Russellian Monist
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, and
public intellectual An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and Human self-reflection, reflection about the nature of reality, especially the nature of society and proposed solutions for its normative problems. Coming from the wor ...
. He had influence on
mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...
,
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the study of deductively valid inferences or logical truths. It examines how conclusions follow from premises based on the structure o ...
,
set theory Set theory is the branch of mathematical logic that studies Set (mathematics), sets, which can be informally described as collections of objects. Although objects of any kind can be collected into a set, set theory – as a branch of mathema ...
, and various areas of
analytic philosophy Analytic philosophy is a broad movement within Western philosophy, especially English-speaking world, anglophone philosophy, focused on analysis as a philosophical method; clarity of prose; rigor in arguments; and making use of formal logic, mat ...
.Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
"Bertrand Russell"
, 1 May 2003.
He was one of the early 20th century's prominent
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the study of deductively valid inferences or logical truths. It examines how conclusions follow from premises based on the structure o ...
ians and a founder of
analytic philosophy Analytic philosophy is a broad movement within Western philosophy, especially English-speaking world, anglophone philosophy, focused on analysis as a philosophical method; clarity of prose; rigor in arguments; and making use of formal logic, mat ...
, along with his predecessor
Gottlob Frege Friedrich Ludwig Gottlob Frege (; ; 8 November 1848 – 26 July 1925) was a German philosopher, logician, and mathematician. He was a mathematics professor at the University of Jena, and is understood by many to be the father of analytic philos ...
, his friend and colleague
G. E. Moore George Edward Moore (4 November 1873 – 24 October 1958) was an English philosopher, who with Bertrand Russell, Ludwig Wittgenstein and earlier Gottlob Frege was among the initiators of analytic philosophy. He and Russell began de-emphasizing ...
, and his student and protégé
Ludwig Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrian philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. From 1929 to 1947, Witt ...
. Russell with Moore led the British "revolt against
idealism Idealism in philosophy, also known as philosophical realism or metaphysical idealism, is the set of metaphysics, metaphysical perspectives asserting that, most fundamentally, reality is equivalent to mind, Spirit (vital essence), spirit, or ...
". Together with his former teacher A. N. Whitehead, Russell wrote ''
Principia Mathematica The ''Principia Mathematica'' (often abbreviated ''PM'') is a three-volume work on the foundations of mathematics written by the mathematician–philosophers Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell and published in 1910, 1912, and 1 ...
'', a milestone in the development of
classical logic Classical logic (or standard logic) or Frege–Russell logic is the intensively studied and most widely used class of deductive logic. Classical logic has had much influence on analytic philosophy. Characteristics Each logical system in this c ...
and a major attempt to reduce the whole of mathematics to
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the study of deductively valid inferences or logical truths. It examines how conclusions follow from premises based on the structure o ...
(see
logicism In the philosophy of mathematics, logicism is a programme comprising one or more of the theses that – for some coherent meaning of 'logic' – mathematics is an extension of logic, some or all of mathematics is reducible to logic, or some or al ...
). Russell's article "
On Denoting "On Denoting" is an essay by Bertrand Russell. It was published in the philosophy journal ''Mind (journal), Mind'' in 1905. In it, Russell introduces and advocates his theory of denoting phrases, according to which definite descriptions and other ...
" has been considered a "paradigm of philosophy". Russell was a
pacifist Pacifism is the opposition to war or violence. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaigner Émile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress in Glasgow in 1901. A related term is ''a ...
who championed
anti-imperialism Anti-imperialism in political science and international relations is opposition to imperialism or neocolonialism. Anti-imperialist sentiment typically manifests as a political principle in independence struggles against intervention or influen ...
and chaired the
India League The India League was an England-based organisation established by Krishna Menon in 1928. It campaigned for the full independence and self-governance of British India. It has been described as "the principal organisation promoting Indian nationa ...
. He went to prison for his pacifism during
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, and initially supported appeasement against
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...
's
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
, before changing his view in 1943, describing war as a necessary "lesser of two evils". In the wake of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, he welcomed American global
hegemony Hegemony (, , ) is the political, economic, and military predominance of one State (polity), state over other states, either regional or global. In Ancient Greece (ca. 8th BC – AD 6th c.), hegemony denoted the politico-military dominance of ...
in preference to either
Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
hegemony or no (or ineffective) world leadership, even if it were to come at the cost of using their
nuclear weapon A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear exp ...
s. He would later criticise
Stalinist Stalinism (, ) is the totalitarian means of governing and Marxist–Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1927 to 1953 by dictator Joseph Stalin and in Soviet satellite states between 1944 and 1953. Stalinism in ...
totalitarianism Totalitarianism is a political system and a form of government that prohibits opposition from political parties, disregards and outlaws the political claims of individual and group opposition to the state, and completely controls the public s ...
, condemn the United States' involvement in the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
, and become an outspoken proponent of
nuclear disarmament Nuclear disarmament is the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons. Its end state can also be a nuclear-weapons-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated. The term ''denuclearization'' is also used to describe the pro ...
. In 1950, Russell was awarded the
Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning ''for'' Literature (), is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in ...
"in recognition of his varied and significant writings in which he champions humanitarian ideals and
freedom of thought Freedom of thought is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others' viewpoints. Overview Every person attempts to have a cognitive proficiency by developing knowledge, concepts, theo ...
". He was also the recipient of the
De Morgan Medal The De Morgan Medal is a prize for outstanding contribution to mathematics, awarded by the London Mathematical Society. The Society's most prestigious award, it is given in memory of Augustus De Morgan, who was the first President of the society ...
(1932),
Sylvester Medal The Sylvester Medal is a bronze medal awarded by the Royal Society for the encouragement of mathematical research, and accompanied by a £1,000 prize. It was named in honour of James Joseph Sylvester, the Savilian chair of geometry, Savilian Prof ...
(1934),
Kalinga Prize The Kalinga Prize for the Popularization of Science is an award given by UNESCO for exceptional skill in popularization of science, presenting scientific ideas to lay people. It was created in 1952, following a donation from Biju Patnaik, Founder ...
(1957), and
Jerusalem Prize The Jerusalem Prize for the Freedom of the Individual in Society is a biennial literary award given to writers whose works have dealt with themes of human freedom in society. It is awarded at the Jerusalem International Book Forum (previously kn ...
(1963).


