Please join us in congratulating Professor Elizabeth R. Varon, Langbourne M. Williams Professor of American History, for winning the 2020 Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize! 

Professor Varon will be recognized during an event hosted by Gettysburg College and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History at the Union League Club in New York City on Thursday, April 23, 2020. The award includes a $50,000 prize and a bronze replica of Augustus Saint-Gaudens' life-size bust, “Lincoln the Man.” Co-founded in 1990 by Richard Gilder and Lewis Lehrman, the Lincoln Prize has been awarded annually to a work that enhances the general public’s understanding of the Civil War era. 

Here’s what two of the prize board members had to say about Professor Varon’s groundbreaking work, Armies of Deliverance: A New History of the Civil War (Oxford University Press):

“Armies of Deliverance is the defining history of the Civil War for the next generation, written by one of the leading Civil War authors of our time.” - James G. Basker, Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History President

“Dr. Varon’s scholarly exploration of the Civil War era not only offers insights into this defining chapter in our nation’s history, but it also signals the fragility of our own democracy and the responsibilities inherent in ensuring its vitality today...Through her ambitious and important work, Dr. Varon provides readers with a unique vantage point in which to more fully understand the driving motives behind Union and Confederate forces, and how these motives—shaped by the experiences, beliefs, and aspirations of everyday people, navigating this singular moment in time—manifested themselves on the battlefield and at home. It is an inspired work worthy of our highest recognition.” - Robert W. Iuliano, Gettysburg College President