Dr W. Jack Rhoden
Programme Leader in Undergraduate History
I am a historian from Lancashire but crossed the Pennines over 20 years ago. I gained my PhD at the University of Sheffield for my study of ‘Caricatural representations of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, 1848-1871’. I then completed a post-doc based at Chatsworth House before lecturing at the University of Sheffield, Sheffield Hallam and Cardiff University.
I am interested in all things nineteenth century, especially French and British political culture, political cartoons, book collecting, archive history and more recently the institutional history of this university, which began life as Lincoln Diocesan Training College in 1862.
In my role I am responsible for lecturing on a number of undergraduate modules. In the current year this includes:
- 'Kill Your Masters': The French and Haitian Revolutions
- Invented Histories: Understanding Popular Representations of the Past
- Democratic Dictators
- The City in Global History
I also act as supervisor for undergraduate PhD dissertations that fall within my fields of expertise.
My particular specialism is the field of mid-19th century France, in particular the period of the Second Republic and Empire (1848-1870) and the figure of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte (Napoleon III). My interest in this topic is largely focused on political and cultural history with my PhD thesis (2012) focusing on French political caricatures of Louis-Napoleon.
Since completing my PhD at the University of Sheffield, I have developed complementary research interests in mid-19th century Britain, examining debates on democracy, representation and liberal government in Britain and France and their impact on Anglo-French relations. I am currently researching debates around populism and dictatorship during this time from and English and French perspective.
I had the fortune to undertake a post-doctoral research position based at Chatsworth House, Derbyshire, wherein I completed an analysis of the research potential of its historic library collections. Arising from this work I have developed an interest in historic book collections, literary networks and book collecting in during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
In recent years I have been fortunate to work with the archives of Lincoln Bishop University and supervised several excellent MA theses that sought to examine the lives of former students and the 19th century history of what was Lincoln Diocesan Training College. Several strands of this research are ongoing and I am keen to bring this history more firmly into the public arena.
Peer-reviewed publications
- 'From Dictator to Democrat? The ‘Black Legend’ of Louis-Napoleon and Subsequent Historical Revisionism', in The Routledge Handbook of French History, ed. David Andress (Routledge, 2024): https://www.routledge.com/The-Routledge-Handbook-of-French-History/Andress/p/book/9780367406820
- ‘The Paradoxes of Republican Masculinity: French Political Caricature, 1866-1870’, in Ingrid Hanson, Wilfred Jack Rhoden and E. E. Snyder, (eds.) Poetry, Politics and Pictures: Culture and Identity in Europe, 1840-1914 (Peter Lang, 2013), pp. 119-150. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3726/978-3-0353-0504-3
- W. Jack Rhoden, 'The Genealogy of a Book Collection: An Early History of the Cavendish Family’s Book Collection, 1599-1811', Midland History, Volume 45, Issue 3 (2020), pp. 309-325. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/0047729X.2020.1814635
- Lincoln Bishop UCU Branch Chair
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
- City of Lincoln Historical Association Branch (member)
- Editorial Board member, Midland History
- Membership Secretary for the Society for the Study of French History (SSFH)
Teaching
- Lincoln Bishop Student Led Teaching Award – Outstanding Supervisor (2019)
- Heritage Open Day, 20 Sept 2025: 'Board games, talks, tours and a film: explore the history and heritage of Lincoln Bishop University'
- Understanding the US Election, 30 Oct 2024: Panel chair for public debate
- Being Human Festival (August 2018): Lincoln Bishop lead on the theme of: ‘A pioneering place full of pioneering women’: Exploring the history of Lincoln Bishop University
Related Posts
BGU Historian Contributes to Routledge Handbook of French History
Lecturer’s new article reveals the early history of book collecting by the Cavendish family
Earlier this year, Bishop Grosseteste University was given permission by the Office for Students (OfS) to change its name to Lincoln Bishop University. This process of change may take a little time to work through, so while we are busy making all the necessary changes, you may find that you see both names used in our information and communications.