Alwyn Ann Ruddock (13 April 1916 – 21 December 2005) was a noted British historian of the

Age of Discovery The Age of Discovery (), also known as the Age of Exploration, was part of the early modern period and overlapped with the Age of Sail. It was a period from approximately the 15th to the 17th century, during which Seamanship, seafarers fro ...

, best known for her research on the English voyages of the 15th-century explorer

John Cabot John Cabot ( ; 1450 – 1499) was an Italians, Italian navigator and exploration, explorer. His 1497 voyage to the coast of North America under the commission of Henry VII of England, Henry VII, King of England is the earliest known Europe ...

. Cabot and other navigators of the time were trying to find lands to the West, such as the mythical " Isle of Brasil" or the North American lands reached by Icelanders in previous centuries.

Early Work

Ruddock's first published research was a two-volume work (with David Beers Quinn), ''The Port Books or Local Customs Accounts of Southampton'' (Vol. I in 1937, and Vol. II in 1938). During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, she taught in the history department of what was to become Southampton University. She also published in many of the top academic journals, including ''

English Historical Review ''The English Historical Review'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal that was established in 1886 and published by Oxford University Press (formerly by Longman). It publishes articles on all aspects of history – British, European, a ...

'', ''Economic History Review'', and ''History''. In 1946, Ruddock moved to

Birkbeck College Birkbeck, University of London (formally Birkbeck College, University of London), is a public research university located in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. Established in 1823 as the London Mechanics' ...

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

, where she published ''Italian Merchants and Shipping in Southampton, 1270-1500'' in 1951. She was appointed to the position of reader in history in 1952, and subsequently elected as a fellow both of the

Society of Antiquaries of London The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a Charitable organization, registered charity. It is based ...

and of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

Later Work

In the 1950s and early 1960s, Ruddock's concerns shifted from the activities of Italian merchants in Southampton to a broader investigation of Italian mercantile networks and businesses in medieval Europe. She intended to produce a "big" book to be titled ''Italian Merchants and Shipping''. Around 1965, she claimed to have made a discovery in the archives of a Venetian banking family: documents relating to John Cabot's early activities, including a loan that the family advanced to him .Evan T. Jones
"Alwyn Ruddock: ''John Cabot and the Discovery of America''"
''Historical Research'', Vol. 81, (May 2008), pp. 235–236 For at least 25 years, she was promising to produce her Cabot book "soon". In 1992, she undertook a formal book contract with the

University of Exeter Press University of Exeter Press (UEP) is the academic press of the University of Exeter, England. In 2013, Liverpool University Press Liverpool University Press (LUP), founded in 1899, is the third oldest university press in England after Oxfor ...

. She felt unable or unwilling to publish it; upon her death, she left instructions for her research papers to be destroyed. Her only published research in this field are a number of short articles that she wrote in the late 1960s to early 1970s.

Current investigations

After her death, the

Bristol University The University of Bristol is a public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Bristol, which had ...

historian Evan T. Jones began to investigate Ruddock's unpublished research claims about the voyages of John Cabot, producing an article about them in the journal ''

Historical Research Historical method is the collection of techniques and guidelines that historians use to research and write histories of the past. Secondary sources, primary sources and material evidence such as that derived from archaeology may all be draw ...

'' in April 2007 (print edition, 2008). He wrote a second article about two documents found by the historian Margaret Condon, who had not published them in the 1980s, in part due to the understanding that Ruddock had a book in progress on the topic. Jones subsequently set up the Cabot Project along with a number of other historians in Britain, Italy, Canada, and Australia to carry out further investigations into the early voyages, and to search for the evidence for Ruddock's claims.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruddock, Alwyn Academics of Birkbeck, University of London People associated with Birkbeck, University of London 1916 births 2005 deaths 20th-century British historians Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Fellows of the Royal Historical Society