William Carr (historian)

William Carr (1 April 1921 – 20 June 1991) was a British historian of Germany.^[1]

He was born in Workington, Cumberland. He studied history at the University of Birmingham, where he was awarded a prize for European history, but halted his studies after Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union. Carr volunteered and served in the Royal Corps of Signals and Royal Artillery.^[1] After victory, he worked as an interpreter of German internees before joining the Field Security Police.^[1] Carr returned to Birmingham University in 1947, where he was awarded a first class degree in 1948.^[1]

Carr was appointed lecturer in history at the University of Sheffield in 1952, then senior lecturer (1963), reader (1970) and then to a personal chair (1979). He retired in 1986.^[1] A few days before his death, Carr learnt that the German government had awarded him the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.^[1]

• Schleswig-Holstein 1815-1848. A Study in National Conflict (Manchester University Press, 1963).
• The History of Germany, 1815-1945 (Edward Arnold, 1969; 2nd edn. 1979; 3rd edn. 1987; 4th edn. 1991).
• Arms, Autarky, and Aggression (Edward Arnold, 1970).
• Hitler: A Study in Personality and Politics (Edward Arnold, 1978).
• Poland to Pearl Harbor (Edward Arnold, 1985).
• The Origins of the Wars of German Unification (Longman, 1991).