Oxford Historical Monographs (OHM)
Oxford Historical Monographs (OHM) is a series for the publication of Oxford University DPhil theses whose content is historical. It is published by Oxford University Press (OUP).
The Oxford Historical Monographs series exists to publish some of the best Oxford University DPhil theses on historical subjects. Since receiving its current name in 1965, the OHM series has featured more than 250 titles, including the first books of many of today’s leading historians; a list of those still available to buy can be found on the Oxford University Press website. The series is run by an editorial Committee drawn from members of the History Faculty.
The Committee receives the examiners’ reports of all successful DPhil candidates in History; it also considers relevant reports from other faculties when these are drawn to our attention. Most OHM books derive from History theses, but dissertations on historical topics generally are also considered. The catchment area is wide, and books are published on all aspects of late antique, medieval and modern history. Some recent examples can be found below.
Examiners in History are specifically invited to comment in their reports on the suitability of a thesis to be considered for publication in the series, and they often do so. Supervisors are likewise encouraged to draw likely publications to the Committee’s attention. Members of the Committee consult extensively and informally with examiners, supervisors and others.
Once the examiners’ reports are received, authors are asked for copies of theses which the Committee are interested in pursuing. Decisions are reached as soon as possible, but since the process of consideration always includes at least one external reading of the thesis, it can take time. Priority is given to work which, besides incorporating the best new scholarship, is reasonably accessible, readable and marketable, and which is better communicated in the form of a book than as a series of articles.
The amount of revision a given thesis is likely to need is also considered – the rule of thumb is that the process of turning a dissertation into a book should not take more than about a year or eighteen months, though it is recognised that, given their other commitments, some of our authors may need longer than that in practice.
about 10% of the historical theses considered are published – that is, about 6 to 8 books a year – and OHM represents the only route through which recent Oxford University DPhil theses will be considered for publication by OUP.
If you wish to contact Oxford Historical Monographs, please send an email to maya.blackwell@history.ox.ac.uk.
Recent Publications
You can view a full list of all OHM publications on the OUP website.
2023
2022
Designs on Democracy: Architecture and the Public in Interwar London
Shadow of a Taxman: Who Funded the Irish Revolution?
Electric News in Colonial Algeria:
2021
Sisters and Sisterhood: The Kenney Family, Class, and Suffrage, 1890-1965
Confession and Criminal Justice in Late Medieval Italy: Siena, 1260-1330
2020
Michael Young, Social Science, and the British Left, 1945-1970
Classical Learning in Britain, France, and the Dutch Republic, 1690-1750: Beyond the Ancients and the Moderns
Educating Palestine: Teaching and Learning History under the Mandate
The Committee
The series is run by an editorial Committee drawn from members of the History Faculty, which meets four times a year to consider examiners’ reports and conduct editorial business.
The Committee aims to represent as wide a range of periods and thematic interests as possible.
The current members are listed below, all of us welcome representations from supervisors and examiners, and the Chair of the Committee will additionally be happy to answer any enquiries. Additionally, the Chair is very happy to answer questions about procedures or the series in general.
Please email: maya.blackwell@history.ox.ac.uk.