Sir Richard Winn Livingstone (23 January 1880 – 26 December 1960) was a British

classical scholar Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

and

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

ist. He is known for his contributions to classical

liberal arts education Liberal arts education () is a traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the fine arts. ''Liberal arts education'' can refer to s ...

and his role as an

academic administrator Academic administration is a branch of university or college employees responsible for the maintenance and supervision of the institution and separate from the faculty or academics, although some personnel may have joint responsibilities. Some ...

at Queen's University Belfast and Corpus Christi College, Oxford.

Life

Livingstone was born on 23 January 1880, in

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, the son of Richard John Livingstone, a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

clergyman and

honorary canon Canon () is a Christian title usually used to refer to a member of certain bodies in subject to an ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, in one of the houses within the precinct of ...

of Liverpool, and Millicent Julia Allanson-Winn, daughter of Charles Allanson-Winn, 3rd Baron Headley. He attended

Winchester College Winchester College is an English Public school (United Kingdom), public school (a long-established fee-charging boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) with some provision for day school, day attendees, in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It wa ...

before studying at

New College, Oxford New College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first col ...

, where he earned a first-class degree in Literae humaniores (Latin and Ancient Greek). Livingstone also won the Chancellor's Prize for Latin Verse and the Arnold Modern Historical Essay Prize. In 1904, he was appointed Fellow and Tutor at

Corpus Christi College, Oxford Corpus Christi College (formally, Corpus Christi College in the University of Oxford; informally abbreviated as Corpus or CCC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1517 by Richard Fo ...

, a position he held until 1924. During this time, he was also appointed librarian in 1905 and was actively involved in academic committees and publications. In 1920, Livingstone served on the Prime Minister

David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. A Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, he was known for leadi ...

's committee on the classics and was co-editor of the ''Classical Review'' from 1920 to 1922. He took a leave of absence from his role as co-editor to serve as an assistant master at Eton College between 1917 and 1918. From 1924 to 1933, Livingstone was Vice-Chancellor of

Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...

in Northern Ireland. His contributions during this period were recognized with a knighthood in 1931. Following his tenure in Belfast, Livingstone returned to Oxford in 1933 as President of Corpus Christi College. During his time there, he introduced summer schools for colonial administrators, expanded adult education programs, and played a key role in establishing a residential college for women. In 1944, he delivered the

Rede Lecture The Sir Robert Rede's Lecturer is an annual appointment to give a public lecture, the Sir Robert Rede's Lecture (usually Rede Lecture) at the University of Cambridge. It is named for Sir Robert Rede, who was Chief Justice of the Common Pleas in th ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...

and modern education and served as Vice-Chancellor of the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

from 1944 to 1947. He was elected to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

in 1948. Livingstone retired from his position as Vice-Chancellor in 1950 and devoted his final years to writing and lecturing. He particularly focused on defending the value of a liberal arts education, with an emphasis on the classics. He died on 26 December 1960, in Oxford.

Rede Lecture 1944: Plato and Modern Education

Livingstone began his lecture by asserting that the 20th century was marked by freedom, but that freedom alone could not define the 'good life.' He emphasized that liberalism,

liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

, and

rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the Epistemology, epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "the position that reason has precedence over other ways of acquiring knowledge", often in contrast to ot ...

are valuable only when properly applied and nurtured. In his subsequent lecture, he proposed that Christianity, alongside a renewed

ethical system Ethics is the philosophical study of moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches include normative ethics, applied ethics ...

and rational philosophy, represented the "hope of the civilized world." He criticized the loss of fundamental beliefs and common purpose, attributing part of the blame to universities for failing to impart a meaningful philosophy of life. Livingstone concluded his final lecture by suggesting that while ethics alone are insufficient as a guide to conduct, the search for a modern equivalent of

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

could help navigate the moral uncertainties of the time.

Personal life

Livingstone married Cecile Stephanie Louise Livingstone (''née'' Wilson) on 8 July 1913.Dod, H. (Ed.). (1918). ''Dod's peerage, baronetage and knightage of Great Britain and Ireland for 1915'' (p. 579). London: Simkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent. Retrieved from https://archive.org/details/dodspeeragebaron1915lond/page/578/mode/2up

Awards and honours

As Vice-Chancellor of

, he was awarded the

Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 1931 in recognition of his successful efforts to enhance the university's resources and improve its public relations. He also received honorary doctorates from ten universities and was honored with several international awards, including: * The Norwegian Haakon VII's Freedom Cross * Commandeur of the Légion d'Honneur (France) * Knight Commander of the Order of King George I of Greece

Legacy

Queen's University named Livingstone Hall, a principal building in the Queen's Elms Halls of Residence, in his honor. His portrait, painted by the eminent Hungarian artist

Philip de László Philip Alexius László de Lombos (born Fülöp Laub; ; 30 April 1869 – 22 November 1937), known professionally as Philip de László, was an Anglo-Hungarian painter known particularly for his portraits of royal and aristocratic personages. ...

, hangs in the Great Hall of the University.

Books

* '' The Greek Genius and Its Meaning to Us'' (1912) * '' A Defence of Classical Education'' (1916) * '' The Legacy of Greece: Essays Edited by R. W. Livingstone'' (1921) – Includes the essay "Literature" by Livingstone * '' The Pageant of Greece'' (1923) * '' The Mission of Greece'' (1928) * '' Greek Ideals and Modern Life'' (1935) * '' Portrait of Socrates: Being the Apology, Crito, and Phaedo of Plato'' (1938) – English translation, with contributions from

Benjamin Jowett Benjamin Jowett (, modern variant ; 15 April 1817 – 1 October 1893) was an English writer and classical scholar. Additionally, he was an administrative reformer in the University of Oxford, theologian, Anglican cleric, and translator of Plato ...

* '' The Future in Education'' (1941) * '' Education for a World Adrift'' (1943) * '' Plato and Modern Education'' (1944) * '' Education and the Spirit of the Age'' (1952) * '' The Rainbow Bridge'' (1959) * ''

The History of the Peloponnesian War The ''History of the Peloponnesian War'' () is a historical account of the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC), which was fought between the Peloponnesian League (led by Sparta) and the Delian League (led by Athens). The account, apparently unfinis ...

'' – Edited and translated by Livingstone (1943) * ''Essentials of Education'' – January 1952 Issue, ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

References

External links

Livingstone, Sir Richard Winn (1880–1960) Knight Educationist, GB/NNAF/P130348

The National Archives National archives are the archives of a country. The concept evolved in various nations at the dawn of modernity based on the impact of nationalism upon bureaucratic processes of paperwork retention. Conceptual development From the Middle Ages i ...

, United Kingdom * * 1880 births 1960 deaths Academics of Queen's University Belfast Alumni of New College, Oxford English classical scholars English educational theorists Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Oxford Presidents of Corpus Christi College, Oxford Knights Bachelor People educated at Winchester College Vice-chancellors of Queen's University Belfast Vice-chancellors of the University of Oxford Academics from Liverpool Presidents of the Classical Association {{UOxford-stub Members of the American Philosophical Society