Clifford Embleton (11 May 1931 – 4 July 1994) was a British

geomorphologist Geomorphology (from Ancient Greek: , ', "earth"; , ', "form"; and , ', "study") is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features created by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or n ...

. He was born in

Bromborough Bromborough is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire, it is situated on the Wirral Peninsula, to the south east of Bebington and to the north of Easth ...

at that time in

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

. He was the son of Arthur Thomas Embleton (1895-1954), a shipping clerk, and Constance Fitzgerald (1896–1948). He was educated at

Birkenhead School Birkenhead School is an independent, academically-selective, co-educational day school located in Oxton, Wirral, in North West England. The school offers educational opportunities for girls and boys from three months to eighteen years of age. ...

and won an open exhibition at

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corpo ...

to read geography. He graduated in 1953 having won the Philip Lake Prize. His doctoral thesis in 1956 was on the glacial landforms of north

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

.''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' His research on glaciation in Wales and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

led to the publication of a classic text on the subject, 'Geomorphology, Glacial and Periglacial' with Cuchlaine King, published by Hodder & Stoughton in May 1968, which was later substantially revised in 1975. He became a lecturer and then senior lecturer at

Birkbeck College, London , mottoeng = Advice comes over nightTranslation used by Birkbeck. , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £4.3 m (2014) , budget = £10 ...

and University College, London and became a professor at

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

in 1982. He published 75 academic papers and books on glaciation, geomorphology in Europe, geomorphological hazards and a geographical study of Africa. He was a gifted organist and was elected fellow of the Royal College of Organists when only 18 years old. He married Davina Caroline Cherry in 1956 and they had three sons. After their divorce he married Christine Hamann in 1991.

References

20th-century British geologists British geomorphologists People educated at Birkenhead School Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Academics of King's College London 1931 births 1994 deaths Fellows of the Royal College of Organists {{UK-geologist-stub