Hartmut Lehmann

Hartmut Lehmann (born April 29, 1936) is a German historian of modern history who specializes in religious and social history. He is known for his research on Pietism, secularization, religion and nationalism, transatlantic studies and Martin Luther. He was the founding director of the German Historical Institute Washington DC and was a director of the Max Planck Institute for History. He is an emeritus honorary professor at Kiel University and the University of Göttingen. Born on April 29, 1936, in Reutlingen in Baden-Württemberg, he completed his Abitur at the Nargolder Gymnasium in Nagold in 1955 and was an exchange student in Cortland, New York (1952/1953). Lehmann first studied history, English, German, political science and philosophy at the University of Tübingen and went on to study at the University of Bristol and Vienna and later again at Tübingen. Lehmann completed his habilitation at the University of Köln under the direction of Adam Wandruszka. Lehmann was a university lecturer at the University of Köln, a guest professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, and a research fellow at the University of Chicago before becoming a professor at Kiel University. During this time of professorship, Lehmann also had research fellowships and was a guest professor at the Australian National University in Canberra, Princeton University, and Harvard University. Lehmann moved to Washington, D.C., to become the founding director of the German Historical Institute Washington DC from 1987 to 1993. Lehmann helped the institution gain academic independence and facilitated its incorporation into American academics. Lehmann also became the managing director and was a member of the Max-Planck-Institute for History in the 1990s. For several years, Lehmann taught as an honorary professor at both Kiel University and the University of Göttingen until his retirement in 2004. Since his retirement, he has been a guest professor at several universities, including Emory University, Dartmouth College, University of California, Berkeley, Pennsylvania State University, and Princeton Theological Seminary.