Rekindling Contact: Anglo-German Academic Exchange after the First World War

Abstract

Adopting a chronological approach, this chapter deals briefly with the breakdown of relations during the First World War, before considering the politically fraught atmosphere surrounding the possible re-introduction of Anglo-German academic exchange after 1919, and limited instances of cautious exchange in the immediate post-war years. It then discusses a phase of increased activity and institutionalization in Anglo-German academic exchange from the mid-1920s, exploring, in particular, the central case study of the Anglo-German Academic Board, as well as the role played by the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) , the DAAD's London Bureau, and the Rhodes Trust. As vehicles for a range of ideas coloured by various emphases on a spectrum between 'patriotic internationalism' and 'transnational nationalism', these institutions demonstrated, in particular, that internationalist and nationalist sentiments were rarely mutually exclusive in Anglo-German academic exchange after the First World War. Keywords: Anglo-German academic exchange; Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD); First World War; patriotic internationalism; Rhodes Trust; transnational nationalism