John Phillipps Kenyon
Encyclopedia
John Philipps Kenyon was an English historian. He was one of the foremost historians of 17th-century England, a prolific writer and reviewer, and a Fellow of the British Academy
.
and then Sheffield University where he obtained a first class degree in History in 1948 before going to Cambridge to take a doctorate as a pupil of J. H. Plumb
. He obtained his doctorate in 1954 and was appointed a fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge
, before going on to become Hull's history professor for 19 years, followed by six years at St Andrews. From 1987 to 1994 he was Distinguished Professor of early modern British history at the University of Kansas
.
, for instance) meant that he was never really seen as an innovator, nor did he establish a "school" in the way other historians have done. He had little time for academic social climbing and had a healthy attitude to posterity, declaring that much of his work would be out of print within 10 years of his death (which it is). He taught at Harvard and Columbia University
in the 1960s and 1970s, and his only professional regret was his failure to secure the seat in Modern History at Oxford. This professorship eventually went to Norman Stone
.
Kenyon's 1958 doctorate book, Robert Spencer, Earl of Sunderland, matched attention to detail with an ability to pick up every nuance from his sources. Apart from its portrait of Sunderland, it offers sophisticated analyses of both the deluded and introverted court of James II and the world of political management and intrigue under William III. The two biggest commercial successes that Kenyon enjoyed were The Stuarts and Stuart England. Another notable volume of his was The Popish Plot (1972), which was conspicuously fair-minded in its treatment of one of the most notorious events in English history. All three were standard 'A" Level and undergraduate sources for many years.
A subsequent book of Kenyon's, Revolution Principles: The Politics Of Party 1689-1720 (1977), focussed on the realm of ideas, on the ferment of political debate as Whig and Tory polemicists sought to adapt to the changed political world after the revolution of 1688-99 - and then to the Hanoverian Succession - an analysis that is at once coherent and original. The book stemmed from the Ford Lectures that Kenyon gave at Oxford in 1975-76.
His works may suggest a cynical view of human nature, but frequently his relationships with colleagues and students were warm and long-lasting. Many of his numerous book reviews were abrasive and dismissive, but as they were often very perceptive too, they made him enemies. He was delighted at one point to be described on television by A. L. Rowse
(himself not exactly deficient in abrasiveness) as "a monster". In addition to his journalistic output for various publications under his own name, he wrote a great many science fiction reviews for The Observer, during the 1970s and early 1980s, under the pseudonym of "Kelvin Johnston". When moving to the US in 1987, Kenyon was amused to discover that Observer readers had no complaints upon losing his writing about history (which he had to give up in preparation for his transatlantic departure), but there were a number of plaintive letters from readers asking for the return of Kelvin Johnston. One of his proudest moments, he said, was having been cited in the "Pseud's Corner" section of Private Eye in the 1970s.
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
.
Life
Kenyon was born in Sheffield where he attended King Edward VII SchoolKing Edward VII School (Sheffield)
King Edward VII School is a secondary school and language college located in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. KES, named after the reigning monarch, was formed in 1905 when Wesley College was merged with Sheffield Royal Grammar School on the site of the former on Glossop Road...
and then Sheffield University where he obtained a first class degree in History in 1948 before going to Cambridge to take a doctorate as a pupil of J. H. Plumb
J. H. Plumb
Sir John Harold Plumb, FBA , known as Jack, was a British historian, known for his books on British 18th century history. He wrote over thirty books.-Biography:...
. He obtained his doctorate in 1954 and was appointed a fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
, before going on to become Hull's history professor for 19 years, followed by six years at St Andrews. From 1987 to 1994 he was Distinguished Professor of early modern British history at the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
.
Works
In 1983 his venture into historiography, The History Men, was published, which like his Observer reviews was aimed at a broad audience. But his work was focused on the Stuart age. His rugged individualism and attachment to conservative, scholarly values (unlike many of his fellow academics he expressed admiration for Sir Arthur BryantArthur Bryant
Sir Arthur Wynne Morgan Bryant, CH, CBE , was a British historian and a columnist for the Illustrated London News. His books included studies of Samuel Pepys, accounts of English eighteenth- and nineteenth-century history, and a life of George V...
, for instance) meant that he was never really seen as an innovator, nor did he establish a "school" in the way other historians have done. He had little time for academic social climbing and had a healthy attitude to posterity, declaring that much of his work would be out of print within 10 years of his death (which it is). He taught at Harvard and Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in the 1960s and 1970s, and his only professional regret was his failure to secure the seat in Modern History at Oxford. This professorship eventually went to Norman Stone
Norman Stone
Norman Stone is a British academic, historian, author and is currently a Professor in the Department of International Relations at Bilkent University, Ankara...
.
Kenyon's 1958 doctorate book, Robert Spencer, Earl of Sunderland, matched attention to detail with an ability to pick up every nuance from his sources. Apart from its portrait of Sunderland, it offers sophisticated analyses of both the deluded and introverted court of James II and the world of political management and intrigue under William III. The two biggest commercial successes that Kenyon enjoyed were The Stuarts and Stuart England. Another notable volume of his was The Popish Plot (1972), which was conspicuously fair-minded in its treatment of one of the most notorious events in English history. All three were standard 'A" Level and undergraduate sources for many years.
A subsequent book of Kenyon's, Revolution Principles: The Politics Of Party 1689-1720 (1977), focussed on the realm of ideas, on the ferment of political debate as Whig and Tory polemicists sought to adapt to the changed political world after the revolution of 1688-99 - and then to the Hanoverian Succession - an analysis that is at once coherent and original. The book stemmed from the Ford Lectures that Kenyon gave at Oxford in 1975-76.
His works may suggest a cynical view of human nature, but frequently his relationships with colleagues and students were warm and long-lasting. Many of his numerous book reviews were abrasive and dismissive, but as they were often very perceptive too, they made him enemies. He was delighted at one point to be described on television by A. L. Rowse
A. L. Rowse
Alfred Leslie Rowse, CH, FBA , known professionally as A. L. Rowse and to friends and family as Leslie, was a British historian from Cornwall. He is perhaps best known for his work on Elizabethan England and his poetry about Cornwall. He was also a Shakespearean scholar and biographer...
(himself not exactly deficient in abrasiveness) as "a monster". In addition to his journalistic output for various publications under his own name, he wrote a great many science fiction reviews for The Observer, during the 1970s and early 1980s, under the pseudonym of "Kelvin Johnston". When moving to the US in 1987, Kenyon was amused to discover that Observer readers had no complaints upon losing his writing about history (which he had to give up in preparation for his transatlantic departure), but there were a number of plaintive letters from readers asking for the return of Kelvin Johnston. One of his proudest moments, he said, was having been cited in the "Pseud's Corner" section of Private Eye in the 1970s.