''Contemporary European History'' is an international

peer-review Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work ( peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...

ed academic history journal founded in 1992 and published quarterly by

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press was the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted a letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it was the oldest university press in the world. Cambridge University Press merged with Cambridge Assessme ...

. The journal covers the

history of Europe The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD 500), the Middle Ages (AD 500–1500), and the modern era (since AD 1500). The first early Euro ...

from 1914 onwards and publishes three main types of article: research articles, review articles, and Spotlight essays. The journal also publishes two blogs - ''The'' ''Contemporary European History Blog'', designed to compliment journal articles, and ''New Voices,'' written by postgraduate students and early-career scholars.

History

''Contemporary European History'' launched in March 1992. The original editors were Kathleen Burk and Dick Geary. The first issue noted:

It is an exciting thing to launch a new journal, and in this case it reflects the fact that we in Europe are living in interesting times. We are clearly on the brink of a new Europe: 1992 will see the United Kingdom and Ireland more fully integrated into the European Community, and ''glasnost'' has set in train unknown but certainly far-reaching changes in the USSR and Eastern and East Central Europe. Beyond this, year by year the concept of Europe as both a geographical and an historical entity becomes more credible, and there is increasing interest, not only in the histories of individual countries, but in how their histories compare with each other.

The journal was established to cover 'European history in its widest sense', defined as continental

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...

, and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. It sought to publish articles across all major historical areas, spanning political, social, economic, cultural and diplomatic history. In recent years, the journal has expanded its focus to include coverage of the histories of Europe's overseas empires. From the outset, the journal has devoted at least one issue per year to a particular historical theme. Recent examples have included ''European Cultural Diplomacy and the Twenty Years' Crisis,'' ''Religion and Socialism in the Long 1960s,'' ''Transnational Anti-Fascism,'' and ''Alcohol Production and Consumption in Contemporary Europe.'' From 2nd July 2025, all articles in the journal will be published

Open Access Open access (OA) is a set of principles and a range of practices through which nominally copyrightable publications are delivered to readers free of access charges or other barriers. With open access strictly defined (according to the 2001 de ...

, irrespective of an author's institutional affliction or access to funding.

''Contemporary European History'' Prize

In 2021, the journal established a prize aimed at PhD students and early-career scholars, inviting submissions on any topic within the journal's scope. The winner receives publication in the journal and £400 worth of Cambridge University Press books.

''New Voices''

In May 2024, the journal launched a blog series entitled ''New Voices,'' with the stated aim of offering a platform for postgraduate students and early-career scholars to write about their research in a publicly-accessible way. The blogs are published through the Cambridge University Press online platform, Cambridge Core, and are advertised on the journal's social media channels.

Current editors

''Contemporary European History'' is currently edited by: * Professor Emile Chabal (University of Edinburgh

* Dr Siobhán Hearne (University of Manchester

* Dr Michelle Lynn Kahn (University of Richmond

* Dr Nikolaos Papadogiannis (University of Stirling

Recent Former Editors

* Professor Quinn Slobodian (Boston University

* Dr Celia Donert (University of Cambridge

* Dr Eirini Karamouzi (University of Sheffield/American College of Greece

References

External links

* {{Official website European history journals Academic journals established in 1992 English-language journals Cambridge University Press academic journals Quarterly journals