History fact or fiction?

How certain is History? In a very real sense the study of history is concerned with a subject matter more objective and independent than that of the natural sciences. Just because historical matter is in the past, is gone, irrecoverable, its objective reality is guaranteed, it is beyond being altered for any purpose whatsoever. Elton

What is history?

1. History is THE PAST 2. History is what Historians WRITE about the past (Historiography)

History is based on Facts William the Conqueror invaded England in He fought Harold Godwineson at the Battle of Hastings on October 14th Harold Godwineson was killed at the battle by an arrow in his eye.

…… or was he?

Problems with the evidence …. Not all the evidence survives so what we have to go on is a selection. As a result the past is like an annoying jigsaw puzzle with lots of pieces missing.

How reliable is our evidence?

Enter the Historian The facts do not speak for themselves. On their own they are quite dull and not very useful. The Historian hopes to do a lot more than collect a huge encyclopaedia of facts. Historians seek to find meaning from the past.

But Historians interpretations can reflect their present as much as the past …… “Our forefathers had occupied the land from time immemorial. When the invaders came they were only small in number and pretended to be friendly. We were friendly to them and helped them to survive. However without our consent they invited other invaders to join them….With their superior weapons they defeated us repeatedly”

An Act of Creation? The facts are like fish swimming in a vast and murky ocean, and what the historian catches will depend partly on chance but mainly on what part of the ocean he chooses to fish in and what bait he chooses – these two facts of course being determined by the type of fish he wants to catch. By and large the historian will get the facts he wants. E H Carr What comes first the facts or the theory?

Why did the chicken cross the road?

Understanding individuals

Each man is a package of variables impossible to duplicate. His birth, his parents, his siblings, his food, his home, his school, his economic and social status, his first job, his first girl, and the variables inherent in all of these, make up that mysterious compendium, personality – which then combines with another set of variables: country, climate, time and historical circumstance. The range of factors available make interpretation very difficult. Tuchman

Explaining cause

Why was the country lost? The country was lost… Because a war was lost… The war was lost because the battle was lost… The battle was lost because a general didn’t receive orders… The general didn’t receive orders because a message was delayed… The message was delayed because the messenger’s horse’s shoe came off… The shoe came off because of a sharp rock in the road…

So is History useless knowledge? It is very difficult to attain certainty in History. However we should not dismiss Historical Knowledge. The good historian seeks a convergence of evidence and hopes to provide explanations that fit with as much of the evidence as possible. Without the Historian the past would simply be a random collection of facts. The Historian provides meaning.

It is the ‘ meaning ’ of the past that is ESSENTIAL It gives a vital sense of identity. It is essential for our understanding of the present. We may be able to identify where we have made mistakes in the past. “ Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it ”