David Fitzgerald

Forced Labour and Transimperial Connections: Railway Construction and the Labour Question in German Southwest Africa, 1903–1909 Abstract. The colonial project required the construction of infrastructure both to integrate overseas territories into the global economy and to make colon

I have written about „Railway Construction and the Labour Question in German Southwest Africa, 1903–1909“ arguing that construction comp. used two key strategies to meet the central problem of labour scarcity: forcing concentration camp prisoners to work and tapping transimperial labour networks.

An O’Connellite Empire? Irish Nationalism, British Imperial Trouble, and the Limits of Anti-Imperialism in the Age of Reform* Abstract. This article explores the way Irish nationalists in the 1830s and 1840s understood and condemned British imperial policy in times of trouble, whi

New article! Jay Roszman @jayroszman.bsky.social on 'An O’Connellite Empire? Irish Nationalism, British Imperial Trouble, and the Limits of Anti-Imperialism in the Age of Reform'

academic.oup.com/ehr/advance-...

I don't understand the point of this comment. Because from where I'm sitting, it is actually not a Good Thing for a world class university--situated in a democracy that is frequently at war, where a disproportionate number of future policy makers are educated--to NOT teach military history.

And my argument - that maybe it would be a good idea to pay close attention to what happened in recent wars- is also reminiscent of things that I talked about in my PhD and first book!

I recently had the strange (but not unpleasant) experience of publishing a piece in Military Review, the outlet that was an important primary source for my PhD research a long time ago.

www.armyupress.army.mil/Journals/Mil...

The Soldier in the Illiberal State is a Professional Dead End The American political system today is indeed in crisis. Government function is in doubt, the administration has politicized and weaponized a previously

My latest this AM with @warontherocks.bsky.social. Of note: "[Military officers] will be active participants with choices to make about the degree to which they continue to serve civilians intent on undermining the liberal values enshrined in the Constitution."

1/

warontherocks.com/2025/12/the-...

Calling all historians of US foreign relations. @shafrhistorians.bsky.social

The American Military Officer After Liberalism Across academia, government, and Silicon Valley, on social media, and in leading journals, intellectuals and political leaders are openly debating what

Hard to imagine a more sinister & dangerous argument, couched in euphemism & high-minded language. "This essay does not argue liberalism will collapse, only that [US] military officers should be intellectually (and spiritually) prepared for alternatives." warontherocks.com/2025/10/the-...

There’s the joke about Sun Tzu being basic instructions for idiots like “feed your troops” but the most important part of Clausewitz is also just “think about what you are actually trying to accomplish”

A nice job has opened in my department at Cambridge: Assistant Prof. in US History since 1920.

Please share widely!

No references letters required up front. Applications close 27 Oct. 2025.🗃️
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/assista...

‘It’s a monster’: How generative AI is forcing university professors to rethink learning As students turn to ChatGPT, educators warn that critical thinking, academic integrity and the future of the humanities are at stake

I spoke to the Irish Times for this very good and rounded piece on the real-world effects of C***GPT in the humanities classroom: www.irishtimes.com/ireland/educ...

Shameless self-promotion and all of that, but it is genuinely unsettling to see how some of the most cartoonish ideas that I came across while writing the book have turned into actual policy.

maybe 10% of the current crop of GOFOs legitimately understand that the US public's default position towards the military historically is somewhere between ambivalence and dislike, and that the last several decades have been different because a variety of institutions made efforts to change it

How FDR Invented National Security A presidential speech in 1937 marked an unexpected turn in U.S. strategic thought.

An excerpt in @foreignpolicy.com from Andrew Preston's superb new book, Total Defense: The New Deal and the Invention of National Security.

foreignpolicy.com/2025/05/30/f...

Not your dad’s WW2–find out more in this interview I did recently and get 50% off the book at the same time 🥳

It was great to catch up with @ceceliacancellaro.bsky.social but also really cool to see my book out in the wild again!

The spicier take is while this will never happen, there objectively should be an investigation into what unauthorized/unknown to the rest of DoD/the executive communications CENTCOM was having off the books with the Israeli government, because suffice to say I have my suspicions

Never thought that writing a piece years ago on the post-Gulf War parades would be of contemporary relevance, but here we are.

I hate when my historical research is relevant. The GI Rights Hotline has a history going back to before its 1994 founding by a network of peace activists after the Gulf War. GI counseling has been a cornerstone of peace activism since the Vietnam War. Some of the same ppl are still doing it. 🗃️

OK, I know more about the CA case and we have more information on the deployments coming out, so a few thoughts.

1. This is a massive overreach of POTUS authority. Using Section 12406 to federalize/deploy military forces w/out also invoking the Insurrection Act is literally unprecedented. 1/

Friends, followers, and colleagues: some professional news, as they say.

After four wonderful years with the US Army War College, I resigned my position effective May 2, 2025. 1/

Utterly disgraceful and an open assault on the historical profession. These are utterly professional, non-partisan advisors, overseeing and giving advice to the State department on the declassification of US government documents.

Took a while, but the ad is also now up on an actual jobs website! www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DMV502/l...

A book cover with the main title in white text reading "The Greater Second World War" and subtitle in yellow text reading "Global Perspectives" in front of a brown wall with holes and deterioration.

ICYMI, Team #MilitaryHistory - the stellar volume edited expertly by Andrew Buchanan and Ruth Lawlor, "The Greater Second World War: Global Perspectives," has reached its publication date! Head to @cornellupress.bsky.social's page to get one. I'll wait...
www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501...

wow the US Army now has officially less understanding of and care for their soldiers' morale & wellbeing than the Italian army of 1918! way to go, guys!

happy to sell Pete Hegseth a copy of my book to explain why this is Not Smart but it might have too many long words for him to understand

Lecturer in International Economic History | University College Cork UCC wishes to appoint an academic to the role of Lecturer in International Economic History. Reporting to the Head of School of History.

Job alert! My dept is hiring a lecturer in international economic history. This a permanent, full-time post and it's (hopefully) a really good time to be joining the School of History here. Very happy to chat with anyone about the role, UCC, or life in Cork in general. 🗃️

www.ucc.ie/en/future-hu...

Lecturer in International Economic History | University College Cork UCC wishes to appoint an academic to the role of Lecturer in International Economic History. Reporting to the Head of School of History.

Job alert! My dept is hiring a lecturer in international economic history. This a permanent, full-time post and it's (hopefully) a really good time to be joining the School of History here. Very happy to chat with anyone about the role, UCC, or life in Cork in general. 🗃️

www.ucc.ie/en/future-hu...

We're hiring! I can echo what Jay says in his second post that there's a lot of exciting stuff on the way in our dept and that Cork is a really great place to live.

The Society for Military History is now archiving historical materials related to military history that are disappearing from federal or state websites. We are open to submissions, anonymously or otherwise. Please see
www.smh-hq.org/archivedreso... and note there the submission links.