Lothar Höbelt (born 30 June 1956 in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

) is an Austrian historian and who was a professor of Modern History at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

, known for his right-wing and nationalist viewpoints. His research areas are political and constitutional history of the 19th and 20th centuries, and the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

. He also lectures at the

Theresian Military Academy The Theresian Military Academy (, TherMilAk) is a military academy in Austria, where the Austrian Armed Forces train their officers. Founded in 1751, the academy is located in the castle of Wiener Neustadt in Lower Austria. History The Th ...

. He studied history at the University of Vienna from 1974 to 1981, earning his doctorate ''

Sub auspiciis Praesidentis (Latin for ''Doctoral graduation under the Augury, auspices of the President of Austria, Federal President''), often abbreviated as doctoral graduation (German language, German: ), is a special form of doctoral graduation and the highest possib ...

'' (Promotion under the auspices of the President, the highest level of academic achievement in Austria). He was affiliated with universities in the United Kingdom and the United States, including the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

, until he was appointed adjunct Professor of Modern History at the University of Vienna in 1997. He once sympathized with the

Freedom Party of Austria The Freedom Party of Austria (, FPÖ) is a political party in Austria, variously described as far-right, right-wing populist, national-conservative, and Eurosceptic. It has been led by Herbert Kickl since 2021. It is the largest of five part ...

, including contributing to their 1997 manifesto. In the 2000s he sympathized more with the

Austrian People's Party The Austrian People's Party ( , ÖVP ) is a Christian-democratic and liberal-conservative political party in Austria. Since January 2025, the party has been led by Christian Stocker (as an acting leader). It is currently the second-largest p ...

under the chancellorship of

Wolfgang Schüssel Wolfgang Schüssel (; born 7 June 1945) is a retired Austrian politician. He was Chancellor of Austria for two consecutive terms from February 2000 to January 2007. While being recognised as a rare example of an active reformer in contemporary A ...

. However, he supported the presidential candidacy of Freedom Party politician Barbara Rosenkranz in 2010 and was the head of her supporting committee.

Controversies

He has received some criticism for his right wing views, in particular for choosing to contribute to a

Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

book for Holocaust denier

David Irving David John Cawdell Irving (born 24 March 1938) is an English author and Holocaust denier who has written on the military and political history of World War II, especially Nazi Germany. He was found to be a Holocaust denier in a British court ...

, whose works he has characteristed as "historical discussions". In 2019, the Students' Union of the University of Vienna condemned his participation in a conference organised by far-right groups, and there were some calls from left-wing student factions for his dismissal.

Selected publications

* ''Die britische Appeasement-Politik: Entspannung und Nachrüstung 1937–1939'' * ''Otto Steinwender. Portrait eines Nationalliberalen'' (Vienna 1992) * ''Kornblume und Kaiseradler. Die deutschfreiheitlichen Parteien Altösterreichs 1882–1918'' (Vienna 1993) * ''1848. Österreich und die deutsche Revolution'' (Vienna 1998) * ''Von der Vierten Partei zur Dritten Kraft. Die Geschichte des VdU'' (Graz 1999) * ''Defiant Populist. Jörg Haider and the Politics of Austria'' (West Lafayette,

Purdue University Press Purdue University Press, founded in 1960, is a university press affiliated with Purdue University and overseen by Purdue University Libraries. Purdue University Press is currently a member of both the Association of University Presses, to which i ...

, 2003) * ''Landschaft und Politik im Sudetenland'' (Vienna 2004) * ''Ferdinand III. 1608–1657. Friedenskaiser wider Willen'' (Graz 2008) * ''Franz Joseph I. Der Kaiser und sein Reich. Eine politische Geschichte'' (Vienna 2009) * ''Die Habsburger. Aufstieg und Glanz einer europäischen Dynastie'' (Stuttgart 2009)

References

External links

Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hobelt, Lothar 20th-century Austrian historians Academic staff of the University of Vienna University of Vienna alumni Living people 1956 births 21st-century Austrian historians Austrian anti-communists Austrian nationalists