Biography


Early life and background

Bertrand Arthur William Russell was born at Ravenscroft, a country house in
Trellech Trellech (occasionally spelt Trelech, Treleck or Trelleck; ) is a village and parish in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales. Located south of Monmouth and north-north-west of Tintern, Trellech lies on a plateau above the Wye Valley on the souther ...
,
Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...
, on 18 May 1872, into an influential and liberal family of the
British aristocracy The British nobility is made up of the peerage and the gentry of the British Isles. Though the UK is today a constitutional monarchy with strong democratic elements, historically the British Isles were more predisposed towards aristocratic gove ...
. His parents were
Viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is ...
and Viscountess Amberley. Lord Amberley consented to his wife's affair with their children's tutor, the biologist
Douglas Spalding Douglas Alexander Spalding (14 July 1841 – 1877) was a British biologist who studied animal behaviour and worked in the home of Viscount Amberley. Biography Spalding was born in Islington in London in 1841, the only son of Jessey Fraser and ...
. Both were early advocates of
birth control Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth control only be ...
at a time when this was considered scandalous. Lord Amberley, a
deist Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin term '' deus'', meaning "god") is the philosophical position and rationalistic theology that generally rejects revelation as a source of divine knowledge and asserts that empirical reason and observation ...
, asked the philosopher
John Stuart Mill John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 7 May 1873) was an English philosopher, political economist, politician and civil servant. One of the most influential thinkers in the history of liberalism and social liberalism, he contributed widely to s ...
to act as Russell's secular godfather. Mill died the year after Russell's birth, but his writings later influenced Russell's life. Russell's paternal grandfather, Lord John Russell, later 1st Earl Russell (1792–1878), had twice been
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister Advice (constitutional law), advises the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign on the exercise of much of the Royal prerogative ...
in the 1840s and 1860s. A member of Parliament since the early 1810s, he met with
Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
in
Elba Elba (, ; ) is a Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano National Park, a ...
. The Russells had been prominent in England for several centuries before this, coming to power and the
peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...
with the rise of the
Tudor dynasty The House of Tudor ( ) was an English and Welsh dynasty that held the throne of England from 1485 to 1603. They descended from the Tudors of Penmynydd, a Welsh noble family, and Catherine of Valois. The Tudor monarchs ruled the Kingdom of Eng ...
(see:
Duke of Bedford Duke of Bedford (named after Bedford, England) is a title that has been created six times (for five distinct people) in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1414 for Henry IV's third son, John, who later served as regent of Fran ...
). They established themselves as one of the leading Whig families and participated in political events from the dissolution of the monasteries in 1536–1540 to the
Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1688, was the deposition of James II and VII, James II and VII in November 1688. He was replaced by his daughter Mary II, Mary II and her Dutch husband, William III of Orange ...
in 1688–1689 and the
Great Reform Act The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the Reform Act 1832, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. 4. c. 45), enacted by the Whig government of Pri ...
in 1832.G. E. Cokayne; Vicary Gibbs, H. A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, eds. The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed. 13 volumes in 14. 1910–1959. Reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, UK: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000. Lady Amberley was the daughter of
Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...
and Lady Stanley of Alderley. Russell often feared the ridicule of his maternal grandmother, one of the campaigners for
education of women Female education is a catch-all term for a complex set of issues and debates surrounding education (primary education, secondary education, tertiary education, and health education in particular) for girls and women. It is frequently called girl ...
.


