Niall Ferguson (b. April 18, 1964 in Glasgow, Scotland) is an award winning Scottish historian specializing in financial and economic history. Currently associated jointly with the history department at Harvard University and Harvard Business School, he is also a prominent commentator on historical topics. is the 108th day of the year (109th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also Nintendo emulator: 1964 (emulator). ... For other uses, see Glasgow (disambiguation). ... This article is about the country. ... This article is about the country. ... For other uses, see Historian (disambiguation). ... Economic history is the study of how economic phenomena evolved in the past. ... Harvard redirects here. ... Harvard Business School, officially named the Harvard Business School: George F. Baker Foundation, and also known as HBS, is one of the graduate schools of Harvard University. ...

He is best known outside academia for his views on imperialism and colonialism; within the academy, his championing of counterfactual history is a subject of some considerable controversy. In 2006, Penguin Press published his most recent book, The War of the World, on the causes and consequences of war and genocide in the first half of the 20th century. For the computer game, see Imperialism (computer game). ... It has been suggested that Benign colonialism be merged into this article or section. ... Counterfactual history, also sometimes referred to as virtual history, is a recent form of history which attempts to answer what if questions known as counterfactuals. ... Penguin Group is the second largest trade book publisher in the world. ... For other uses, see War (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Genocide (disambiguation). ...

Biography

After attending The Glasgow Academy, he was educated as a Demy at Magdalen College, Oxford, graduating with a first-class honours degree. He is a weekly columnist for The Sunday Telegraph[1]. He was, until October 22, 2007, a columnist for the Los Angeles Times[2] . Founded in 1845, The Glasgow Academy is the oldest fully independent school in Glasgow, Scotland. ... A demyship (or demy) is a form of scholarship, specifically at Magdalen College, Oxford. ... College name Magdalen College Latin name Collegium Beatae Mariae Magdalenae Named after Mary Magdalene Established 1458 Sister college Magdalene College, Cambridge President Professor David Clary FRS JCR President Jessica Jones Undergraduates 395 MCR President Eloise Scotford Graduates 230 Location of Magdalen College within central Oxford , Homepage Boatclub Magdalen College (pronounced... The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading scheme for undergraduate degrees (bachelors degrees and some masters degrees) in the United Kingdom. ... This article deals with The Daily Telegraph in Britain, see The Daily Telegraph (Australia) for the Australian publication The Daily Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper founded in 1855. ... This just IN !!!:paris hiltons new dog. ...

He is married to journalist Susan Douglas whom he met in 1987 when she was his editor at the UK Daily Mail. They have three children, Felix, Freya and Lachlan. The Daily Mail is a British newspaper, currently published in a tabloid format. ...

Academic career

1987-1988 Hanseatic Scholar

1989-1990 Research Fellow, Christ’s College, University of Cambridge

1990-1992 Official Fellow and Lecturer, Peterhouse, University of Cambridge

1992-2000 Fellow and Tutor in Modern History, Jesus College, University of Oxford

2000-2002 Professor of Political and Financial History, University of Oxford

2002-2004 John Herzog Professor in Financial History at Stern School of Business, New York University

2004-present Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History, Harvard University and William Ziegler Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School

Ferguson is also a Senior Research Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford University and a Senior Fellow of the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is a resident faculty member of the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies. College name Christ’s College Named after Jesus Christ Established 1505 Previously named God’s-house (1437-1505) Location St. ... The University of Cambridge (often Cambridge University), located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world and has a reputation as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. ... College name Peterhouse Named after Saint Peter Established 1284 Previously named The Scholars of the Bishop of Ely Saint Peter’s College Location Trumpington Street Admittance Men and women Master The Lord Wilson of Tillyorn Undergraduates 284 Graduates 130 Sister college Merton College, Oxford Official website Boat Club website Peterhouse... The University of Cambridge (often Cambridge University), located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world and has a reputation as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. ... and of the Jesus College College name Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeths Foundation Named after Jesus Christ Established 1571 Sister college Jesus College, Cambridge Principal The Lord Krebs JCR President Paolo Wyatt Undergraduates 340 MCR President Jahan Zahid Graduates 160 Location Turl Street, Oxford... The University of Oxford (informally Oxford University), located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... The University of Oxford (informally Oxford University), located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... The Leonard N. Stern School of Business is New York Universitys (NYU) business school. ... New York University (NYU) is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational research university in New York City. ... Harvard redirects here. ... Harvard Business School, officially named the Harvard Business School: George F. Baker Foundation, and also known as HBS, is one of the graduate schools of Harvard University. ... and of the Jesus College College name Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeths Foundation Named after Jesus Christ Established 1571 Sister college Jesus College, Cambridge Principal The Lord Krebs JCR President Paolo Wyatt Undergraduates 340 MCR President Jahan Zahid Graduates 160 Location Turl Street, Oxford... The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford in England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Hoover Tower at the Hoover Institution The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace is a public policy think tank and library founded by Herbert Hoover at Stanford University, his alma mater. ... Stanford redirects here. ...

