Keith Michael Baker (born 7 August 1938) is a British-born historian. Baker received his bachelor's and master's degrees at

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...

, and completed a doctorate at

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. He began his academic career in the United States as a history instructor at

Reed College Reed College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus in the Eastmoreland, Portland, Oregon, E ...

and joined the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

faculty in 1965. While at Chicago, Baker was awarded a

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are Grant (money), grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon Guggenheim, Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon indiv ...

in 1978. He left Chicago for

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

in 1988, the same year the government of France named him a Knight of the Order of Academic Palms. Baker was elected to membership of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) 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, and other ...

and

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 1991 and 1997 respectively. He served as president of the

American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies The American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies (ASECS) is an academic society for humanities research related to the "long" eighteenth century, from the later seventeenth through the early nineteenth centuries. ASECS was established in 1969 ...

in 2000. At Stanford, Baker has held the J. E. Wallace Sterling Professorship in the Humanities as well as the Anthony P. Meier Family Professorship in the Humanities. He was one of three recipients of the

American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world, claiming over 10,000 members. Founded in 1884, AHA works to protect academic free ...

's 2014 Award for Scholarly Distinction. Baker was co-editor of ''

The Journal of Modern History ''The Journal of Modern History'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering European intellectual, political, and cultural history, published by the University of Chicago Press. Established in 1929, the journal covers events from appro ...

'' between 1980 and 1989, and has served on the editorial boards of ''

History of European Ideas ''History of European Ideas'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering the intellectual history of Europe from the Renaissance onwards. It was established in 1980 and is published by Routledge. The editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), als ...

'' (2007–2012), ''

French Historical Studies ''French Historical Studies'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering French history. It publishes articles in English and French. The journal is published by Duke University Press on behalf of the Society for French Historical Stu ...

'' (1976–1979), and ''

Ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

'' (1979–1980). Baker is the father of Felix and Julian Baker, the accomplished biotech investors behind Baker Brothers Advisors.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Keith Michael 1938 births Living people 20th-century British historians 21st-century British historians 20th-century British male writers 20th-century British writers 21st-century British male writers British expatriate academics in the United States Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge Alumni of University College London University of Chicago faculty British academic journal editors Chevaliers of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques International members of the American Philosophical Society Stanford University Department of History faculty