Childhood and adolescence

Russell had two siblings: brother Frank (seven years older), and sister Rachel (four years older). In June 1874, Russell's mother died of
diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...
, followed shortly by Rachel's death. In January 1876, his father died of
bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...
after a long period of depression. Frank and Bertrand were placed in the care of
Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...
paternal grandparents, who lived at Pembroke Lodge in
Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of Royal Parks of London, London's Royal Parks and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I of England, Cha ...
. His grandfather, former Prime Minister
Earl Russell Earl Russell, of Kingston Russell in the County of Dorset, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 30 July 1861 for the prominent Liberal politician Lord John Russell. He was Home Secretary from 1835 to 1839, For ...
, died in 1878, and was remembered by Russell as a kind old man in a wheelchair. His grandmother, the Countess Russell (née Lady Frances Elliot), was the central family figure for the rest of Russell's childhood and youth. The Countess was from a Scottish
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...
family and petitioned the
Court of Chancery The Court of Chancery was a court of equity in England and Wales that followed a set of loose rules to avoid a slow pace of change and possible harshness (or "inequity") of the Common law#History, common law. The Chancery had jurisdiction over ...
to set aside a provision in Amberley's will requiring the children to be raised as agnostics. Despite her religious conservatism, she held progressive views in other areas (accepting
Darwinism ''Darwinism'' is a term used to describe a theory of biological evolution developed by the English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) and others. The theory states that all species of organisms arise and develop through the natural sel ...
and supporting
Irish Home Rule The Home Rule movement was a movement that campaigned for self-government (or "home rule") for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was the dominant political movement of Irish nationalism from 1870 to the end of ...
), and her influence on Bertrand Russell's outlook on
social justice Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...
and standing up for principle remained with him throughout his life. Her favourite Bible verse, "Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil", became his motto. The atmosphere at Pembroke Lodge was one of frequent prayer, emotional repression and formality; Frank reacted to this with open rebellion, but the young Bertrand learned to hide his feelings. Russell's adolescence was lonely and he contemplated suicide. He remarked in his autobiography that his interests in "nature and books and (later) mathematics saved me from complete despondency;" only his wish to know more mathematics kept him from suicide. He was educated at home by a series of tutors.The Nobel Foundation (1950)
Bertrand Russell: The Nobel Prize in Literature 1950
. Retrieved 11 June 2007.
When Russell was eleven years old, his brother Frank introduced him to the work of
Euclid Euclid (; ; BC) was an ancient Greek mathematician active as a geometer and logician. Considered the "father of geometry", he is chiefly known for the '' Elements'' treatise, which established the foundations of geometry that largely domina ...
, which he described in his autobiography as "one of the great events of my life, as dazzling as first love". During these formative years, he also discovered the works of
Percy Bysshe Shelley Percy Bysshe Shelley ( ; 4 August 1792 – 8 July 1822) was an English writer who is considered one of the major English Romantic poets. A radical in his poetry as well as in his political and social views, Shelley did not achieve fame durin ...
. Russell wrote: "I spent all my spare time reading him, and learning him by heart, knowing no one to whom I could speak of what I thought or felt, I used to reflect how wonderful it would have been to know Shelley, and to wonder whether I should meet any live human being with whom I should feel so much sympathy." Russell claimed that beginning at age 15, he spent considerable time thinking about the validity of Christian religious dogma, which he found unconvincing. At this age, he came to the conclusion that there is no
free will Free will is generally understood as the capacity or ability of people to (a) choice, choose between different possible courses of Action (philosophy), action, (b) exercise control over their actions in a way that is necessary for moral respon ...
and, two years later, that there is no life after death. Finally, at the age of 18, after reading Mill's ''Autobiography'', he abandoned the "
First Cause The unmoved mover () or prime mover () is a concept advanced by Aristotle as a primary Causality (physics), cause (or first uncaused cause) or "Motion (physics), mover" of all the motion in the universe. As is implicit in the name, the moves oth ...
" argument and became an
atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
. He travelled to the continent in 1890 with an American friend, Edward FitzGerald, and with FitzGerald's family he visited the
Paris Exhibition of 1889 Paris () is the capital and largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the fourth-most populous city in the European Union and the 30th most densely pop ...
and climbed the
Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower from 1887 to 1889. Locally nicknamed "''La dame de fe ...
soon after it was completed.


