Sir Richard J. Evans, a renowned scholar and historian of modern Germany, will share his insightful analysis into conspiracy theories and “alternative facts” with the Brock and wider Niagara community this week.

Evans, who is well-known for his best-selling books on the Third Reich and Nazi Germany, will discuss his latest book, The Hitler Conspiracies, in a public talk at Brock University on Thursday, Nov. 3 in Pond Inlet from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

His book focuses on five of the most enduring conspiracy theories from the Nazi period, examining how they were used by the Nazis and why they endure today. In the process, Evans also explores the current “golden age” of conspiracy theories and what fuels it.

“This is a unique and exciting opportunity for the Faculty of Humanities to host Sir Richard Evans, and for Brock faculty, staff and students, as well as members of the Niagara community, to hear him speak in person,” says Elizabeth Vlossak, Associate Dean for the Faculty and Associate Professor of History.

A prolific researcher and author, Evans was the principal expert witness in the unsuccessful libel action brought before the High Court in London in 2000 by David Irving against American author Deborah Lipstadt. Evans recounts the case in his 2002 book Telling Lies About Hitler, which was dramatized in the movie Denial in 2016.

Evans is a member of the U.K. Spoliation Advisory Panel, advising the government on restitution claims on Nazi looted art. He has also appeared regularly in television documentaries about the Third Reich.

He writes book reviews and articles for a number of publications, including the London Review of Books and The Guardian, gives talks around the world and remains committed to bringing history to a wider audience beyond academia. He was knighted for services to scholarship in 2012.

Evans was Regius Professor of History at the University Cambridge (2008-2014), the Master of Wolfson College, Cambridge (2010-14) and the Provost of Gresham College, London (2012-2020). He is a Fellow of the British Academy, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and a Founding Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales. He also holds honorary degrees from the Universities of Oxford and London, and from Queen’s University in Canada. Since 2018, Evans has been a Distinguished Fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto.

Evans and his wife, Christine Corton, will meet with Brock graduate students before Thursday’s talk, which is free and open to the public. Corton is known for her historical research on London Fog: The Biography, which explores the story of London’s epic pea soup fogs — thick yellow clouds of water droplets, soot and sulphur that seeped into homes and businesses — and their lingering effects on the cultural imagination.

What: “The Hitler Conspiracies:” a public talk by Sir Richard J. Evans

When: Thursday, Nov. 3 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Where: Pond Inlet, Brock University. Free parking is available on site.