Antony Andrewes, (12 June 1910 – 13 June 1990) was an English classical scholar and historian. He was Wykeham Professor of Ancient History at 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 1953 to 1977.

Early life

Andrewes was born in

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy, from which its name derives. At the 2011 census, the three electoral wards (N ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, England, on 12 June 1910. He was educated at

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 ...

from 1923 to 1929. He studied 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 ...

, between 1929 and 1933.

Career

Academic career

Andrewes was a Fellow of

Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located on Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England and VI of Scotland, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale ...

, between 1933 and 1946, and of

, from 1946 to 1953. He was Wykeham Professor of Ancient History from 1953 until his retirement in 1977. An obituary summarized his academic career thus: His published work was wide in appeal. The freedom of the specialised article, of which he wrote several of great importance, allowed him to indulge his subtlety of thought, sometimes at the expense of clarity. But where outside control was imposed on content (as in his superb revision of Hill's Sources in collaboration with R. Meiggs), on format (as in his completion of Gomme's great commentary on Thucydides in collaboration with Sir Kenneth Dover) or on both (as in his Greek Tyrants and the Greeks), accuracy, style and insight were near to faultless. His insight which, with less adventurous hypotheses attached, he shared with his predecessor, Wade-Gery, had nothing loose or superficially enthusiastic about it. It was based on an intimate acquaintance with the literature and art of archaic and classical Greece, a deep but never over-pious love for them and an extraordinary sensitivity for humanity, qualities that kept him close to Maurice Bowra." Kenneth Dover described his work on Thucydides as, "Comprehensive and penetrating treatment... He knew Greek extremely well, and he also knew Greece."

Military service

On 20 June 1941, he was commissioned in the Intelligence Corps,

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

, as a second lieutenant. His

service number A service number or roll number is an identification code used to identify a person within a large group. Service numbers are most often associated with the military; however, they also may be used in civilian organizations. National identificati ...

was 191239. By January 1945, he was a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

( temporary

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

). Andrewes was one of those scholars whose previous contacts with Greece equipped them to give invaluable assistance to the Greek resistance. His services in the northern Peloponnese, where he was dropped by parachute in 1943, were recognised by his being made MBE (military) in 1945. According to a colleague, as soon as he arrived in Greece "he made himself at home with people of all ranks and social levels, knew everybody's story and was immediately loved and revered by all who were capable of such feelings. To the Greeks he was simply Toni a name very properly considered to be Greek from the start.""Professor Antony Andrewes; Obituary." Times ondon, England 15 June 1990. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A116892386/AONE?u=nysl_oweb&sid=sitemap&xid=5451ff12. Accessed 20 Mar. 2024. In later years, Andrewes also supported the resistance movement against the

Greek Junta The Greek junta or Regime of the Colonels was a Right-wing politics, right-wing military junta that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974. On 21 April 1967, a group of colonels with CIA backing 1967 Greek coup d'état, overthrew the caretaker gove ...

. In gratitude, the restored democracy made him a Commander of the Order of the Phoenix in 1978.

Later life

He died in 1990, the day after his 80th birthday.

Personal life

In 1938 he married Alison (née Hope), the widow of his mentor Alan Blakeway. They had two daughters together. Maurice Bowra dedicated his book ''On Greek Margins'' to the couple, and a friend said of their domestic life: "those who dropped in at their home in Manor Place will not forget that open, hospitable, civilised, irreverent and happy house."

Honours

On 4 January 1945, Andrewes was appointed Member of the military division 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 ...

(MBE) 'in recognition of gallant and distinguished service in the field'. He was elected a

Fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (post-nominal letters FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in t ...

in 1957. The Greek government made him a Commander of the Order of the Phoenix in 1978.

Works

* ''The Greek tyrants'' (1956) * ''The Greeks'' (1967); later republished as ''Greek society'' * "The Peace of Nicias and the Sicilian Expedition" and "The Spartan Resurgence", in D. M. Lewis, John Boardman, J. K. Davies, M. Ostwald (editors), ''

Cambridge Ancient History ''The Cambridge Ancient History'' is a multi-volume work of ancient history from Prehistory to Late Antiquity, published by Cambridge University Press. The first series, consisting of 12 volumes, was planned in 1919 by Irish historian J. B. Bur ...

, vol. V, The Fifth Century B.C.'', Cambridge University Press, 1992, pp. 433–498 osthumous

References

''The Greeks''
(biographical sketch)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Andrewes, Antony 1910 births 1990 deaths Writers from Tavistock English classical scholars People educated at Winchester College Alumni of New College, Oxford Fellows of Pembroke College, Oxford Fellows of New College, Oxford Institute for Advanced Study visiting scholars Wykeham Professors of Ancient History Members of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the British Academy Classical scholars of the University of Oxford