Education

Russell won a scholarship to read for the
Mathematical Tripos The Mathematical Tripos is the mathematics course that is taught in the Faculty of Mathematics, University of Cambridge, Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge. Origin In its classical nineteenth-century form, the tripos was a di ...
at
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 ...
, and began his studies there in 1890, taking as coach
Robert Rumsey Webb Robert Rumsey Webb (9 July 1850 – 29 July 1936), known as R. R. Webb, was a successful coach for the Cambridge Mathematical Tripos. Webb coached 100 students to place in the top ten wranglers from 1865 to 1909, a record second only to Edwa ...
. He became acquainted with the younger
George Edward Moore George Edward Moore (4 November 1873 – 24 October 1958) was an English philosopher, who with Bertrand Russell, Ludwig Wittgenstein and earlier Gottlob Frege was among the initiators of analytic philosophy. He and Russell began de-emphasiz ...
and came under the influence of
Alfred North Whitehead Alfred North Whitehead (15 February 1861 – 30 December 1947) was an English mathematician and philosopher. He created the philosophical school known as process philosophy, which has been applied in a wide variety of disciplines, inclu ...
, who recommended him to the
Cambridge Apostles The Cambridge Apostles (also known as the Conversazione Society) is an intellectual society at the University of Cambridge founded in 1820 by George Tomlinson, a Cambridge student who became the first Bishop of Gibraltar. History Student ...
. He distinguished himself in mathematics and philosophy, graduating as seventh Wrangler in the former in 1893 and becoming a Fellow in the latter in 1895.


Early career

Russell began his published work in 1896 with ''German Social Democracy'', a study in politics that was an early indication of his interest in political and social theory. In 1896 he taught German social democracy at the
London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...
. He was a member of the Coefficients dining club of social reformers set up in 1902 by the Fabian campaigners Sidney and
Beatrice Webb Martha Beatrice Webb, Baroness Passfield, (née Potter; 22 January 1858 – 30 April 1943) was an English sociology, sociologist, economist, feminism, feminist and reformism (historical), social reformer. She was among the founders of the Lo ...
. He now started a study of the
foundations of mathematics Foundations of mathematics are the mathematical logic, logical and mathematics, mathematical framework that allows the development of mathematics without generating consistency, self-contradictory theories, and to have reliable concepts of theo ...
at Trinity. In 1897, he wrote ''An Essay on the Foundations of Geometry'' (submitted at the
Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...
ship Examination of Trinity College) which discussed the
Cayley–Klein metric In mathematics, a Cayley–Klein metric is a metric on the complement of a fixed quadric in a projective space which is defined using a cross-ratio. The construction originated with Arthur Cayley's essay "On the theory of distance" where he calls ...
s used for
non-Euclidean geometry In mathematics, non-Euclidean geometry consists of two geometries based on axioms closely related to those that specify Euclidean geometry. As Euclidean geometry lies at the intersection of metric geometry and affine geometry, non-Euclidean ge ...
. He attended the first
International Congress of Philosophy The World Congress of Philosophy (originally known as the International Congress of Philosophy) is a global meeting of philosophers held every five years under the auspices of the International Federation of Philosophical Societies (FISP). First or ...
in Paris in 1900 where he met
Giuseppe Peano Giuseppe Peano (; ; 27 August 1858 – 20 April 1932) was an Italian mathematician and glottologist. The author of over 200 books and papers, he was a founder of mathematical logic and set theory, to which he contributed much Mathematical notati ...
and
Alessandro Padoa Alessandro Padoa (14 October 1868 – 25 November 1937) was an Italian mathematician and logician, a contributor to the school of Giuseppe Peano. He is remembered for a method for deciding whether, given some formal theory, a new primitive noti ...
. The Italians had responded to
Georg Cantor Georg Ferdinand Ludwig Philipp Cantor ( ; ;  – 6 January 1918) was a mathematician who played a pivotal role in the creation of set theory, which has become a foundations of mathematics, fundamental theory in mathematics. Cantor establi ...
, making a science of
set theory Set theory is the branch of mathematical logic that studies Set (mathematics), sets, which can be informally described as collections of objects. Although objects of any kind can be collected into a set, set theory – as a branch of mathema ...
; they gave Russell their literature including the ''
Formulario mathematico ''Formulario Mathematico'' (Latino sine flexione: ''Formulary for Mathematics'') is a book by Giuseppe Peano which expresses fundamental theorems of mathematics in a Symbolic language (mathematics), symbolic language developed by Peano. The autho ...
