Arthur Frederic Basil Williams (4 April 1867 – 5 January 1950) was an English

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

. Williams was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, the son of a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

. He was educated at Marlborough College and then read Classics 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 ...

. He was a clerk in the House of Commons. One of his duties was to attend the parliamentary committee of inquiry into the responsibility for the Jameson raid, and he became familiar with

Cecil Rhodes Cecil John Rhodes ( ; 5 July 185326 March 1902) was an English-South African mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896. He and his British South Africa Company founded th ...

, whose biography he later wrote. Williams served in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

, where one of his companions was Erskine Childers, of whom he later wrote a memoir. In 1905 he married Dorothy Caulfeild. She died two years before him. Williams came back to the UK briefly, then returned to South Africa as a civilian, in the service of Lord Milner. He also worked as an assistant to Lionel Curtis, the town clerk of

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

. In 1910 he was twice unsuccessful in UK parliamentary elections standing in the Liberal interest, in turn for the seats of

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. The town is the administrative centre of the wider Lewes (district), district of the same name. It lies on the River Ouse, Sussex, River Ouse at the point where the river cuts through the Sou ...

and Rugby. During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he served as an education officer in the Royal Field Artillery and in 1919 was awarded the OBE for his services. Williams had already made an impression as an academic, with a series of articles on Sir

Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (; 26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745), known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British Whigs (British political party), Whig statesman who is generally regarded as the ''de facto'' first Prim ...

's foreign policy in '' The English Historical Review'' (1900–1). He became Kingsford Professor of History at

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

in 1921, and then professor of History at Edinburgh University from 1925 to 1937 when he retired. In 1935 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 ...

. He wrote biographies of Pitt the Elder ('' The Life of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham'', 1913), and Stanhope (1932), Carteret and Newcastle (1943). He retained his interest in South Africa, and this became a secondary sphere of historical interest. In 1946 he produced a book '' Botha, Smuts and South Africa'' for the "Teach Yourself History" series. He also contributed a volume entitled ''The Whig Supremacy'' to the '' Oxford History of England'', later updated by C. H. Stuart. He was the General Editor of The Makers of the Nineteenth Century series published by

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...

, London and Henry Holt, New York. John Otway Percy Bland,
Li Hung-chang
', New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1917. Retrieved 9 December 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Basil 1867 births 1950 deaths People educated at Marlborough College Alumni of New College, Oxford Officers of the Order of the British Empire English historians Clerks Honourable Artillery Company soldiers Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Royal Field Artillery officers British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British Army personnel of World War I Fellows of the British Academy Academic staff of McGill University Academics of the University of Edinburgh English biographers Military personnel from London

See also

References