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The Foundation depends on donations to continue and develop it’s activities. Donations of any size are most welcome.

Donations can also be made by direct transfer to our bank. In this case, please send payments to:
The Foundation for the History of Totalitarianism
Sort code: 23-05-80
Account number: 39562898

About

The Foundation for the History of Totalitarianism is a non-profit organisation established to provide information and education about the history of totalitarianism, particularly in the 20th century. It aims to encourage study and research in a variety of ways including the creation of an annual history essay prize on a different subject each year. The winning entries will be published on the website.

It also aims to publish papers by scholars on various aspects of the history of totalitarianism.

Trustees:
Professor Aleksander Szczerbiak
Professor Hugo de Burgh
Dr Natalia Murray
Peter Rendek
James Bartholomew
Roger Moorhouse

Company number: 12674667
Registered Charity Number:  1192517

Registered Office Address:
30 Finsbury Circus,
London EC2M 7DT

Email us at:  contact@historyoftotalitarianism.com

The History of Totalitarianism Essay Prize

Entries are invited for the 2023-2024 sixth form history essay prize.

The subject this year is:

Repression in pre-war Nazi Germany

Repression in pre-war Nazi Germany was one of the seminal moments in 20th century history leading onto the second world war and the Holocaust.

The repression began as early as 1933, when Adolf Hitler took power. Dachau, Nazi Germany’s first concentration camp, was opened in March 1933 and initially housed political opponents of the Nazi regime.

Nazi sympathisers were imposed on civil organisations. Trade unions were dissolved and their leaders arrested. The Brown Shirts, or Sturmabteilung, patrolled the streets beating rivals. Jews were removed from their jobs in law, medicine the government and education. Jewish businesses, homes, hospitals and schools were ransacked or demolished in a pogrom in 1938 known as Kristallnacht. The Gestapo, Hitler’s secret police, spied on the population, interrogating and imprisoning political opponents. This led to terrible consequences for Germany and all Europe. It is a momentous subject.

Please note that this essay prize is different from some others. There is no question as such. Essays should include a description of the repression and the students’ own reflections and observations.

It is open to students to focus on any aspects of the repression for analysis or comment. For example, they could focus on why the Nazis enforced repression or why German society did not revolt against it. Students could reflect on why Jews were victimised or what the events tell us about how an ideology can lead to cruelty and oppression. Or students can choose some other aspect entirely.

Essays should be 1,800 to 2,000 words. 

First prize: £1,500.
Second prize: £600.
Third prize: £300.

Each prize will be divided equally between the student and the school. 

Four to six entries will be highly commended and students will receive £50 each. Another five to seven entries entries will be commended and receive a certificate.

The essay prize would suit students who want to improve their personal statements in their UCAS forms. The prize is open to students who will be in year 12 or year 13 in the academic year 2023-24. They must be resident in the United Kingdom.

Students resident outside the UK are eligible for the international prize. The best essay will receive a prize of £200. Other overseas essays may be highly commended or commended according to merit.

The deadline for entries will be noon February 4th, 2024. Each candidate must only submit one entry but there is no limit to the number of entries from any school. There is no fee to enter. See more terms and conditions.

The prizes will be awarded in a ceremony at a prestigious central London location.

Click on the button below to register interest in the essay prize. This does not commit you to writing an essay but you will then receive updates and ideas.

Any queries should be emailed to contact@historyoftotalitarianism.com.

History Essay Prize 2022-23 on the Hungarian Revolution of 1956

The results of the History Essay Prize 2022/23 on the subject of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 will be announced in early April. The awards ceremony will take place at the Hungarian Embassy on May 10th. There will be a short speech by a man who was present during the revolution.

History Essay Prize 2021-22 on the Stasi

History Essay Prize 2020-21 on Witold Pilecki

Book Extract

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Artefacts Acquired

Original photograph of inmates of Vaihingen an der Enz concentration camp (officially named Wiesengrund) looking out through the barbed wire fence of their prison. Originally built as a slave labour camp, in 1944 Vaihingen would become a concentration camp for sick and dying prisoners.
A letter from Hactan Blasiak to his wife Julia, dated May 16, 1941. Hactan Blasiak, prisoner’s number 28070, was an inmate of Sachsenhausen concentration camp. The letter is brief, and mentions nothing about life in the camp: the camp censors were extraordinarily strict. He sends his wife kisses and hugs, and assures her that he will write to her as often as he is permitted. Prisoners at Sachsenhausen were killed openly, exploited for labour, and subjected to medical experiments. Of the 200,000 inmates held in the camp between 1936-45, 30,000 died: either from starvation, overwork, or execution.