''. Russell was impressed by the precision of Peano's arguments at the Congress, read the literature upon returning to England, and came upon
Russell's paradox In mathematical logic, Russell's paradox (also known as Russell's antinomy) is a set-theoretic paradox published by the British philosopher and mathematician, Bertrand Russell, in 1901. Russell's paradox shows that every set theory that contains ...
. In 1903 he published ''
The Principles of Mathematics ''The Principles of Mathematics'' (''PoM'') is a 1903 book by Bertrand Russell, in which the author presented Russell's paradox, his famous paradox and argued his thesis that mathematics and logic are identical. The book presents a view of ...
'', a work on the foundations of mathematics. It advanced a thesis of
logicism In the philosophy of mathematics, logicism is a programme comprising one or more of the theses that – for some coherent meaning of 'logic' – mathematics is an extension of logic, some or all of mathematics is reducible to logic, or some or al ...
, that mathematics and logic are one and the same. At the age of 29, in February 1901, Russell underwent what he called a "sort of mystic illumination", after witnessing Whitehead's wife's suffering in an
angina Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of parti ...
attack. "I found myself filled with semi-mystical feelings about beauty and with a desire almost as profound as that of the
Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was ...
to find some philosophy which should make human life endurable", Russell would later recall. "At the end of those five minutes, I had become a completely different person." In 1905, he wrote the essay "
On Denoting "On Denoting" is an essay by Bertrand Russell. It was published in the philosophy journal ''Mind (journal), Mind'' in 1905. In it, Russell introduces and advocates his theory of denoting phrases, according to which definite descriptions and other ...
", which was published in the philosophical journal ''
Mind The mind is that which thinks, feels, perceives, imagines, remembers, and wills. It covers the totality of mental phenomena, including both conscious processes, through which an individual is aware of external and internal circumstances ...
''. Russell was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1908. The three-volume ''
Principia Mathematica The ''Principia Mathematica'' (often abbreviated ''PM'') is a three-volume work on the foundations of mathematics written by the mathematician–philosophers Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell and published in 1910, 1912, and 1 ...
'', written with Whitehead, was published between 1910 and 1913. This, along with the earlier ''The Principles of Mathematics'', soon made Russell world-famous in his field. Russell's first political activity was as the
Independent Liberal Independent Liberal is a description which candidates and politicians have used to describe themselves, designating them as liberals, yet independent of the official Liberal Party of their country. To avoid confusion with the Liberal Party of ...
candidate in the 1907 by-election for the Wimbledon constituency, where he was not elected. In 1910, he became a lecturer 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 ...
, Trinity College, where he had studied. He was considered for a fellowship, which would give him a vote in the college government and protect him from being fired for his opinions, but was passed over because he was "anti-clerical", because he was agnostic. He was approached by the Austrian engineering student
Ludwig Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrian philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. From 1929 to 1947, Witt ...
, who started undergraduate study with him. Russell viewed Wittgenstein as a successor who would continue his work on logic. He spent hours dealing with Wittgenstein's various
phobia A phobia is an anxiety disorder, defined by an irrational, unrealistic, persistent and excessive fear of an object or situation. Phobias typically result in a rapid onset of fear and are usually present for more than six months. Those affected ...
s and his bouts of despair. This was a drain on Russell's energy, but Russell continued to be fascinated by him and encouraged his academic development, including the publication of Wittgenstein's ''
Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus The ''Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus'' (widely abbreviated and Citation, cited as TLP) is the only book-length philosophical work by the Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein that was published during his lifetime. The project had a broad goal ...
'' in 1922. Russell delivered his lectures on
logical atomism Logical atomism is a philosophical view that originated in the early 20th century with the development of analytic philosophy. It holds that the world consists of ultimate logical "facts" (or "atoms") that cannot be broken down any further, each ...
, his version of these ideas, in 1918, before the end of
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. Wittgenstein was, at that time, serving in the Austrian Army and subsequently spent nine months in an Italian
prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
camp at the end of the conflict.


