The Institute of Historical Research  has been awarded US $1,000,000 Challenge Grant by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.  This is a matching-grant to be administered by the IHR Trustees to assist the creation of a permanent endowment for the academic and research programmes at the Institute of Historical Research (IHR).
 
During the first stage of the IHR Campaign for History, over £12 Million has been raised in support of the Institute’s activities, by the IHR’s Trustees and Staff, the largest amount ever generated to promote the study of history in Britain.  This has enabled the IHR to refurbish a substantial part of the building, to establish three new Professorships, to launch a comprehensive library of digitized resources for British History (British History On-Line), to support a nationwide local history project (England’s Past for Everyone), to create a new History and Policy Unit, to develop numerous innovative projects in support of its national and international mission, and to support a public lecture programme, conferences and Fellowships.
 
The IHR and its Trustees have now embarked on a second stage of fund-raising, which includes creating a permanent endowment to ensure the long-term strength, stability and independence of the Institute.  The Mellon grant is intended to support and stimulate donations to the IHR Trust to start to build a substantial endowment.
 
Today, Professor David Cannadine, Chairman of the Campaign for History and author of, Mellon: An American Life, said, “We are inspired and encouraged by the foresight of the Mellon foundation in making this grant to the IHR Trust at a time when endowment giving is just starting to develop in the UK.”

We gratefully acknowledge the Mellon Foundation’s enormous contribution to the IHR.

Notes to Editors

• The IHR, under its Director, Professor David Bates, offers a wide range of services to historians from the UK and around the world. The Institute promotes excellence in scholarship and teaching through its library, seminars, conferences, publications, fellowships and training, and the work of its three research centres. The IHR is a constituent Institute of the School of Advanced Study, University of London.

• Further information on the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is available at the Mellon website. www.mellon.org