Historian

Ferguson's frequent journalism and his revisionist reputation have led him to be compared to A. J. P. Taylor. Ferguson does list Taylor as a second-favorite historian and credits seeing Taylor on the television in the 1960s and 1970s as an inspiration to becoming an historian. Nevertheless, his favorite historian is Fritz Stern whom Ferguson has praised as one of the few historians as well-versed in economic matters as in historical questions. In Parson Weems Fable (1939) Grant Wood takes a sly poke at a traditional hagiographical account of George Washington Historical revisionism has both a legitimate academic use and a pejorative meaning. ... Alan John Percivale Taylor (March 25, 1906 – September 7, 1990) was a renowned English historian of the 20th century. ... Fritz Richard Stern (1926- ) is an American historian of German history, Jewish history, and historiography. ...

The Cash Nexus

In his 2001 book The Cash Nexus, which he wrote following a year as Houblon-Norman Fellow at the Bank of England [3], Ferguson argued that the popular saying,"money makes the world go 'round", is wrong; instead he presented a case for human actions in history motivated by far more than just economic concerns. In the same book, Ferguson made a case against historians such as Paul Kennedy who argue that the United States is a politically and economically over-stretched power on the verge of collapse. If anything, Ferguson argues that United States is not sufficiently involved in the affairs of the world. In his books Colossus and Empire, Ferguson presents a nuanced and partially apologetic view of the British Empire and points out some of the potential virtues of the U.S. taking a more active role in resolving conflict arising from the failure of states in a way that is reminiscent of the 19th century British Empire. This article is about the year. ... Paul Kennedy is a professor of history at Yale University who is known for his study of the history of international relations. ... For a comprehensive list of the territories that formed the British Empire, see Evolution of the British Empire. ... For other uses of terms redirecting here, see US (disambiguation), USA (disambiguation), and United States (disambiguation) Motto In God We Trust(since 1956) (From Many, One; Latin, traditional) Anthem The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City National language English (de facto)1 Demonym American... For a comprehensive list of the territories that formed the British Empire, see Evolution of the British Empire. ...

On World War I

Ferguson first became known more widely for his 1998 revisionist book The Pity of War, which is an analytic account of what Ferguson considered to be the ten great myths of the Great War. The book generated much controversy, particularly Ferguson's suggestion that it may have proved more beneficial for Europe if Britain had stayed out of the First World War in 1914, thereby allowing Germany to win. Ferguson has argued that the British decision to intervene was what stopped a German victory in 1914-1915. Furthermore, Ferguson expressed disagreement with the Sonderweg interpretation of German history championed by some German historians such as Fritz Fischer, Hans-Ulrich Wehler, Hans Mommsen and Wolfgang Mommsen who argued that the German Empire deliberately started an aggressive war in 1914 and that the Second Reich was little more than a dress rehearsal for the Third Reich. Likewise, Ferguson has often attacked the work of the German historian Michael Stürmer who argued that it was Germany's geographical situation in Central Europe that determined the course of German history. In Parson Weems Fable (1939) Grant Wood takes a sly poke at a traditional hagiographical account of George Washington Historical revisionism has both a legitimate academic use and a pejorative meaning. ... “The Great War ” redirects here. ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... Sonderweg, (literally: sonder= special, weg= path) is a theory in historiography that considers the German-speaking lands, or the country Germany, to have followed its own, unique course through its evolution and history, separate from other European countries: therefore, a route of development which is special or an alternative. In... This article is about the German historian. ... Hans-Ulrich Wehler (September 11, 1931-) is a well-known left-wing German historian. ... Hans Mommsen (November 5, 1930-) is a left-wing German historian and twin brother of Wolfgang Mommsen. ... Wolfgang Justin Mommsen (November 5, 1930-August 11, 2004) was an left-wing German historian and the twin brother of Hans Mommsen. ... For German colonial territories, see German Colonial Empire. ... Michael Stürmer (September 29, 1938-) is a German historian. ... Central Europe is the region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe. ...