First World War

During
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, Russell was one of the few people to engage in active pacifist activities. In 1916, due to his absence of allegiance to the war effort, he was dismissed from Trinity College following his conviction under the
Defence of the Realm Act 1914 The Defence of the Realm Act 1914 ( 4 & 5 Geo. 5. c. 29) (DORA) was passed in the United Kingdom on 8 August 1914, four days after the country entered the First World War. It was added to as the war progressed. It gave the government wide-ranging ...
. He later described this, in ''
Free Thought and Official Propaganda "Free Thought and Official Propaganda" is a speech (and subsequent publication) delivered in 1922 by Bertrand Russell on the importance of unrestricted freedom of expression in society, and the problem of the state and political class interfering ...
'', as an illegitimate means the state used to violate freedom of expression. Russell championed the case of
Eric Chappelow Eric Barry Wilfred Chappelow (7 October 1890 – 28 November 1957) was an English poet and conscientious objector during the World War I, First World War. His arrest and harsh treatment during four months of imprisonment garnered support from p ...
, a poet jailed and abused as a conscientious objector.
Caroline Moorehead Caroline Mary Moorehead (born 28 October 1944) is a human rights journalist and biographer. Early life Born in London, Moorehead is the daughter of Australian war correspondent Alan Moorehead and his English wife Lucy Milner. She received a B ...
, ''Bertrand Russell: A Life'' (1992), p. 247.
Russell played a part in the ''Leeds Convention'' in June 1917, a historic event which saw well over a thousand "anti-war socialists" gather; many being delegates from the
Independent Labour Party The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberal Party (UK), Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse work ...
and the Socialist Party, united in their pacifist beliefs and advocating a peace settlement. The international press reported that Russell appeared with a number of Labour Members of Parliament (MPs), including
Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The first two of his governments belonged to the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, where he led ...
and
Philip Snowden Philip Snowden, 1st Viscount Snowden, PC (; 18 July 1864 – 15 May 1937) was a British politician. A strong speaker, he became popular in trade union circles for his denunciation of capitalism as unethical and his promise of a socialist utop ...
, as well as former Liberal MP and anti-conscription campaigner, Professor
Arnold Lupton Arnold Lupton (11 September 1846 – 23 May 1930) was a British Liberal Party Member of Parliament, academic, anti-vaccinationist, mining engineer and a managing director ( collieries). He was jailed for pacifist activity during the Firs ...
. After the event, Russell told Lady Ottoline Morrell that, "to my surprise, when I got up to speak, I was given the greatest ovation that was possible to give anybody". His conviction in 1916 resulted in Russell being fined £100 (), which he refused to pay in the hope that he would be sent to prison, but his books were sold at auction to raise the money. The books were bought by friends; he later treasured his copy of the
King James Bible The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by ...
that was stamped "Confiscated by Cambridge Police". A later conviction for publicly lecturing against inviting the United States to enter the war on the United Kingdom's side resulted in six months' imprisonment in
Brixton Prison HM Prison Brixton is a Category C training establishment men's prison, located in Brixton area of the London Borough of Lambeth, in inner- South London. The prison is operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. Before 2012, it was used as a loca ...
(see '' Bertrand Russell's political views'') in 1918 (he was prosecuted under the
Defence of the Realm Act The Defence of the Realm Act 1914 ( 4 & 5 Geo. 5. c. 29) (DORA) was passed in the United Kingdom on 8 August 1914, four days after the country entered the First World War. It was added to as the war progressed. It gave the government wide-ranging ...
) He later said of his imprisonment: While he was reading
Strachey The Strachey family originated in Saffron Walden, Essex, England. By the mid-1600s, they were based at Sutton Court in Stowey, Somerset, England. Strachey family * William Strachey the English writer ** William Strachey (c. 1596/97–1635) ** ...
's ''
Eminent Victorians ''Eminent Victorians'' is a book by Lytton Strachey (one of the older members of the Bloomsbury Group), first published in 1918, and consisting of biography, biographies of four leading figures from the Victorian era. Its fame rests on the irreve ...
'' chapter about
Gordon Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Gordon Heuck ...
he laughed out loud in his cell prompting the warder to intervene and reminding him that "prison was a place of punishment". Russell was reinstated to Trinity in 1919, resigned in 1920, was Tarner Lecturer in 1926 and became a Fellow again in 1944 until 1949. In 1924, Russell again gained press attention when attending a "banquet" in the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
with well-known campaigners, including
Arnold Lupton Arnold Lupton (11 September 1846 – 23 May 1930) was a British Liberal Party Member of Parliament, academic, anti-vaccinationist, mining engineer and a managing director ( collieries). He was jailed for pacifist activity during the Firs ...
, who had been an MP and had also endured imprisonment for "passive resistance to military or naval service".


G. H. Hardy on the Trinity controversy

In 1941,
G. H. Hardy Godfrey Harold Hardy (7 February 1877 – 1 December 1947) was an English mathematician, known for his achievements in number theory and mathematical analysis. In biology, he is known for the Hardy–Weinberg principle, a basic principle of pop ...
wrote a 61-page pamphlet titled ''Bertrand Russell and Trinity'' (published later as a book by
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 ...
with a foreword by
C. D. Broad Charlie Dunbar Broad (30 December 1887 – 11 March 1971), usually cited as C. D. Broad, was an English philosopher who worked on epistemology, history of philosophy, philosophy of science, and ethics, as well as the philosophical aspects ...
) in which he gave an authoritative account of Russell's 1916 dismissal from Trinity College, explaining that a reconciliation between the college and Russell had later taken place and gave details about Russell's personal life. Hardy writes that Russell's dismissal had created a scandal since the vast majority of the Fellows of the College opposed the decision. The ensuing pressure from the Fellows induced the Council to reinstate Russell. In January 1920, it was announced that Russell had accepted the reinstatement offer from Trinity and would begin lecturing in October. In July 1920, Russell applied for a one-year leave of absence; this was approved. He spent the year giving lectures in China and Japan. In January 1921, it was announced by Trinity that Russell had resigned and his resignation had been accepted. This resignation, Hardy explains, was voluntary and was not the result of another altercation. The reason for the resignation, according to Hardy, was that Russell was going through a tumultuous time in his personal life with a divorce and subsequent remarriage. Russell contemplated asking Trinity for another one-year leave of absence but decided against it since this would have been an "unusual application" and the situation had the potential to snowball into another controversy. Although Russell did the right thing, in Hardy's opinion, the reputation of the College suffered with Russell's resignation since the 'world of learning' knew about Russell's altercation with Trinity but not that the rift had healed. In 1925, Russell was asked by the Council of Trinity College to give the ''Tarner Lectures'' on the Philosophy of the Sciences; these would later be the basis for one of Russell's best-received books according to Hardy: ''The Analysis of Matter'', published in 1927. In the preface to the Trinity pamphlet, Hardy wrote:


