Michael Max Paul Zeuske

Prof. Michael Max Paul Zeuske is a Senior Research Professor at the Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS), University of Bonn, Germany. He holds a Ph.D. and Habilitation in Modern Global History from the University of Leipzig. His academic career includes professorships at the University of Cologne and the University of Havana (as DAAD Fellow). He specializes in the global history of slavery from antiquity to modernity, with particular focus on Atlantic slavery, South-South slave trades, and the intersections of slavery with capitalism, law, and cultural practices.

Zeuskе’s research integrates micro-historical analyses of enslaved individuals and elites with macro-historical frameworks. He has authored over 26 books, 196 papers, and edited 23 volumes, including landmark works like Sklaverei. Eine Menschheitsgeschichte and Handbuch Geschichte der Sklaverei. His editorial roles include co-editing COMPARATIV, a leading journal for global history. He is a corresponding member of prestigious academies in Venezuela and Cuba.

Zeuskе’s supervision record includes 25 completed and 10 ongoing Ph.D. theses, along with extensive teaching and mentoring. He has led major international projects like the International Research Seminar on the Second Slavery and conducted groundbreaking studies on slavery’s legal frameworks and commodity production. His work bridges archival scholarship with public history, emphasizing marginalized voices in slavery narratives.

Key academic contributions span slave trade networks, gender dynamics in enslavement, and the material culture of enslaved communities. His recent work emphasizes slavery’s legacy in modern capitalism and global justice debates. He has received third-party funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) and other institutions for large-scale collaborative projects.