William Carr (1 April 1921 – 20 June 1991) was a British historian of Germany.[1]
He was born in Workington, Cumberland. He studied history at the University of Birmingham, where he was awarded a prize for European history, but halted his studies after Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union. Carr volunteered and served in the Royal Corps of Signals and Royal Artillery.[1] After victory, he worked as an interpreter of German internees before joining the Field Security Police.[1] Carr returned to Birmingham University in 1947, where he was awarded a first class degree in 1948.[1]
Carr was appointed lecturer in history at the University of Sheffield in 1952, then senior lecturer (1963), reader (1970) and then to a personal chair (1979). He retired in 1986.[1] A few days before his death, Carr learnt that the German government had awarded him the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.[1]