Between the wars

In August 1920, Russell travelled to
Soviet Russia The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...
as part of an official delegation sent by the British government to investigate the effects of the
Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...
. He wrote a four-part series of articles, titled "Soviet Russia—1920", for the magazine ''
The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...
''. He met
Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...
and had an hour-long conversation with him. In his autobiography, he mentions that he found Lenin disappointing, sensing an "impish cruelty" in him and comparing him to "an opinionated professor". He cruised down the
Volga The Volga (, ) is the longest river in Europe and the longest endorheic basin river in the world. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchment ...
on a steamship. His experiences destroyed his previous tentative support for the revolution. He subsequently wrote a book, ''The Practice and Theory of Bolshevism'',Russell, Bertran
''The Practice and Theory of Bolshevism'' by Bertrand Russell
, 1920
about his experiences on this trip, taken with a group of 24 others from the UK, all of whom came home thinking well of the Soviet regime, despite Russell's attempts to change their minds. For example, he told them that he had heard shots fired in the middle of the night and was sure that these were clandestine executions, but the others maintained that it was only cars backfiring. Russell's lover
Dora Black Dora Winifred Russell, Countess Russell ( Black; 3 April 1894 – 31 May 1986) was a British author, a feminist and socialist campaigner, and the second wife of the philosopher Bertrand Russell. She was a campaigner for contraception and pea ...
, a British author,
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
and socialist campaigner, visited Soviet Russia independently at the same time; in contrast to his reaction, she was enthusiastic about the
Bolshevik revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of two revolutions in Russia in 1917. It was led by Vladimir L ...
. The following year, Russell, accompanied by Dora, visited
Peking Beijing, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's most populous national capital city as well as China's second largest city by urban area after Shanghai. It is l ...
(as
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
was then known outside of China) to lecture on philosophy for a year. He went with optimism and hope, seeing China as then being on a new path. Other scholars present in China at the time included
John Dewey John Dewey (; October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and Education reform, educational reformer. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the first half of the twentieth century. The overridi ...
and
Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...
, the Indian Nobel-laureate poet. Before leaving China, Russell became gravely ill with
pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
, and incorrect reports of his death were published in the Japanese press. When the couple visited Japan on their return journey, Dora took on the role of spurning the local press by handing out notices reading "Mr. Bertrand Russell, having died according to the Japanese press, is unable to give interviews to Japanese journalists". Apparently they found this harsh and reacted resentfully. Russell supported his family during this time by writing popular books explaining matters of
physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...
, ethics, and education to the layman. From 1922 to 1927 the Russells divided their time between London and
Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
, spending summers in
Porthcurno Porthcurno (, meaning ''"pinnacle cove"'', see below) is a small village covering a small valley and beach on the south coast of Cornwall, England in the United Kingdom. It is the main settlement in a civil parishes in England, civil and an ecc ...
. In the
1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...
and 1923 general elections Russell stood as a Labour Party candidate in the Chelsea constituency, but only on the basis that he knew he was unlikely to be elected in such a safe Conservative seat, and he was unsuccessful on both occasions. After the birth of his two children, he became interested in education, especially
early childhood education Early childhood education (ECE), also known as nursery education, is a branch of Education sciences, education theory that relates to the teaching of children (formally and informally) from birth up to the age of eight. Traditionally, this is ...
. He was not satisfied with the old
traditional education Traditional education, also known as back-to-basics, conventional education or customary education, refers to long-established customs that society has traditionally used in schools. Some forms of education reform promote the adoption of progress ...
and thought that
progressive education Progressive education, or educational progressivism, is a pedagogical movement that began in the late 19th century and has persisted in various forms to the present. In Europe, progressive education took the form of the New Education Movement. T ...
also had some flaws; as a result, together with Dora, Russell founded the experimental Beacon Hill School in 1927. The school was run from a succession of different locations, including its original premises at the Russells' residence, Telegraph House, near
Harting Harting is a civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. It is situated on the northern flank of the South Downs, around southeast of Petersfield in Hampshire. It comprises the village of South Harting and the hamlets of Ea ...
, West Sussex. During this time, he published ''On Education, Especially in Early Childhood''. On 8 July 1930, Dora gave birth to her third child Harriet Ruth. After he left the school in 1932, Dora continued it until 1943."Inside Beacon Hill: Bertrand Russell as Schoolmaster". Jespersen, Shirley ERIC# EJ360344, published 1987 In 1927 Russell met Barry Fox (later Barry Stevens), who became a known Gestalt therapist and writer in later years. They developed an intense relationship, and in Fox's words: "...for three years we were very close." Fox sent her daughter Judith to Beacon Hill School. From 1927 to 1932 Russell wrote 34 letters to Fox. Upon the death of his elder brother Frank, in 1931, Russell became the 3rd
Earl Russell Earl Russell, of Kingston Russell in the County of Dorset, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 30 July 1861 for the prominent Liberal politician Lord John Russell. He was Home Secretary from 1835 to 1839, For ...
. Russell's marriage to Dora grew tenuous, and it reached a breaking point over her having two children with an American journalist, Griffin Barry. They separated in 1932 and finally divorced. On 18 January 1936, Russell married his third wife, an
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
undergraduate named Patricia ("Peter") Spence, who had been his children's governess since 1930. Russell and Peter had one son, Conrad Sebastian Robert Russell, 5th Earl Russell, who became a historian and one of the leading figures in the
Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...
party. Russell returned in 1937 to the
London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...
to lecture on the science of power. During the 1930s, Russell became a friend and collaborator of
V. K. Krishna Menon Vengalil Krishnan Krishna Menon (3 May 1896 – 6 October 1974) was an Indian academic, independence activist, politician, lawyer, and statesman. During his time, Menon contributed to the Indian independence movement and India's foreign r ...
, then President of the
India League The India League was an England-based organisation established by Krishna Menon in 1928. It campaigned for the full independence and self-governance of British India. It has been described as "the principal organisation promoting Indian nationa ...
, the foremost lobby in the United Kingdom for Indian independence. Russell chaired the India League from 1932 to 1939.


