Historian @OxfordHistory, @MagdalenOxford, @VoltaireOxford & @OxfordCIH. Hovering between the 18th century and the 21st. Tweeting in personal capacity.

Oxford, Berlin, London.
Joined March 2014
Enlightened Absolutism, social contract, the ruler as ‘the first servant of the state’, critiques of Christianity and kingship by divine grace: all for less in the new paperback edition of Frederick the Great’s Philosophical Writings @PrincetonUPress. press.princeton.edu/books/pa…
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Many thanks to @MonicaBoluferP and all participants for the fascinating papers and discussions!
Today concludes this most productive and enjoyable workshop on "Decentring the Enlightening". Many thanks to Avi Livschitz @Diderotesque and Anita Traninger for their invitation, an opportunity for discussion and for meeting old friends and making others.
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The final programme for the ESHPT conference is here! We look forward to welcoming you to Naples next week, 5–7 October, for three days of discussion on Truth and Un-Truth in the History of Political Thought. See you there! europoliticalthought.wordpre…
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Avi Lifschitz retweeted
My new book is released in one week @PrincetonUPress. John Dunn: “Since the United Kingdom is still unique in retaining an unwritten constitution, the contours of which recede into the mists of time, Max Skjönsberg’s impressively accomplished and up-to-date study of the key centuries of struggle to define its spirit shows why that struggle is unlikely to end until the state itself does.” press.princeton.edu/books/ha…
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Upcoming Conference 📣 Enlightenment Decentred: Networks, Media, Practices Wednesday 30 September - Friday 2 October Magdalen College intellectualhistory.web.ox.a…
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Three-year postdocs at Magdalen College, Oxford, for early-career researchers and shorter visiting fellowships for senior academics: find out all about them via the link below, and apply to become our colleagues! magd.ox.ac.uk/job-vacancies/
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Rousseau‘s Social Contract may well have had Civil Society as its title, not to mention a host of alternative subtitles… #manuscritdeGenève @BibliothquedeG1
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Finally out! 📙 "Constructions of femininity in the Spanish Enlightenment", the English revised and expanded version of my book published in 1998 in Spanish, translated and edited by Betsy Lewis, with new presentations and historiographic essay. 👇🏻 liverpooluniversitypress.co.…
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Avi Lifschitz retweeted
Really pleased that my department is doing an open rank political theory search. Applications due 20 September!
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Avi Lifschitz retweeted
Exciting event for all enlightenment buffs 👇
Upcoming Conference 📣 Enlightenment Decentred: Networks, Media, Practices Wednesday 30 September - Friday 2 October Magdalen College intellectualhistory.web.ox.a…
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Avi Lifschitz retweeted
Why was the 18th century the heyday of prize contests on virtually everything? Many answers in this new book, now available with a discount from @LivUniPress: mailchi.mp/e854e1290516/essa…
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🚨 Applications are OPEN! Join @the_IAS, one of the world’s leading centers for foundational research, for the 2027–28 academic year. Accepted scholars from across the globe will be able to pursue their own research within one of the Institute's Schools: ias.edu/news/institute-advan…
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Avi Lifschitz retweeted
Submissions are open for the 2026 Charles Schmitt Prize, recognizing outstanding essays in intellectual history by doctoral students and recent PhDs. Deadline: 15 November 2026. is-ih.com/news/charles-schmi…
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Workshop 📣 Tuesday 29 September to Wednesday 30 September 'Spiritual and Secular Authority in Early Modern Europe: Trans-Regional Perspectives' Register today! eventbrite.co.uk/e/spiritual…
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📣New Blog series: A roundtable on Peter Mandler's Ford Lectures (2026): 'The Language of Social Science in Everyday Life.' Featuring posts from Grace Whorall-Campbell, Freya Willis, Ben Copeland, and a response from Peter Mandler himself. intellectualhistory.web.ox.a…
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New publication 📣 Ebrahim Joseph, 'Honour and Deceit in The Warres of Cyrus, Classical Persia, and Elizabethan Politics,' The Historical Journal, 8 July 2026 cambridge.org/core/journals/…
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Avi Lifschitz retweeted
The poster and programme are out! 🎯 With several exciting new volumes on academies and learned societies appearing this year, the timing couldn't be better: find out more here 👇 izea.uni-halle.de/veranstalt…
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