'To Stimulate to Some Action' The Harmsworth Professorship 1920-2000 : an Inaugural Lecture Delivered Before the University of Oxford on 18 May 2000

In his lecture, Professor Winks examines the creation of the Harmsworth Professorship in American History at the University of Oxford from the proposal of the chair in 1920 to his own incumbency. Among the questions he addresses are: to what extent did the chair represent a typical post-WorldI hands-across-the-sea gesture, and in what way has the chair reflected or contributed to the special relationship between Great Britain and the United States? What was the experience of those who held the chair and what difference did their presence make to Oxford? What difference did being atOxford as Harmsworth Professor make to these individuals? What have the complaints been with respect to the chair, and to what extent ware they valid?In answering these questions, Professor Winks also explores two moments of alleged crisis for the chair, in 1954 when accusations of interference by the American Embassy were aired in the United States, and in 1969 when matters relating to finances and housing placed the professorship injeopardy.