Peter Langer is an accomplished historian, author and former teacher.
He studied history and political science at the University of Heidelberg and Wayne State University in the United States. Langer completed his Ph.D in 1973 with a doctoral thesis on Modern theories of imperialism – Case study: Ghana, which was based on research conducted during three extended stays in West Africa.
After university, Langer went into teaching, first in Germany and then as an exchange teacher in Minnesota. On his return to Germany in 1981, he took up a post as principal at the Heinrich-Böll-Gesamtschule in Oberhausen, a city in the Ruhr area. Langer has since concentrated on local and regional history and currently serves as chairman of the Oberhausen Historical Society.
He has written various publications on the history of heavy industry in the first half of the 20###sup/sup### century and in 2012 authored a biological study of Paul Reusch, one of the most influential industrial leaders of the Ruhr area. Langer has also authored articles on Oberhausen’s urban history in World War I, the Weimar Republic, the Nazi period and the ‘Economic Miracle’ era of the 1950s.
