Charles Ross (historian)
Charles Derek Ross (1924 – 1986) was an English historian of the Late Middle Ages.
Early life
Ross was born in Wakefield and educated at the grammar school. He began reading History at Brasenose College, Oxford in 1942.[1][note 1] This was followed by doctoral studies under K. B. McFarlane—"whose work was then transforming historical understanding of later medieval England"[1][note 2] —and Ross's resultant DPhil was entitled The Yorkshire Baronage, 1399–1425.[1]
Career
Following his doctorate, Ross began working at the University of Bristol, where he would remain for the rest of his academic life, in 1947. Originally appointed Assistant Lecturer, he worked beneath David Douglas. Ross's final position at Bristol was as Professor of Medieval History, with a personal chair.[1]
Originally teaching alongside Margaret Sharp (daughter of T.F. Tout), he became reader and then Professor of Medieval History Originally teaching alongside Margaret Sharp (daughter of T.F. Tout), he became reader and then Professor of Medieval History
She taught jointly with a much younger man, Charles Ross, who was a 15th-century historian, and I opted to do the special subject which they taught together—I suppose looking back on it, as far as we were concerned quite easily, but from their point of view it was probably rather difficult, because he was very young and she was in the latter stages of her career. But they did it extremely well.[3]
Ralph A. Griffiths recalling Ross and Sharp's joint Special Subject at Bristol.
Ross took early retirement in 1982 but maintained close ties with the University and continued his research. Indeed, he had contracted to write another book shortly before his death.[1]
Publishing
Ross published predominantly on the history of the later medieval English nobility, royalty and the Wars of the Roses. His biographies of Edward IV from 1974, and Richard III seven years later were described by The Times as respectively "scholarly and detailed" and perceptive". They fused easy reading, suitable for a general readership, with the detailed and minute approach to sources required in a high-end piece of scholarship.[1]
Personal life and death
He remained at Bristol until his death in 1986, when he was killed by an intruder in his own home.[4][better source needed]
Influence and reputation
The Times described his editorial method as being based on a "meticulous concern for detail".[1] The Times wrote after his death of his "amusing and stimulating" lecturing style and how his teaching inspired many of his students to follow his path.[1]
His pupils included Michael Hicks,[5] Anne Crawford[6] and Ralph Griffiths.[7]
A book of memorial essays—originally intended as a Festschrift—edited by Professor Ralph Griffiths and Mr James Sherborne was published the year of Ross's death.[1]
Ross's obituarist concluded that "he had a great sense of humour as well as a sharp wit, and he had a fund of good stories".[1]
Bibliography
- 'Materials for the Study of Baronial Incomes in Fifteenth-Century England,' Economic History Review, NS, vol.6 no. 2 (1953) (with T.B. Pugh)
- 'The Estates and Finances of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick,' Dugdale Society Occasional papers No. 12 (1956)
- Fifteenth Century England, 1399-1509: Studies in Politics and Society, Manchester 1972 (with Stanley Chrimes and Ralph Griffiths)
- Edward IV (1974) ISBN 0-413-28680-0
- The Wars of the Roses: A Concise History (1976) ISBN 0-500-25049-9
- Richard III (1981) ISBN 0-413-29530-3
Notes
- ^ Due to British Army requirements, the college had been sequestered for the duration, so Ross's undergraduate degree was studied for at Christ Church, Oxford.[1]
- ^ The medieval historian Christine Carpenter has written that "it is hard to exaggerate the impact of McFarlane's work, especially at Oxford where he taught. A whole generation of students there was inspired to work on what had been a very neglected century; nearly all the political historians of fourteenth and fifteenth century England today, including the present writer, are, academically speaking, the children or grandchildren, even great grandchildren, of McFarlane."[2]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Obituary 1986, p. 18.
- ^ Carpenter 1997, p. 18.
- ^ I. H. R. 2008.
- ^ Ross, C.D., Edward IV, fly
- ^ Hicks. M.A., Richard III & his Rivals: Magnates and their Motives in the War of the Roses, London 1991, xii
- ^ Crawford, A., Yorkist Lord John Howard, Duke of Norfolk, c. 1425 – 1485, London 2010, Acknowledgments
- ^ Chrimes, S.B., Ross, C.D. & Griffiths, R.A. (eds), Fifteenth Century England, 1399–1509: Studies in Politics and Society, Manchester 1972, xii
Sources
- Carpenter, C. (1997). The Wars of the Roses: Politics and the Constitution in England, c. 1437–1509. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-31874-7.
- I. H. R. (2008). "Interview with Professor Ralph Griffiths: Making History". archives.history.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 27 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
- Obituary (8 April 1986). "Prof Charles Ross". The Times.
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