John Joseph Saunders (17 June 1910 – 25 November 1972) was a British historian whose work focused on medieval

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic and Asian history. Born in

Alphington, Devon Alphington is a former Manorialism, manor and village, now a suburb of the City of Exeter in Devon. The Ward (politics), ward of Alphington has a population of 8,250 according to the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 census, making it the thir ...

, he was educated at

Exeter University The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School o ...

. He was a lecturer at the

University of Canterbury The University of Canterbury (UC; ; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1873 as Canterbur ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. Geoffrey Rice wrote of him:

John Saunders was an only child, and books were his best companions from an early age. He also displayed artistic ability with pen and ink drawing, having something of a gift for cartoons and caricature. At school at Mount Radford in Exeter he showed particular aptitude for languages, literature and history. One of the masters who noticed his potential, Theodore Vine, became a lifelong friend. John Saunders was too shy to make friends easily, but all his life he was a faithful correspondent, sustaining his friendships over long distances and periods of time. ... John Saunders died on 25 November 1972, shortly after his return to New Zealand. Saunders's reputation as an outstanding university teacher is well attested from many sources, and generations of Canterbury graduates remember him with affection and admiration.Geoffrey Rice, biography of author in J. J. Saunders, ''Muslims and Mongols: Essays on Medieval Asia'' (Whitcoulls for the University of Canterbury, 1977: ), pp. 9 ff.

His main works (sometimes signed J. J. Saunders) include: * ''A History of Medieval Islam'' (1961) * ''Aspects of the Crusades'' (1962) * ''The Muslim World on the Eve of Europe's Expansion'' (1966) * ''The History of the Mongol Conquests'' (1971) * ''Muslims and Mongols: Essays on Medieval Asia'' (1977)

References

External links

The Significance of Egypt
Scholars of medieval Islamic history Historians of Central Asia British medievalists 1910 births 1972 deaths People educated at Mount Radford School Academic staff of the University of Canterbury 20th-century British historians {{UK-historian-stub