Nancy Nichols Barker (December 26, 1925 – March 30, 1994) was an American historian, editor, and professor at the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...

Early life

Barker was born on December 26, 1925, in

Mount Vernon, New York Mount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is an inner suburb of New York City, immediately to the north of the Borough (New York City), borough of the Bronx. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Moun ...

. She received a bachelor's degree at

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

in 1946 and master's and doctoral degrees at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

in 1947 and 1955, respectively.

Career

Barker taught briefly at the

University of Delaware The University of Delaware (colloquially known as UD, UDel, or Delaware) is a Statutory college#Delaware, privately governed, state-assisted Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Newark, Delaware, United States. UD offers f ...

and joined the faculty of the

in 1955. She was a specialist in French diplomatic history. Barker was the author of several books, including ''The Empress Eugenie and the Foreign Policy of the Second Empire'' (1967), ''The French Experience in Mexico, 1821-1861: A History of Constant Misunderstanding'' (1979), and ''Phillippe, Duke of Orleans (1640-1701): Brother to the Sun King'' (1989). She also translated and edited ''The French Legation in Texas (1971-1973)''. With Marvin L. Brown Jr., Barker edited ''Diplomacy in an Age of Nationalism: Essays in Honor of Lynn Marshall Case'' (1971). Her work as the translator and editor of ''The French Legation in Texas'' won her the '' Gilbert Chinard Prize'', the Summerfield G. Roberts Award, and the Award of Merit from the American Association for State and Local History. She also won the

American Historical Society 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 ...

Leo Gershoy Award The Leo Gershoy Award is a book prize awarded by the American Historical Association for the best publication in English dealing with the history of Europe in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Endowed in 1975 by the Gershoy family and first ...

in 1989 for ''Brother to the Sun King''. Barker was a member 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 ...

, the

Society for French Historical Studies The Society for French Historical Studies (SFHS) is, along with the Western Society for French History (WSFH), one of the two primary historical societies devoted to the study of French history headquartered in the United States. The SFHS edits ...

and the Western Society for French Historical Studies.

Death

Barker died on March 30, 1994, at the age of 68.

Works

* ''Distaff Diplomacy: The Empress Eugénie and the Foreign Policy of the Second Empire'', 1967
''The French Experience in Mexico, 1821 - 1861 : A History of Constant Misunderstanding'', 1979
* ''Brother to the Sun King : Philippe, Duke of Orléans'', 1989 Translator and editor of the two-volume : * ''The French Legation in Texas'', 1973 Editor, with Marvin L. Brown: * ''Diplomacy in an Age of Nationalism: Essays in Honor of Lynn Marshall Case'', 1971

References

Vassar College alumni University of Texas at Austin faculty 1925 births 1994 deaths American women historians 20th-century American historians Historians of France Historians of Texas University of Pennsylvania alumni 20th-century American women writers {{US-historian-stub