Oakland University’s Department of History in the College of Arts and Sciences is hosting “History Comes Alive,” a six-part series where OU history professors discuss topics from national and international historical events.

The first lecture, presented by Associate Professor Sara Chapman and titled “French Colonies and the Fur Trade: The Founding of Detroit in 1701,” is Tuesday, Sept. 27, at 7 p.m. in the Oakland Center Gold Rooms B and C. Chapman, a specialist on the reign of King Louis XIV, has authored “Private Ambition and Political Alliance: The Phelypeaux de Pontchartrain Family and Louis XIV’s Government, 1650-1715,” and focuses her latest research on examining French colonial settlements in the Atlantic world in the 1650-1760s.

Other lectures for the 2005-06 series include:

• “Worshipping St. Republican: Architecture, Urban Space and Republican Politics in the 1920s,” presented by Associate Professor Karen A. J. Miller, Wednesday, Oct. 19, at 7 p.m. in the Oakland Center Oakland Room.

• “Old Truths, New Truths and Untruths: Revisiting the Origins of the Cold War,” presented by Associate Professor Daniel Clark, Tuesday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. in the Oakland Center Gold Rooms A and B.

• “Municipal Memory: Negotiating the Legacy of the Holocaust in Postwar West Germany,” presented by Associate Professor Derek Hastings, Tuesday, Jan. 24, at 7 p.m. in the Oakland Center Oakland Room.

• “Frontier Life in Central Brazil before 1835 (an illustrated lecture),” presented by Professor Mary Karasch, Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 7 p.m. in the Oakland Center Oakland Room.

• “Lord of the Rings, Narnia and the Middle Ages: Medievalism in J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis,” presented by lecturer Jace Crouch, Wednesday, March 22, at 7 p.m. in the Oakland Center Oakland Room.

The lecture series is made possible through contributions from Annette and John Carter and the Office of the Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost for Oakland University.

All lectures are free of charge, but reservations are requested. For more information or to reserve your space, call (248) 370-3511 or e-mail misztura@oakland.edu.