In 1943, in the midst of a London still reeling from the Blitz, initial plans were laid for an Institute devoted to rebuilding relations between English and German scholars and academics once hostilities had ceased. Established in 1950, the Institute served for more than half a century as a research centre and focal point for researchers the world over. However, German Studies in London have a much older tradition which goes back almost two centuries. Glanz und Abglanz tells the fascinating tale of German Studies in London from its beginnings at the ‘godless institution of Gower Street’, and the remarkable personalities whose energy and commitment ensured that the discipline flourished. The story is told through two essays: ‘Taught by Giants’ outlining the history of the subject in London from 1826, and ‘ Sehr schoen, Piglet?
Ja, Pooh. ’ following the development of the Institute of Germanic Languages and Literatures and showcasing its remarkable library. The volume is rounded off with an account of the magnificent collection of rare books assembled by two of the personalities, Robert Priebsch (1866-1935) and August Closs (1898-1990).

John L. Flood has been associated with the University of London for more than fifty years, having taught German at King’s College from 1965 until 1979, when he was appointed Deputy Director of the Institute of Germanic Studies. Since his retirement in 2002, Professor Flood has been an Honorary Fellow of the Institute.

Anne Simon took her PhD at the University of London, then became Lecturer in Medieval German at the University of Bristol from 1992 to 2011. She held a temporary Lectureship at the Institute of Germanic & Romance Studies, London, in 2012-13, and is now an Associate Fellow of the Institute of Modern Languages Research.

‘John Flood and Anne Simon have documented in meticulous detail a history which can only be sketched briefly here. […] The reader of the notes and the bibliographies will find exhaustive material that may amply serve some future historian of German studies in the United Kingdom and Ireland as a whole.’ Arbitrium, 2021; 39(1)