss World War I using a comparative and transnational approach, allowing audience members to examine the war and its historical significance from a much wider perspective. Much of the writing available about the Great War is driven by national narratives, or has emphasized the Western front over others.

“As a history department, we thought it was important to observe the 100th anniversary of the Great War with a major lecture,” said Robert Blobaum, professor of history and director of the Atlantis Program. “Among contemporary scholars in the United States, Jay Winter has done as much as anyone to shape how we think about the Great War. If you asked historians to name the most influential scholar of World War I, Jay Winter would be at the top of the list.”

Winter’s most recent text is “Capital Cities At War: Paris, London, Berlin, 1914 – 1919: A Cultural History.” He has previously authored other works including, “Dreams of peace and freedom: Utopian Moments in the Twentieth Century,” and, “Remembering war: The Great War Between History and Memory in the Twentieth Century.” Winter specializes in British and European history.

The Callahan Lecture series was established in 1964 in honor of the eminent historian James Morton Callahan, who served as Department Chair from 1902 to 1929, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 1916 to 1929 and University Research Professor from 1929 to 1956. A student of Herbert Baxter Adams, Callahan received his Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University and is considered one of the founders of modern diplomatic history.

For more information, please contact Robert Blobaum at (304) 293–2421 ext. 5241 or Robert.Blobaum@mail.wvu.edu.

-WVU-

jm/03/26/15

CONTACT: Devon Copeland, Director of Marketing and Communication, Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, West Virginia University, 304-293-6867, Devon.Copeland@mail.wvu.edu

Follow @WVUToday on Twitter.