On the contrary, Ferguson maintains that Germany waged a preventive war in 1914, a war largely forced on the Germans by reckless and irresponsible British diplomacy. In particular, Ferguson accused the British Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey of maintaining an ambiguous attitude to the question of whether Britain would enter the war or not, and thus confused Berlin over just what was the British attitude towards the question of intervention in the war. Instead, Ferguson has accused London of unnecessarily allowing a regional war in Europe to escalate into a world war. Moreover, Ferguson denied that the origins of National Socialism can be traced back to Imperial Germany; instead Ferguson asserted the origins of Nazism can only be traced back to the First World War and its aftermath. The title of Foreign Secretary has been traditionally used to refer to the British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. ... Edward Grey, 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon (April 25, 1862 - September 7, 1933), better known as Sir Edward Grey was a British politician and ornithologist. ... Nazism in history Nazi ideology Nazism and race Outside Germany Related subjects Lists Politics Portal         Nazism or National Socialism (German: Nationalsozialismus), refers primarily to the ideology and practices of the Nazi Party (National Socialist German Workers Party, German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP) under Adolf Hitler. ...

Another controversial aspect of the Pity of War was Ferguson's use of counterfactual history. Ferguson presented a counter-factual version of Europe under Imperial German domination that was peaceful, prosperous, democratic and without ideologies like Communism and fascism. In Ferguson's view, had Germany won World War One, then the lives of millions would have been saved, something looking much like the present-day European Union would have been founded in 1914, and Britain would have remained an empire and the world's dominant financial power. Counterfactual history, also sometimes referred to as virtual history, is a recent form of history which attempts to answer what if questions known as counterfactuals. ... This article is about the form of society and political movement. ... Fascism is a term used to describe authoritarian nationalist political ideologies or mass movements that are concerned with notions of cultural decline or decadence. ...

Rothschilds

Another area of interest for Ferguson is Jewish history, especially the Rothschild family. Ferguson credits the Rothschilds with helping to develop a stable international banking system in the 19th century facilitating great economic growth all over the world. Ferguson wrote two volumes about the prominent Rothschild Family, being: Jewish history is the history of the Jewish people, faith, and culture. ... Coat of arms of the Rothschild family The Rothschild family (often referred to simply as the Rothschilds), is an international banking and finance dynasty of German Jewish origin that established operations across Europe, and was ennobled by the Austrian and British governments. ...

• The House of Rothschild: Volume 1: Money's Prophets: 1798-1848
• The House of Rothschild: Volume 2: The World's Banker: 1849-1999

The books won the Wadsworth Prize for Business History and was also short-listed for the Jewish Quarterly/Wingate Literary Award and the American National Jewish Book Award [4]

Counterfactual history

Ferguson is the leading academic champion of counterfactual history, and edited a collection of essays exploring the subject titled Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals (1997). Ferguson likes to imagine alternative outcomes as a way of stressing the contingent aspects of history. For Ferguson, great forces don't make history; individuals do and nothing is predetermined. Thus, for Ferguson there are no paths in history that will determine how things will work out. The world is neither progressing nor regressing; only the actions of individuals will determine whether we live in a better or worse world. His championing of the method - he edited a volume of counterfactual essays - was controversial within the field^[1]. Counterfactual history, also sometimes referred to as virtual history, is a recent form of history which attempts to answer what if questions known as counterfactuals. ...

War of the World

The War of the World, published in 2006, had been ten years in the making and is a comprehensive analysis, of the savagery of the 20th century. Ferguson shows how a combination of economic volatility, decaying empires, psychopathic dictators, and racially/ethnically motivated (and institutionalised) violence resulted in the wars, and the genocides of what he calls "History's Age of Hatred". The New York Times Book Review named War of the World one the 100 Notable Books of the Year in 2006, while the International Herald Tribune called it "one of the most intriguing attempts by an historian to explain man's inhumanity to man"[5][6]. Ferguson addresses the paradox that whilst the Twentieth century was "so bloody" it was also "a time of unparalleled [economic] progress". As with his earlier work Empire[7], War of the World was accompanied by a Channel 4 television series [8] presented by Ferguson. The New York Times Book Review is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to The New York Times in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. ... The International Herald Tribune is a widely read English language international newspaper. ... This article is about the British television station. ...

