James Allen Vann III was an American historian, specializing in German history of the early modern period. He was a professor of History at Emory University. Born in Birmingham, Alabama, he graduated from Washington and Lee University, where he graduated summa cum laude in 1961. He served two years in the army, then entered Harvard University, where he received the Doctorate of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in 1970. He joined the faculty of the University of Michigan that same year. He served on the faculty of the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris from 1983–84. Following his assignment there, he joined the faculty at Emory University in Atlanta.