Phyllis Mary Deane FBA (13 October 1918 – 28 July 2012) was a British economic historian and a historian of economic thought. She served as Professor of Economic History at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

from 1981 to 1983.

Life and career

Deane was born in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

in October 1918, the daughter of an

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Tra ...

engineer. She attended Chatham County School in Kent, then

Hutchesons' Grammar School Hutchesons' Grammar School is a co-educational independent day school for pupils aged 3-18 in Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded as Hutchesons' Boys' Grammar School by George Hutcheson and Thomas Hutcheson in 1641 It is a selective school, ...

in Glasgow, before gaining a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

(MA) in Economic Science from the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

in 1940. She later received an MA from the

. Deane worked as a research officer, first at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) from 1941 to 1945, then at the

Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of col ...

until 1949. She left in 1950 for Cambridge University, where she was a researcher, then lecturer, in applied economics until 1971. She was then a reader in economic history until 1981, and Professor of Economic History from 1981 to 1983. Among other academic honours, Deane was president of the

Royal Economic Society The Royal Economic Society (RES) is a professional association that promotes the study of economic science in academia, government service, banking, industry, and public affairs. Originally established in 1890 as the British Economic Association, ...

from 1980 to 1982, a fellow of the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars span ...

, and was made an Honorary

Doctor of Letters Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...

(DLitt) by Glasgow University in 1989. She was

emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

professor of economic history until her death in July 2012, aged 93. She never married.

Publications

Deane contributed numerous papers and reviews to economic and other academic journals, and was editor of

The Economic Journal ''The Economic Journal'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal of economics published on behalf of the Royal Economic Society by Oxford University Press. The journal was established in 1891 and publishes papers from all areas of economics.The edit ...

from 1968 to 1975. Her books included ''British Economic Growth 1688–1959'' (with W.A. "Max" Cole), which

A. J. H. Latham Anthony John Heaton Latham (born 30 October 1940) is an economic historian at University College of Swansea. He has specialised in the economic history of the developing world during the establishment of the global economy, and the trading of com ...

described as "a milestone in British economic history, and indeed in economic history in general". Her key works include: *(1945) The Future of the Colonies, (with J. Huxley) London: Pilot Press. *(1948) The Measurement of Colonial National Incomes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. *(1953) Colonial Social Accounting. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. *(1962) British Economic Growth 1688–1959, (with W. A. Cole) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. *(1965) The First Industrial Revolution. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. *(1978) The Evolution of Economic Ideas. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. *(1989) The State and the Economic System. Oxford: Oxford University Press. *(2001) The Life and Times of J. Neville Keynes: A Beacon in the Tempest. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deane, Phyllis 1918 births 2012 deaths Economic historians Fellows of Newnham College, Cambridge Fellows of the British Academy People educated at Hutchesons' Grammar School British expatriates in Hong Kong