Henry Kissinger

Ferguson is currently working on a biography of former United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger[9]. In several countries, Secretary of State is a senior government position. ... Henry Alfred Kissinger (born Heinz Alfred Kissinger on May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, and 1973 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. ...

Commentator

As a commentator on events, Ferguson supported the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. Ferguson has criticized many of its subsequent implementation and organizational problems. This article is about the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ...

Ferguson has often disparaged the European Union as a disaster waiting to happen and President Vladimir Putin of Russia for authoritarianism. In Ferguson's view, Putin's policies stand to lead Russia to catastrophes equivalent to those that befell Germany during the Nazi era. Ferguson has occasionally supported the policies of George W. Bush, especially his foreign policy, but sees the economic and financial policies of the Bush administration as potentially putting the economic health of the United States at serious risk and he opposed Bush's reelection in 2004 ([10]). Ferguson believes that if the United States does not sharply cut social spending in the next decade or so, then the drain on the Treasury by retiring Baby-boomers stands to create a serious financial crisis. In Ferguson's view, Bush has not done enough to cut what Ferguson calls "entitlements" in the area of social spending. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (Russian: Russian pronunciation: ) (born October 7, 1952, in Leningrad, U.S.S.R., now Saint Petersburg, Russia) is a Russian politician who was the 2nd President of the Russian Federation from 2000 to 2008. ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      This article applies to political and organizational ideologies. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the forty-third and current President of the United States of America, originally inaugurated on January 20, 2001. ...

Peter Wilby described him as "almost the only right-wing columnist now worth reading", but has compared his imperialist views to those who support Stalin's Terror.[11] Peter Wilby is a British journalist and former editor of the New Statesman, a weekly political magazine. ... In politics, right-wing, the political right, or simply the right, are terms which refer, with no particular precision, to the segment of the political spectrum in opposition to left-wing politics. ...

Economic policy

In its August 15, 2005 edition, The New Republic published "The New New Deal", an essay by Ferguson and Laurence J. Kotlikoff, a Professor of Economics at Boston University. The two scholars called for the following changes to the American government's fiscal and income security policies: This article is about the day of the year. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see New Republic. ... Laurence J. Kotlikoff (b. ... For the similarly named institution in Chestnut Hill, see Boston College. ...

• Replacing the personal income tax, corporate income tax, FICA payroll tax, estate tax, and gift tax with a 33% Federal Retail Sales Tax (FRST), plus a monthly rebate, amounting to the FRST a household with similar demographics would pay if its income were at the poverty line. See also: FairTax;
• Replacing the Old Age benefits paid under Social Security with a Personal Security System (PSS), consisting of private retirement accounts for all citizens, plus a government benefit payable to those whose savings were insufficient to afford a minimum retirement income;
• Replacing Medicare and Medicaid with a Medical Security System (MSS) that would provide health insurance vouchers to all citizens, the value of which would be determined by one's health;
• Cutting federal discretionary spending by 20%.

A recent New Republic piece with Harvard's Samuel J. Abrams explored attitudes towards immigration in Europe and the United States This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Corporate tax refers to direct taxes charged by various jurisdictions on the profits made by companies or associations. ... Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) tax is a United States tax levied in an equal amount on employees and employers to fund old-age, survivors, and disability insurance portion of the Social Security system and the hospital insurance portion ( Medicare). ... This article is the current Taxation Collaboration of the Month. ... Inheritance tax, also known in some countries outside the United States as a death duty and referred to as an estate tax within the U.S, is a form of tax levied upon the bequest that a person may make in their will to a living person or organisation. ... Inheritance tax, also known in some countries outside the United States as a death duty and referred to as an estate tax within the U.S, is a form of tax levied upon the bequest that a person may make in their will to a living person or organisation. ... Map of countries showing percentage of population who have an income below the national poverty line The poverty line is the level of income below which one cannot afford to purchase all the resources one requires to live. ... Throughout this article, the unqualified term dollar and the $ symbol refer to the United States dollar. ... Social Security, in the United States, currently refers to the federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program. ... President Johnson signing the Medicare amendment. ... Medicaid is the US health insurance program for individuals and families with low incomes and resources. ... Samuel J. Abrams is an American political scientist and author. ...

