Siegrid Westphal

Prof. Dr. Siegrid Westphal is a distinguished academic at the University of Osnabrück, holding the Professorship for Early Modern History since 2004. She is affiliated with the Historical Seminar and leads the Research Center IKFN (Institute for Early Modern Cultural History). Her career spans roles as a research assistant, privatdozent, and visiting professor, with significant contributions to imperial legal history and gender studies.

• Education: Magister Artium (1989), PhD (1992), Habilitation (2001)
• Professional Roles: Leader of projects in the Collaborative Research Center 'Ereignis Weimar-Jena' (2001-2004), Professor (since 2004/05)
• Research Interests: Political history of the Holy Roman Empire, legal history, gender history, cultural peace research, and regional studies of Thuringia and Saxony.
• Ongoing Projects: Analyzing the 1635 Peace of Prague, corruption in early modern politics, gender as a relational category in legal cases, French perception in German media under Louis XIV, and archival studies of Lüneburg.
• Leadership: Director of the IKFN and co-editor of series like Bibliothek Altes Reich.
• Courses: Taught seminars on the Thirty Years' War, baroque political culture, and early modern diplomacy.
• Collaborations: Contributed to edited volumes on topics ranging from imperial courts to gender roles in confessionalization.
• Expertise: Specializes in the intersection of law, gender, and political stability, with a focus on the Holy Roman Empire's legal systems.