Robert F. Aldrich (born July 29, 1954, in New York) is an Australian historian and writer. Aldrich is Professor Emeritus of European History at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

, where he taught from 1981-2021. He researches modern European and colonial history, particularly the French and British empires, as well as the history of modern monarchy.

Life

After school Aldrich studied history in the United States of America, first at

Emory University Emory University is a private university, private research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded in 1836 as Emory College by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory. Its main campu ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, where he received his undergraduate degree, and afterwards at

Brandeis University Brandeis University () is a Private university, private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located within the Greater Boston area. Founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian, non-sectarian, coeducational university, Bra ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, where he gained his

Master's A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

and PhD. Aldrich joined the faculty at

. He wrote several books on French colonialism in the Pacific and on the history of homosexuality.

Awards and recognition

In 2002 the French Government awarded Aldrich the Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Palmes Académiques. In 2008 he was elected a Fellow of both the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia and the

Australian Academy of the Humanities The Australian Academy of the Humanities was established by Royal Charter in 1969 to advance scholarship and public interest in the humanities in Australia. It operates as an independent not-for-profit organisation partly funded by the Australi ...

Works

* '' An Economic and Social History of Europe'', two volumes (1987) (with Frank Tipton) * ''The French Presence in the South Pacific, 1842–1940'' (1990) * ''France's Overseas Frontier: Départements et Territoires d'Outre-Mer'' (together with John Connell) (1992) * ''France and the South Pacific since 1940'' (1993) * ''The Seduction of the Mediterranean: Writing, Art and Homosexual Fantasy'' (1993) * ''Greater France: A History of French Overseas Expansion'' (1996) * ''The Last Colonies'' (1998) * ''Who's Who in gay and lesbian history'' (2001) (together with Garry Wotherspoon) * ''Colonialism and Homosexuality'' (2003) * ''Vestiges of the Colonial Empire in France: Monuments, Museums and Colonial Memories'' (2005) * ''Gay Life and Culture: A World History'', published by Thames & Hudson (2006) (German translation: ''Gleich und Anders – Eine Globale Geschichte der Homosexualität'', Murmann Verlag) (2007) * ''The Age of Empires'', published by Thames & Hudson (2007) * ''Gay Lives'', published by Thames & Hudson (2012) (UK title, ''Gay Life Stories'')

References

External links

University Sydney:Robert Aldrich

“Die-hard homophobes are now on the defensive”
– interview with Robert Aldrich, intercultural magazine "unique" (issue nr. 65, published 2013) {{DEFAULTSORT:Aldrich, Robert 1954 births 20th-century Australian historians Brandeis University alumni Emory University alumni Academic staff of the University of Sydney Australian gay writers Historians of LGBTQ topics Living people Writers from New York (state) Chevaliers of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques Fellows of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Fellows of the Australian Academy of the Humanities American emigrants to Australia 21st-century Australian historians