The Birth of the Middle East
In this episode, Eugene Rogan, the Professor of Modern Middle Eastern History at the University of Oxford, and Gardner Thompson, author of Legacy of Empire, shed light on the intricate impact of Western powers on the political and social landscape of the modern Middle East.
Exploring the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the subsequent actions of colonial powers like Britain and France, our panel delves into how their interventions shaped artificial nation states, often disregarding ethnic, linguistic, and religious boundaries.
About the Academic
Eugene Rogan
Eugene Rogan is Professor of Modern Middle Eastern History at the University of Oxford, where he has taught since 1991. An American citizen, he grew up in Europe and the Middle East, returning to the US for university study in Columbia and Harvard. He is author of The Arabs: A History (2009; 2nd ed. 2017) and The Fall of the Ottomans: The Great War in the Middle East (2015). In 2017 he was elected a Fellow of the British Academy.
About the Historian
Gardner Thompson
Gardner Thompson is a historian of British colonialism and a fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He earned a BA in History from Cambridge University, an MA in East African History and Politics from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and a PhD on the British Colonial Rule in Uganda from London University. Thompson taught History in Uganda, and then in London where he was Head of the History Department and the Academic Vice-Principal at Dulwich College. His publications include Governing Uganda: British Colonial Rule and its Legacy, African Democracy: Its Origins and Development in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, and Legacy of Empire: Britain, Zionism and the Creation of Israel.
Join Our Mailing List
By submitting this form you agree to our Privacy Policy and to receive marketing emails, including e-newsletters and event updates from Bradford Literature Festival.