Speakers at Schools and Universities

The Foundation is sometimes able to provide a speaker for schools and universities on a limited basis in London and nearby areas. Please email: contact@historyoftotalitarianism.com 
for further information.

The History of Totalitarianism Essay Prize

Entries are invited for the 2022-2023 sixth form history essay prize.

The subject this year is:

The Hungarian Revolution of 1956

This was the first major revolt against one of the governments imposed on Central and Eastern Europe by the Soviet Union. It began with university students and dramatically escalated. The communist government was successfully overthrown. A new government declared Hungary’s withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact and promised free elections.

Initially the Soviet leadership was divided over how to respond but eventually resolved to send in the Soviet army to crush the revolt. Soviet tanks were deployed on the streets of Budapest. As many as 200,000 Hungarians fled the country.

Why did Hungary revolt against its government? Why did the Soviet Union send in the tanks? And what were the repercussions?

Essays should be 1,800 to 2,000 words. 

First prize: £1,500.
Second prize: £600.
Third prize: £300.

Each prize will be divided equally between the student and the school. 

Four to six entries will be highly commended and students will receive £50 each. Another five to seven entries entries will be commended.

The essay prize would suit students who want to improve their personal statements in their UCAS forms. The prize is open to students who will be in year 12 or year 13 in the academic year 2022-23. They must be resident in the United Kingdom.

A separate prize or commendation will be available for residents outside the United Kingdom.

The deadline for entries will be at 12 noon on Sunday 5th February, 2023. Each candidate must only submit one entry but there is no limit to the number of entries from any school. There is no fee to enter. See more terms and conditions.

The prizes will be awarded in a prestigious central London location.

Any queries should be emailed to contact@historyoftotalitarianism.com.

School History Essay Prize 2021-22 on the Stasi

School History Essay Prize 2020-21 on Witold Pilecki

Events

Utopianism: A Link Between Fascism and Communism

Date: Tue, 9 November 2021
Time: 17:30 – 19:00 GMT
Location: Westminster, London
Ticket Price: £15

Are fascism and communism opposites? Or do they have things in common? Professor de Burgh brings personal insights to bear on this classic issue.

Subscribe

If you would like to stay up to date with the Foundation’s work, please subscribe to our mailing list below.

Donate

The Foundation depends on donations to continue and develop it’s activities. Donations of any size are most welcome.

Donations can also be made by direct transfer to our bank. In this case, please send payments to:
The Foundation for the History of Totalitarianism
Sort code: 23-05-80
Account number: 39562898

About

The Foundation for the History of Totalitarianism is a non-profit organisation established to provide information and education about the history of totalitarianism, particularly in the 20th century. It aims to encourage study and research in a variety of ways including the creation of an annual history essay prize on a different subject each year. The winning entries will be published on the website.

It also aims to publish papers by scholars on various aspects of the history of totalitarianism.

Trustees:
Professor Aleksander Szczerbiak
Professor Hugo de Burgh
Dr Natalia Murray
Peter Rendek
James Bartholomew
Roger Moorhouse

Company number: 12674667
Registered Charity Number:  1192517

Registered Office Address:
30 Finsbury Circus,
London EC2M 7DT

Email us at:  contact@historyoftotalitarianism.com

Follow on Facebook

Artefacts Acquired

Original photograph of inmates of Vaihingen an der Enz concentration camp (officially named Wiesengrund) looking out through the barbed wire fence of their prison. Originally built as a slave labour camp, in 1944 Vaihingen would become a concentration camp for sick and dying prisoners.
A letter from Hactan Blasiak to his wife Julia, dated May 16, 1941. Hactan Blasiak, prisoner’s number 28070, was an inmate of Sachsenhausen concentration camp. The letter is brief, and mentions nothing about life in the camp: the camp censors were extraordinarily strict. He sends his wife kisses and hugs, and assures her that he will write to her as often as he is permitted. Prisoners at Sachsenhausen were killed openly, exploited for labour, and subjected to medical experiments. Of the 200,000 inmates held in the camp between 1936-45, 30,000 died: either from starvation, overwork, or execution.

Speakers at Schools and Universities

The Foundation is sometimes able to provide a speaker for schools and universities on a limited basis in London and nearby areas. Please email: contact@historyoftotalitarianism.com 
for further information.

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