Recently Ferguson was appointed as an Investment Management Consultant by GLG Partners focusing on geopolitical risk as well as current structural issues in economic behaviour relating to investment decisions. GLG is a UK based hedge fund manager, one of the world's largest, with a recent listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

Critical Reception

Niall Ferguson's work has received a range of responses from journalists, including praise from The Times^[2] and The New York Review of Books^[3] . His revisionism has received praise from some historians, too, such as David Clay Large, who praised his study of the First World War^[4], but others, such as Priyamvada Gopal, are critical of his views^[5][6]. Benjamin Wallace-Wells, an editor of The Washington Monthly, has criticised Ferguson for making "sweeping, absolute claims" without sufficient support or any original research to back them up, and of contradicting the academic consensus for the sake of being contrarian.^[7] Ferguson denies this ^[8]. The Times is a national newspaper published daily in the United Kingdom (and the Kingdom of Great Britain before the United Kingdom existed) since 1788 when it was known as The Daily Universal Register. ... The New York Review of Books (or NYRB) is a biweekly magazine on literature, culture, and current affairs published in New York which takes as its point of departure that the discussion of important books is itself an indispensable literary activity. ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... The Washington Monthly is a monthly magazine of United States politics and government that is based in Washington, DC. Its founder is Charles Peters, who started the magazine in 1969 and continues to write columns occasionally. ... In finance, a contrarian takes the view that widespread pessimism tends to lead to market rallies and that widespread optimism tends to lead to market slumps. ...

Notes

References

• Snowman, Daniel (2004) "Niall Ferguson," History Today 54(10): 37-39.

Bibliography

• War of the World: History's Age of Hatred, 1914-1989, Allen Lane, 2006 ISBN 0-7139-9708-7 (Now a major Channel 4 series)
• (2003) Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order. Basic Books. ISBN 0-465-02328-2. 
• 1914: Why the World Went to War, Penguin, 2005. ISBN 0-14-102220-5
• Colossus: the Rise and Fall of the American Empire, Allen Lane, 2004. ISBN 0-7139-9770-2
• Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and Lessons for Global Power, Allen Lane, 2003. ISBN 0-7139-9615-3
• The Cash Nexus: Money and Power in the Modern World, 1700-2000, London: Allen Lane/Penguin Press, 2001. ISBN 0-7139-9465-7
• Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals, Macmillan Pub Ltd, 1997. ISBN 0-330-35132-X. Basic Books, 1999. ISBN 0-465-02322-3
• The Pity of War: Explaining World War I, London: Allen Lane/Penguin Press, 1998. ISBN 0-14-027523-1. Basic Books, 1999, ISBN 0-465-05711-X
• The House of Rothschild: The World's Banker, 1849-1999, Viking Books, 1999. ISBN 0-670-88794-3
• The World's Banker: The History of the House of Rothschild, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1998, ISBN 0-297-81539-3
• The House of Rothschild: Money's Prophets 1798-1848, Viking Books, 1998. ISBN 0-670-85768-8
• Paper and Iron : Hamburg Business and German Politics in the Era of Inflation, 1897-1927, Cambridge University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-521-47016-1

This article is about the British television station. ...

External links

• niallferguson.org - The official home page of Niall Ferguson
• Harvard University Page for Professor Ferguson.
• 'There can be no excuse for Empire' - A critique of Ferguson.
• 'The truth? Our Empire killed millions' - A further critique of Ferguson.
• Still Not Over Over There? A critique by Hans Koning of Ferguson's book 'The Pity of War'.
• Hoover Institution - Niall Ferguson, Senior Fellow
• Niall Ferguson Virtual History The Pity of War.
• Britain First cover story in The Spectator September 25, 2004 (registration required)
• A talent to provoke. Richard Gott grapples with a revisionist's defence of empire -- Review of Empire
• Robert Fulford's Series of Articles about Niall Ferguson - compiled by the Toronto journalist Robert Fulford
• "The End of Europe?", from the American Enterprise Institute Bradley Lecture, March 1, 2004
• Channel 4 series microsite Channel 4 series on the War of the World
• Video of Niall Ferguson lecture at Vanderbilt University, Sep 12, 2006, on "The War of the World"
• ...Open Source with Christopher Lydon, September 21, 2006, on Niall Ferguson’s “War of the World”
• "Empires with Expiration Dates", in Foreign Policy, September/October 2006.
• "Empire Falls", in Vanity Fair, October 2006.
• "Book World" -- Niall Ferguson answers questions on Washington Post's "Live Discussions", November 7, 2006
• "The World Without US - A Documentary" -- Niall Ferguson contributes as the main expert of the film to be released, January 2nd, 2008