BREXIT AND THE BATTLE FOR THE PAST A study of historian’s involvement in the Brexit debate Paul Hemmer Master thesis in History Department of AHKR University of Bergen Autumn 2018 II I Abstrakt 23 juni 2016 stemte Britene nei til EU-medlemskap. I mange år hadde Storbritannia vært et vanskelig medlem av EU. For noen, spesielt på høyresiden av Britisk politikk hadde folkeavstemmingen om EU-medlemskap vært en lang drøm. Når Britene stemte den 23 Juni 2016 hadde de ett spørsmål de skulle svare på, ja eller nei til EU-medlemskap. Spørsmålet er ekstremt komplisert. Dermed åpent det for flere aktører i debatten. Alle hadde sine meninger og argumenter. Noen historikere spilte også en rolle i den debatten. Denne oppgaven handler hovedsakelig om historikernes rolle i Brexit debatten. Fra 2013 begynte et knippe historikere å samle seg i forskjellig grupper og nettverk. Historikere for Britain var gruppen hvor euro skeptiske historikere samlet seg, og Historikere for Britain i Europa var gruppen hvor pro-Europeiske historikere samlet seg. Det var andre mindre grupper også, men det var de to som var størst og hadde mest media opptredener. Hensikten med denne oppgaven er å se på hvilke grupper og nettverk av historikere som dukket opp i respons til Brexit debatten fra 2013 til 2016, samt hvilke aktiviteter og argumenter de fremmet. Jeg vil også se på om dette faktisk spilte noen rolle i debatten i det hele tatt. Ble historikerne tatt godt imot i debatten eller var det ingen som brydde seg? Oppgaven vil også se på om debatten fikk noen konsekvenser for politisk aktive historikere I Acknowledgements Writing this thesis has been a long and challenging process. It would not have been possible without the help of others. Firstly, my supervisor Camilla Brautaset has helped me immensely from day one. I had been out of education for a number of years before I started studying again. To say the least I was bit rusty when I began to study history again. I’ve come a long way since then thanks to Camilla’s guidance and challenging me intellectually. I am also very grateful to everyone involved in the seminar ‘På tvers av grenser, (especially the organiser, Christhard Hoffmann). The constructive feedback I’ve gotten from seminar discussions has been of great value. This thesis addresses very recent history. Consequently, the existing research literature is limited. This had made the generosity of historians such as Oliver Lewis and Paul Lay extra valuable. Oliver Lewis, has been highly supportive throughout this project, not only was he kind enough to meet me in London for an interview – he has also continuously shared insights, contacts and references. Similarly, I would also like to thank Paul Lay for meeting me for an interview and for offering his insights too – both have proven invaluable for this thesis. A number of other historians were also kind to respond to my emails and offer their thoughts and insights on this project: Abigail Green, David Abulafia, Robert Tombs and A.W. Purdue thank you. I would also like to thank my family and friends who have kept me positive throughout, and provided me with a roof over my head when I was in London doing research. Finally, thanks to my late father who sparked my interest in history. His enthusiasm for history and politics rubbed off on me as a child. Unfortunately, he is no longer here to see me complete this project. But I am sure it’s something he would have enjoyed reading and been proud of. Paul Hemmer, September 2018 II Abbreviations ECSC European Coal and Steel Community EDC European Defence Community EEA European Economic Area EEC European Economic Community EFTA European Free Trade Association EU European Union MP Member of Parliament (Common abbreviation for members elected to the House of Commons in London, United Kingdom). MEP Member of the European Parliament (Common abbreviation for members elected to the European Parliament based in Brussels, Belgium). NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organisation UK United Kingdom UKIP United Kingdom Independence Party (Anti-European Union populist political party). III Table of Contents Abstrakt ....................................................................................................................................... I Acknowledgements...................................................................................................................... II Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................. III Chapter 1: Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Brexit ................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 2 1.2 Research status – historians, Britain and the EU .......................................................... 4 1.3 Theme, actors and research questions .......................................................................... 6 1.4 Sources ............................................................................................................................... 7 1.4.1 Interviews .................................................................................................................... 9 1.4.2 Blogs .......................................................................................................................... 10 1.4.3 Newspapers and magazines ................................................................................... 11 1.5 Sources and literature as a unified universe .......................................................................... 12 1.6 Approach .......................................................................................................................... 13 1.7 Britain, England and all that – some terminology ....................................................... 14 1.8 Thesis structure ............................................................................................................... 15 Chapter 2: Britain’s relationship with Europe post 1945 .................................................. 17 2.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 17 2.2 Missed opportunities? .......................................................................................................... 18 2.3 A change of stanch? British applications to join the EEC ......................................... 21 2.4 A new Era? EEC entry, Renegotiation and Britain’s first referendum on membership ............................................................................................................................ 24 2.4.1 EEC entry ................................................................................................................... 25 2.4.2 Wilson’s Renegotiations .......................................................................................... 26 2.4.3 1975s Referendum on EEC membership ............................................................... 27 2.5 A new dawn? British European policy after The Maastricht Treaty .......................... 28 2.5.1 The Maastricht Treaty .............................................................................................. 29 2.5.2 New Labour and Europe .......................................................................................... 31 2.5.3 The accession of the A10 countries ....................................................................... 33 IV 2.5.4 Populism and Eurosceptism ................................................................................... 36 2.6 Concluding remarks ........................................................................................................ 37 Chapter 3: Before the referendum ....................................................................................... 39 3.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 39 3.2 Historians for Britain letter to the Times .................................................................. 39 3.2.1 The formation of Historians for Britain and Academics for Britain in Europe.. 42 3.2.2 Historians for Britain overview ............................................................................... 44 3.3 Activities and arguments promoted by actor’s pre-referendum ............................... 46 3.3.1 Historians for Britain: Response, Activities and Arguments .............................. 48 3.4 Other historian’s responses to the Brexit debate ....................................................... 55 3.4.1 Historians for history and other responses .......................................................... 60 3.5 Concluding remarks ........................................................................................................ 63 Chapter 4: Brexit 2015-2017 ................................................................................................. 65 4.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 65 4.2 Historians and Brexit....................................................................................................... 65 4.3 Increase in discourse