John William Hiden (1940-2012) was a British historian who was

emeritus professor ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

of Baltic studies at

Bradford University The University of Bradford is a public research university located in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. A plate glass university, it received its royal charter in 1966, making it the 40th university to be created in Britain, but ...

and senior research fellow at

Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

. He was a specialist in modern German history and the history of the Baltic republics, and advised the British government at the time when the Baltic states were reaching independence.

Education

Hiden was born in London on 21 February 1940, and educated at Acton County Grammar School. He receiving his PhD from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

in 1970. His thesis was published as ''The Baltic States and Weimar Ostpolitik'' in 1987.Obituary of John Hiden.
''

Central and Eastern European Review Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

'', Vol. 6, 2012
Archived here

Career

Hiden taught at a primary school and then at

Repton Repton is a village and civil parish in the South Derbyshire district of Derbyshire, England, located on the edge of the River Trent floodplain, about north of Swadlincote. The population taken at the 2001 Census was 2,707, increasing to 2,8 ...

. His first academic post was at the

University of Aberdeen , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

(1973–79). In 1974 he produced ''The Weimar Republic'' of which the ''

'' said "arguably it has never been bettered". He joined the University of Bradford in 1979. There he created the Baltic Research Unit and founded the journal ''Baltic Briefing''. He advised the British government about policy towards the Baltic states at the time they were approaching independence and after. He finished his career as emeritus professor of Baltic studies at Bradford and senior research fellow at Glasgow University.

Death

Hiden died on 10 August 2012. He was survived by his wife, Juliet, whom he married in 1963, and their two children.John Hiden obituary.
Martyn Housden, ''The Guardian'', 16 September 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2015.

Selected publications

*''The Weimar Republic''. Longman, 1974. (Second edition 1996) (

Seminar Studies in History Seminar Studies in History is a long-running book series for undergraduate and younger students that aims to bridge the gap between the monograph and the full size university textbook. The series was established by history teacher Patrick Richard ...

) *''Germany and Europe, 1919-39''. 1977. *''Explaining Hitler's Germany''. 1983. (With John Farquharson) *''The Baltic States and Weimar Ostpolitik''.

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pre ...

, Cambridge, 1987. *''Republican and Fascist Germany''. 1996. *''The Baltic and the Outbreak of the Second World War''. Cambridge University Press, 2003. (with Thomas Lane) *''Defender of Minorities: Paul Schiemann, 1876-1944''. 2004. *''Neighbours or Enemies? Germans, the Baltic and Beyond''. Rodopi, Amsterdam, 2008. (With

Martyn Housden V. Martyn Housden is reader in modern history at the University of Bradford. Housden's research interests relate to the history of refugees, Fridtjof Nansen, the League of Nations, the psychoanalysis of Erich Fromm, the history of national minor ...

) *''Ethnic Diversity and the Nation State''. 2012. (With David Smith)

References

British historians Academics of the University of Bradford Academics of the University of Glasgow Alumni of the University of London People educated at Acton County Grammar School Academics of the University of Aberdeen Alumni of the University of Hull 1940 births 2012 deaths Historians of Europe {{UK-historian-stub