David A. Carpenter (born 1947) is an English historian and writer, and Professor of Medieval History at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

where he has been working since 1988. Carpenter specialises in the life and reign of Henry III. Historian Dan Jones described him as "one of Britain's foremost medievalists".

Early life and education

He is the son of Rev. E. F. Carpenter, ecclesiastical historian and Dean of

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

between 1974 and 1986, and Lillian Carpenter. David Carpenter attended

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

and Christ Church,

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

. He completed his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

at Oxford under the supervision of J. O. Prestwich. Carpenter decided to specialise in medieval history after reading

William Stubbs William Stubbs (21 June 182522 April 1901) was an English historian and Anglican bishop. He was Regius Professor of History (Oxford), Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford between 1866 and 1884. He was Bishop of Ches ...

' ''Selected Charters''.

Career

Carpenter has worked at

since 1988, and now serves as Professor of Medieval History. Carpenter has written widely on English social, economic, architectural, military and political history in the thirteenth century; many of his essays on this subject being brought together in a volume of his collected papers ''The Reign of Henry III'' (Hambledon, 1996). Between 2005 and 2011, Carpenter directed a major AHRC-funded project on the Fine rolls of Henry III. Carpenter was a Co-Investigator of the AHRC-funded project 'The Paradox of Medieval Scotland, 1093–1286' which ran from 2007 to 2010. The collaboration between researchers at the universities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, and KCL created a database of all people in Scotland between 1093 and 1286 for whom there are records. In 2020, Carpenter published the first part of a two-volume biography of Henry III, which had been in preparation for 30 years. Dan Jones described the book as "a fine, judicious, illuminating work that should be the standard study of the reign for generations to come". The second volume, covering the years 1258 to 1272, was published in 2023.

Filmography

In 2003, David A. Carpenter served as a historical advisor in all four episodes of the four-part series '' Warrior Challenge'' which aired on PBS. In 2004, Carpenter appeared on the third episode of '' Weapons That Made Britain'', hosted by Mike Loades.

Selected publications

Books

* ''The Battles of Lewes and Evesham'' (1987) * ''The Minority of Henry III'' (1990) * ''The Reign of Henry III'' (1996) * ''The Struggle for Mastery: Britain 1066–1284'' (2003) * ''Magna Carta'' (2015) * ''Henry III: The Rise to Power and Personal Rule, 1207–1258'' (2020) * ''Henry III: Reform, Rebellion, Civil War, Settlement, 1258-1272'' (2023)

Articles

* 'A Noble in Politics: Roger Mortimer', ''Nobles and Nobility'', ed. A.Duggan (Woolbridge, 2000) * 'Westminster Abbey in Politics, 1258-1269', ''Thirteenth Century England VIII,'' ed. M. Prestwich, R. Britnell, and R. Frame (Woodbridge, 2001) * 'Thomas Fitz-Thomas', ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography,'' (Woodbridge, 2001) * 'King Henry III and Saint Edward the Confessor : The origin of the Cult', ''English Historical Review,'' vol.CXXII, no. 498 (2007) * 'King Henry III and the Chapter House of Westminster Abbey', ''Westminster Abbey Chapter House: the History, Art and Architecture of A Chapter House Beyond Compare,'' ed. W. Rodwell (London, 2010) * 'Archbishop Langton and Magna Carta: His Contribution, his Doubts and his Hypocrisy', ''English Historical Review'', vol. CXXXVI, no. 522 (2011) * 'Crucifixion and Conversion: King Henry III and the Jews in 1255', ''Laws, lawyers and Texts, Studies in Medieval Legal History in Honour of Paul Brand'', (Leiden, 2012) * 'Henry III and the Sicilian Affair', ''Fine of the Month'' (November 2012) * 'The ''vis et volunta'' of King Henry III: The Downfall and Punishment of Robert de Ros', ''Fine of the Month'' (November 2012) * 'Magna Carta 1253: The Ambitions of the Church and the Divisions within the Realm', ''Historical Research,'' vol. 86, no. 232 (2013)

Collaborations

* David Carpenter and James Kanter, 'King Henry III and Windsor Castle', ''St George's Chapel : History and Heritage,'' ed. Nigel Saul and T. Tatton-Brown (Stanbridge, 2010)

References

External links

Profile on KCL website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, David 1947 births Living people Academics of King's College London Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford British medievalists People educated at Westminster School, London Royal biographers Place of birth missing (living people)