The pursuit of historical truth, misses the point.
We will always look at history in view of the present. Histroy is not, as some have argued, the accumulation of objective facts. History is written by individuals who are memebrs of particualr groups within history itself. As it is neccassarily subjective, we hear little of say the actual history of those who have lost wars or who have been oppressed, we must see it ina different light.
To argue that we are not products of our past and that history means nothing to us as a society is rubbish. It is a fundamental component to our perception of the world not to mention its actual material manifesation as seen in our political systems and economic systems. We need only look to the taboo concerning that historian, whose name eludes me, who argued that the Holocaust did not occur. In this instance we see how history is always relevant to the present and how we feel about current issues.
The act of reflecting upon history, does not free us from its grip but allows us to go forward, always however in relation to what has actually past (that we can never completely "know") and present day history that is neccassarily subjective.