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Sir John Ernest Neale (7 December 1890 in Liverpool – 2 September 1975) was an English historian who specialised in
Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personific ...
and
Parliamentary history ''Parliamentary History'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as pe ...
. From 1927 to 1956, he was the Astor Professor of English History at
University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...
.


Academic career

Neale was trained by the political historian A. F. Pollard.Short biography of Neale, in Neale, J. (1971) ''Queen Elizabeth I''. Pelican. His first professional appointment was the chair of Modern History at the
University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The university owns and operates majo ...
, and he was then to succeed his old mentor A. F. Pollard as Astor Professor of English History at
University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...
in 1927. He was to hold this post until 1956. In 1955, Neale was
knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the G ...
, and on 17 November 1958 he delivered a lecture in Washington, D.C. commemorating
Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...
's accession to the English throne four hundred years previously. From 1956, Neale was
Professor Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
, but continued to do some academic teaching at University College London. He died in 1975 and was buried in Harrogate Cemetery. He had married Elfreda Skelton of Harrogate, with whom he had a daughter, Stella.


Historical views

Neale was the leading Elizabethan historian of his generation. In the opinion of fellow historian, and Neale's own graduate student, Patrick Collinson, Neale's biography of
Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...
"has yet to be bettered". His painstaking research uncovered the political power of the gentry in ''The Elizabethan House of Commons'' (1949), whilst his 1948 Raleigh Lecture on ‘The Elizabethan political scene’ greatly expanded our knowledge of the politics of the reign. The two volumes on ''Elizabeth I and her Parliaments'' (1953 and 1957) explored the relationship between the Queen and her Parliaments. These were criticised by Sir
Geoffrey Elton Sir Geoffrey Rudolph Elton (born Gottfried Rudolf Otto Ehrenberg; 17 August 1921 – 4 December 1994) was a German-born British political and constitutional historian, specialising in the Tudor period. He taught at Clare College, Cambridge, and w ...
who claimed that the main preoccupation of these parliaments was the forming of Bills and the passing of Acts, not conflict between Crown and Parliament. Neale's claims that these parliaments were a landmark in the evolution of Parliament was criticised by medievalists such as
J. S. Roskell John Smith Roskell (1913–1998) was an English historian of the Middle Ages. Roskell was born on 2 July 1913 in Norden, near Rochdale. He won a scholarship to Rochdale Municipal Secondary School before attending Accrington Grammar School. In ...
. However Collinson notes that the conflicts which Neale wrote about did take place and that Neale's retelling of them made an exciting and unforgettable chapter in English history. Neale is well known for his thesis on the Elizabethan Puritan Choir, in which he claimed that a group of
Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. ...
MPs successfully managed to force Elizabeth's hand on many policy issues throughout her reign, including at the start. Neale is also recognised for his work in bringing to light new sources on Tudor England, and developing different ways of studying the period.


Other positions held

* Trustee of the London Museum * Member of the Editorial Board of the ''History of Parliament'' * Fellow of the
British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars s ...
* Honorary Member of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...


Works

* ''Queen Elizabeth'' (1934) * ''The Elizabethan Political Scene'' (1948) * ''The Elizabethan House of Commons'' (1949) * ''Elizabeth I and her Parliaments'' (1953 and 1957) * ''Essays in Elizabethan History'' (1958) * ''The Age of Catherine de Medici'' (1963)


See also

* Puritan choir *
Elizabethan Religious Settlement The Elizabethan Religious Settlement is the name given to the religious and political arrangements made for England during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Implemented between 1559 and 1563, the settlement is considered the end of the ...


Notes


Further reading

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Neale, John Earnest 1890 births 1975 deaths Historians of Puritanism Fellows of the British Academy Academics of University College London James Tait Black Memorial Prize recipients 20th-century English historians