The″Historical Social Science School″of West Germany,which mainly deals with critical social history,experienced its rapid rise in the 1970s .Besides the breakthrough in historiographical thoughts of its leading figures,the smooth operation of relevant academic activities also contributed to the rise of this School . There were three major driving forces behind its emergence,expansion and schooling . Firstly,Bielefeld University,as an institutional center,provided the organizational framework for the new historiographical school .Founded in 1969 and thus free of the shackles of the conservative tradition,Bielefeld University dedicated to facilitating the interdisciplinary research of humanities and social sciences and served as an ideal platform for the Historical Social Science School to carry out academic activities .In such a harmonious atmosphere,Bielefeld's historians turned the university into a center of communication network and the largest professional training base for the School .Secondly,the Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht press (V&R),as a social partner,strongly supported the academic publishing of the School .The V&R had enjoyed certain popularity within the academic circle of history and had no obvious political tendencies,which met the requirements of the historians of the new school .On the other hand,the V&R's editors also wanted to exploit the market for books on history . Therefore,it is natural and easy for both sides to be in agreement .As a result,the three most representative works of the School were,and are,all published by the V&R .The cooperation mode between the V&R and the Historical Social Science School presented brand new features .The former became the first German press that built its image by echoing some kind of new historiographical trends while the latter became the first German historiographical school that entered into such an intimate relationship with a certain press that it labeled with its own name .Thirdly,the series Kritische Studien zur Geschichtswissenschaf t and the journal Geschichte und Gesellschaf t,as showcases for thoughts,in an effective way promoted internally the cohesion and communication as well as externally the dissemination of the Historical Social Science School .In terms of the series Kritische Studien zur Geschichtswissenschaf t,its lineament was deeply influenced by the editor-in-chief's research areas,academic viewpoints and work networks as well as his personal relationships .It brought many research findings into the open,filled the gaps in the studies of social structures,social progresses and social groups,and thus helped the critical social history expand the boundaries and take root in the science of history . The journal Geschichte und Gesellschaf t,on the other hand,is not only a remarkable result of the historiographical reform after the Second World War in West Germany,but also a noticeable symbol of the establishment of discourse power of the Historical Social Science School .At the same time of pointing the way for the School,this journal also built a fixed communication platform for the members and thereby helped them establish and expand their own academic community .By taking advantage of these two different types of publishing,namely the book series and journals,this School formed an active editor-and-author circle which furthered its own continuous development . In a word,relying on its own institutional and social resources,the Historical Social Science School accumulated academic capital,formed academic communication networks,won itself honor,reputation and influence,and finally became the leader among West German historiographical schools . A close look at the Historical Social Science School from the perspectives of specialization and institutionalization reveals that external factors like research institutions,academic publications and professional journals play a vital role in the development of historiographical schools .