Mary Fulbrook is Professor of German History at UCL. She studied at Newnham College, Cambridge, as an undergraduate, and at Harvard University, where she did her MA and PhD; she has also held a Harvard Center for European Studies Krupp Fellowship at the LSE, and a Lady Margaret Research Fellowship at New Hall, Cambridge. Among other professional commitments, Mary Fulbrook was the (first female) Chair of the German History Society, and was joint founding Editor of its journal, German History. She currently serves on the Editorial Boards of German History, and of Zeithistorische Forschungen; she is a member of the Advisory Board (Beirat) of the German Historical Institute London; a member of the Academic Advisory Board (wissenschaftliches Kuratorium) of the Memorial Foundation for the former concentration camps of Buchenwald and Mittelbau-Dora; and a member of the International Advisory Board of the Bundeskanzler-Willy-Brandt-Stiftung. Mary Fulbrook's contributions to UCL have included nearly a dozen years as Head of the German Department (January 1995 to September 2006) as well as a stint serving on UCL Council. Her research interests have ranged across a variety of fields, including religion and society in early modern Europe, the German dictatorships of the twentieth century, and historiography and social theory. She has directed an AHRC-sponsored collaborative research project on 'The "Normalisation of Rule'? State and Society in the GDR, 1961-1979' (2002-07). Her current Leverhulme-funded research, 'Living through Dictatorships', focuses on generations in Germany, c. 1900-1990. Mary Fulbrook's teaching normally ranges from introductory courses on German history from medieval times to the present, through to more specialized source-led teaching on twentieth-century Germany and MA courses on historical theory, skills and methods. Although currently on leave, Mary Fulbrook is still supervising PhD students in areas of mutual interest and running regular graduate student seminars.

The multi-faceted, problematic history of the German lands has supplied material for a wide range of debates and differences of interpretation. This second edition spans the early Middle Ages to the present day, synthesizing a vast array of historical material. Mary Fulbrook explores the interrelationships between social, political and cultural factors in the light of the latest scholarly controversies.