James "Jim" Michael Diehl

Born 4 December 1938, Los Angeles (West Hollywood ) CA. He received his BA, MA, and PhD (1972) from the University of California, Berkeley. In 1959 he met and then married (1962) his true soul mate, the love and light of his life, Bobbi. Without her love and support, given in so many ways, he would not have had the successes that he later enjoyed.

Jim taught Modern European and German history at IUB from `1973 until his retirement in 2004. He published two well regarded books on 20th century German history, as well as the usual book contributions, articles, and reviews. He was an early and active participant in the growth of the field of Post-World War II German history, which emerged following the opening of German archival material for the period beginning in the late 1970s. He was a dedicated teacher; he was especially proud of the extensive simulation that he developed with his colleague David Pace to explain to undergraduate students the structure and dynamics of 19th century European society. Jim had many graduate students and he and Bobbi took great pride in them and their successes. He considered them to be his main legacy.

In 2018 Bobbi died and the light went out in Jim’s life. He was fortunate to have a number of wonderful friends who helped him get through the following years. To them he is deeply thankful .The loss of Bobbi, declining health, and the world-wide erosion of democracy greatly dismayed Jim and undermined his desire to live.