Sir Michael Moissey Postan FBA (24 September 189912 December 1981) was a British historian. He was also known as Munia Postan.

Biography

Postan was born to a Jewish family in

Bendery Bender (, Moldovan Cyrillic: Бендер) or Bendery (russian: Бендеры, , uk, Бендери), also known as Tighina ( ro, Tighina), is a city within the internationally recognized borders of Moldova under ''de facto'' control of the un ...

, in the

Bessarabia Governorate The Bessarabia Governorate (, ) was a part of the Russian Empire from 1812 to 1917. Initially known as Bessarabia Oblast (Бессарабская область, ''Bessarabskaya oblast'') as well as, following 1871, a governorate, it included ...

of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

, and studied at the St Vladimir University in Kiev, leaving Russia in 1919 after the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mome ...

and settling in the UK. He held positions 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 = ...

and at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a public university, public research university located in London, England and a constituent college of the federal University of London. Founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members Sidn ...

, before being appointed Professor of Economic History at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

, from 1937. He was known as an economic historian of medieval Europe. Eric Hobsbawm notes he was one of the best lecturers at Cambridge, adding, "Though passionately anti-communist, Postan was the only man in Cambridge who knew Marx, Weber, Sombart and the rest of the great central and East Europeans, and took their work sufficiently seriously to expound and criticize it." He married first the historian

Eileen Power Eileen Edna Le Poer Power (9 January 18898 August 1940) was a British economic historian and medievalist. Early life and education Eileen Power was the eldest daughter of a stockbroker and was born at Altrincham, Cheshire (now part of Great ...

. After she died, he married Lady Cynthia Rosalie Keppel, daughter of the 9th Earl of Albemarle, with whom he had two sons. He died in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

Works

* ''Studies in English Trade in the 15th Century'' (1933) with Eileen Power * ''The Historical Method in Social Science An Inaugural Lecture'' (1939) * ''British War Production'' (1952,

HMSO The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) and of other public information services of the United Kingdom. The OPSI is part of the National Archives of the U ...

). (Part of the History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Civil Series) * ''Carte Nativorum: A Peterborough Abbey Cartulary of the Fourteenth Century'' (1960) with C. N. L. Brooke * ''Design and Development of Weapons : Studies in Government and Industrial Organisation'' (1964) with D. Hay and J. D. Scott.

(Part of the History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Civil Series) *''Cambridge Economic History of Europe from the Decline of the Roman Empire'' :I: ''The Agrarian Life of the Middle Ages'' 2nd edition 1966, edito
excerpt and text search
:II: ''Trade and Industry in the Middle Ages'' (1952) edited with Edward Miller and Cynthia Postan :III: ''Economic Organization and Policies in the Middle Ages'' (1963) edited with E. E. Rich and Edward Miller :IV: ''The Cambridge Economic History of Europe, Volume IV: The Economy of Expanding Europe in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries'', edited with E. E. Rich and Edward Miller :V: ''The Cambridge Economic History of Europe. Volume V: The Economic Organization of Early Modern Europe'' (1977) edited by E. E. Rich and C. H. Wilson :VI: ''The Industrial Revolutions and After'' (1966) edited with H. J. Habbakuk :VII: ''The Industrial Economies: Capital, Labour and Enterprise'' (1978) edited with

Peter Mathias Peter Mathias, (10 January 1928 – 1 March 2016) was a British economic historian and the former Chichele Professor of Economic History at the University of Oxford. His research focused on the history of industry, business, and technology, ...

, Part 2 extending to the United States, Japan and Russia :VIII: ''The Industrial Economies: The Development of Economic and Social Policies'' (1989) edited by Peter Mathias and

Sidney Pollard Siegfried Sidney Pollard (21 April 1925 – 22 November 1998) was a British economic and labour historian, and Professor at the University of Sheffield. He pioneered the study of the role of economic management in the processes of industrialization ...

* ''An Economic History of Western Europe 1945 - 1964'' (1967) * ''Fact and Relevance: Essays on Historical Method'' (1971) * ''The Medieval Economy and Society: Economic History of Britain, 1100-1500'' (1972) Pelican Economic History of Britain #1 * ''Essays on Medieval Agriculture and General Problems of the Medieval Economy'' (1973) * ''Medieval Trade and Finance'' (1973)

Biography

Works

References

Further reading