Gordon Johnson, FRAS (born 1943) is a British

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 ...

colonial India Colonial India was the part of the Indian subcontinent that was occupied by European colonial powers during and after the Age of Discovery. European power was exerted both by conquest and trade, especially in spice trade, spices. The search for ...

Biography

Born on 13 September 1943, Johnson was educated at

Richmond School Richmond School & Sixth Form College, often referred to simply as Richmond School, is a coeducational comprehensive secondary school with academy status, located in North Yorkshire, England. It was created by the merger of three schools, the ...

in North Yorkshire and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

. He was a fellow at Trinity from 1966 to 1974, and at Selwyn College from 1974 to 1993. He was appointed as a

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

Oriental studies Oriental studies is the academic field that studies Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology. In recent years, the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Middle Eastern studie ...

at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in 1974, remaining in that position until 2005. He was the President of

Wolfson College, Cambridge Wolfson College () is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The majority of students at the college are postgraduates. The college also admits "mature" undergraduates (aged 21 and above), with around ...

, from 1993 to 2010, and is now an honorary fellow of the college. He was the Director of the Cambridge University Centre of South Asian Studies from 1983 to 2001, and had been a Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the university from 2002 to 2010. Gordon served as the first Provost of the Gates Cambridge Scholarship Trust from 2000 to 2010. He was chair of the Syndicate governing

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press was the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted a letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it was the oldest university press in the world. Cambridge University Press merged with Cambridge Assessme ...

from 1981 to 2010. In 2009-2010 he was the Sandars Reader in Bibliography and lectured on "From printer to publisher: Cambridge University Press transformed, 1950 to 2010." He was the President of the

Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society, was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encourag ...

, 2015 to 2018 and is currently serving as the Vice President. He is the general editor of

The New Cambridge History of India ''The New Cambridge History of India'' is a major multi-volume work of historical scholarship published by Cambridge University Press. It replaced '' The Cambridge History of India'' published between 1922 and 1937. The new history is being publi ...

, published in 1979. This is a series of self-contained volumes covering various aspects and themes of India's past.

Select publications

Dr. Johnson was an editor for the journal ''Modern Asian Studies'' from 1978 to 2008. His publications include ''Provincial Politics and Indian Nationalism'', ''A Cultural Atlas of India'', and ''University Politics: F M Cornford’s Cambridge and his advice to the young academic politician''. * A commentary on Cornford's 1908 book ''

Microcosmographia Academica ''Microcosmographia Academica'' ("A Study of a Tiny Academic World" in Latin) is a short pamphlet on university politics written by F. M. Cornford and published in 1908. It has acquired a small cult following as a pessimistic view of academic po ...

''.

References

External links

Brief biography on Wolfson College website
1943 births 20th-century British historians 21st-century British historians Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Historians of South Asia Honorary Fellows of Selwyn College, Cambridge Institute directors Living people Presidents of the Royal Asiatic Society Presidents of Wolfson College, Cambridge {{UK-historian-stub