''For the English cricketer, administrator, and schoolmaster, see Roger Knight '' Roger John Beckett Knight (born 11 April 1944) is a British naval historian of the 18th century, a former Deputy Director of the

National Maritime Museum The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unit ...

at Greenwich, and author of a biography of

Admiral Lord Nelson Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte ( – 21 October 1805) was a Royal Navy officer whose leadership, grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics brought about a number of decisive British naval victories during the French ...

Early life and education

The son of Lieutenant-Commander John B. Knight of Bromley, Kent, and Alyson Yvonne née Nunn, Roger Knight was educated at

Tonbridge School Tonbridge School is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and day school for boys aged 13–18) in Tonbridge, Kent, England, founded in 1553 by Sir Andrew Judde (sometimes spelt Judd). It is a member of the Eton Group and has clo ...

, received a B.A. and M.A. at

Trinity College, Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...

, Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) at the

University of Sussex The University of Sussex is a public university, public research university, research university located in Falmer, East Sussex, England. It lies mostly within the city boundaries of Brighton and Hove. Its large campus site is surrounded by the ...

; and his Ph.D. from

University College, London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

in 1972 with a thesis on "The Royal Dockyards in England at the time of the American War of Independence".

Professional career

At the

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

, he served as Deputy Curator of Manuscripts, 1974–77; Curator of Manuscripts, 1977–81; Deputy Head, Books and Manuscripts, 1981–84; Head Information Project Group, 1984–86; Head, Documentation Division, 1986–88; Head, Collections Division and Chief Curator, 1988–93; Deputy Director and Head, Display Division, 1993–95; Deputy Director and Head, Information Division, 1995–97; and Deputy Director, 1997–2000. Upon his retirement from the National Maritime Museum in 2001, he was appointed Visiting Professor of Naval History in the Greenwich Maritime Institute and regularly teaches on the post-graduate MA in Maritime History course,

University of Greenwich The University of Greenwich is a public university located in London and Kent, United Kingdom. Previous names include Woolwich Polytechnic and Thames Polytechnic. The university's main campus is at the Old Royal Naval College, which along wi ...

. In 2005, he was appointed Professor of Naval History.

Distinctions and awards

He is a Fellow of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

and has served as a member of council of th
Society for Nautical Research
1975–79, and as Vice President, 1992–2006. In addition, he has served on the Council and has been senior Vice President of th
Navy Records Society
For his 2005 book, ''The pursuit of victory: the life and achievement of Horatio Nelson,'' Knight was awarded the Mountbatten Maritime Prize, The

Duke of Westminster's Medal for Military Literature The Duke of Westminster's Medal for Military Literature was awarded by the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies, (the RUSI), Whitehall, London. Awarded annually from 1997 to 2016, the Medal was given to honour a living a ...

, and the Anderson Medal of the Society of Nautical Research. In June 2014, the National Maritime Museum presented him its

Caird Medal The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unite ...

. Announcement and text of acceptance address
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Published works

*''Guide to the manuscripts in the National Maritime Museum'' Two vols. (1977–1980) *''The journal of Daniel Paine, 1794–1797 : together with documents illustrating the beginning of government boat-building and timber-gathering in New South Wales, 1795–1805,'' edited by R.J.B. Knight and

Alan Frost Alan J. Frost , (29 March 1943 – 12 April 2023) was an Australian historian and professor emeritus at La Trobe University. A major theme of his research involved the European exploration of the Pacific Ocean over the second half of the eighte ...

(1983) *''Portsmouth dockyard papers, 1774–1783: the American war: a calendar'' (1987) *''Shipbuilding timber for the British Navy : parliamentary papers, 1729–1792: a facsimile reproduction with an introduction by R.J.B. Knight'' (1993). *''The pursuit of victory : the life and achievement of Horatio Nelson'' (2005). * ''Sustaining the Fleet, 1793–1815: War, the British Navy and the Contractor State'', by Roger Knight and Martin Wilcox (2010) * ''Britain Against Napoleon: The Organization of Victory, 1793–1815'' (2013). * ''William IV: A King at Sea'' (2015)

Website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, R.J.B. English naval historians Academics of the University of Greenwich 1944 births Living people People educated at Tonbridge School Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Fellows of the Royal Historical Society Alumni of University College London Alumni of the University of Sussex