Ronald Angus Fraser (9 December 1930 – 10 February 2012) was 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 race; as well as the st ...

noted for his

oral histories Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people wh ...

and in particular for ''

Blood of Spain ''Blood of Spain: An Oral History of the Spanish Civil War'' (1979) by Ronald Fraser is an influential oral history of the Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link= ...

'', his oral history of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...

. Born in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

to an upper-middle class Scottish father and wealthy American mother, Fraser was educated at boarding school in England and the USA and undertook further studies in Switzerland and France. He chronicled his upbringing in his oral history ''In Search of a Past: The Rearing of an English Gentleman, 1933-1945'' (1984), in which interviews with the servants at his family's Berkshire country house served as a counterpoint to his own memories. Fraser spent five years as a correspondent with

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was est ...

in Brussels, The Hague and London before moving to Spain in 1957 to become a full-time writer. Fraser was one of the pioneers of

oral history Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people w ...

in the 1960s and '70s most notably with ''In Hiding: The Life of Manuel Cortes'' (1972) and '' Blood of Spain: An Oral History of the Spanish Civil War'' (1979). His book ''Napoleon’s Cursed War: Spanish Popular Resistance in the Peninsular War, 1808-1814'' (2008) applied his experience of oral history to traditional archival sources. Fraser's friendship with

André Gorz André Gorz (né Gerhart Hirsch ; 9 February 1923 – 22 September 2007), more commonly known by his pen names Gérard Horst and Michel Bosquet , was an Austrian and French social philosopher and journalist and critic of work. He co-founded ...

led to his involvement with the ''

New Left Review The ''New Left Review'' is a British bimonthly journal covering world politics, economy, and culture, which was established in 1960. History Background As part of the British "New Left" a number of new journals emerged to carry commentary on m ...

'' from the early 1960s.

Tariq Ali Tariq Ali (; born 21 October 1943) is a Pakistani-British political activist, writer, journalist, historian, filmmaker, and public intellectual. He is a member of the editorial committee of the ''New Left Review'' and ''Sin Permiso'', and cont ...

"Ronald Fraser Obituary"
''The Guardian'', Feb. 15, 2012. He was a lifelong socialist and at his death a senior member of the

New Left Trust New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

. He was a founder of

New Left Books Verso Books (formerly New Left Books) is a left-wing publishing house based in London and New York City, founded in 1970 by the staff of ''New Left Review''. Renaming, new brand and logo Verso Books was originally known as New Left Books. The ...

, the parent company of publisher

Verso Books Verso Books (formerly New Left Books) is a left-wing publishing house based in London and New York City, founded in 1970 by the staff of ''New Left Review''. Renaming, new brand and logo Verso Books was originally known as New Left Books. The ...

.Rowan Wilson
"Ronald Fraser: 1930—2012"
Verso Books blog, Feb. 14, 2012.

Bibliography

* ''Yvette'' (1960) * ''Work: Twenty Personal Accounts'' (1968) * ''Work: Twenty Personal Accounts Volume 2'' (1969) * ''In Hiding: The Life of Manuel Cortes'' (1972; revised ed. 2010) * ''The Pueblo: A Mountain Village on the Costa del Sol'' (1973); Published in the U.S.A. as ''Tajos : A mountain village on the Costa del Sol'' * '' Blood of Spain: An Oral History of the Spanish Civil War'' (1979) * ''In Search of a Past: The Manor House Amnersfield, 1933-1945'' (1984; revised ed. 2010). Published in the U.S.A. as ''In Search of a Past: The Rearing of an English Gentleman, 1933-1945'' * ''1968: A Student Generation in Revolt'' (1988, with eight other authors) * ''Napoleon’s Cursed War: Spanish Popular Resistance in the Peninsular War, 1808-1814'' (2008)

Notes

External links

"Ronald Fraser Obituary"
''The Guardian'', Feb. 15, 2012. * Douglas Martin

''New York Times'', Feb. 21, 2012. * Matt Schudel

''Washington Post'', Feb. 22, 2012. * Jim Kelly and Ronald Fraser
"An Interview with Ronald Fraser"
''Oral History'', v.8, n.1 (Spring 1980). {{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Ronald English historians Historians of Spain Oral historians 1930 births 2012 deaths English people of American descent