Second World War

Russell's political views changed over time, mostly about war. He opposed rearmament against
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
. In 1937, he wrote in a personal letter: "If the Germans succeed in sending an invading army to England we should do best to treat them as visitors, give them quarters and invite the commander and chief to dine with the prime minister." In 1940, he changed his
appeasement Appeasement, in an International relations, international context, is a diplomacy, diplomatic negotiation policy of making political, material, or territorial concessions to an aggressive power (international relations), power with intention t ...
view that avoiding a full-scale world war was more important than defeating Hitler. He concluded that Adolf Hitler taking over all of Europe would be a permanent threat to democracy. In 1943, he adopted a stance toward large-scale warfare called "relative political pacifism": "War was always a great evil, but in some particularly extreme circumstances, it may be the lesser of two evils." Before World War II, Russell taught at the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
, later moving on to Los Angeles to lecture at the
UCLA Department of Philosophy The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...
.Bertrand Russell Rides Out Collegiate Cyclone
''
Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...
'', Vol. 8, No. 14, 1 April 1940
He was appointed professor at the
City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a Public university, public research university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York ...
(CCNY) in 1940, but after a public outcry the appointment was annulled by a court judgment that pronounced him "morally unfit" to teach at the college because of his opinions, especially those relating to
sexual morality Sexual ethics (also known as sex ethics or sexual morality) is a branch of philosophy that considers the ethics or morality of Human sexual behaviour, sexual behavior. Sexual ethics seeks to understand, evaluate and critique interpersonal relatio ...
, detailed in ''
Marriage and Morals ''Marriage and Morals'' is a 1929 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell, in which the author questions the Victorian notions of morality regarding sex and marriage. Russell argues that the laws and ideas about sex of his time were a potpourri ...
'' (1929). The matter was taken to the
New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...
by
Jean Kay Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * ...
who was afraid that her daughter would be harmed by the appointment, though her daughter was not a student at CCNY. Many intellectuals, led by
John Dewey John Dewey (; October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and Education reform, educational reformer. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the first half of the twentieth century. The overridi ...
, protested at his treatment.
Albert Einstein Albert Einstein (14 March 187918 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist who is best known for developing the theory of relativity. Einstein also made important contributions to quantum mechanics. His mass–energy equivalence f ...
's oft-quoted aphorism that "great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds" originated in his open letter, dated 19 March 1940, to
Morris Raphael Cohen Morris Raphael Cohen (; July 25, 1880 – January 28, 1947) was a Russian-born American judicial philosopher, lawyer, and legal scholar who united pragmatism with logical positivism and linguistic analysis. This union coalesced into the "objecti ...
, a professor emeritus at CCNY, supporting Russell's appointment. Dewey and
Horace M. Kallen Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 BC – 27 November 8 BC),Suetonius, Life of Horace commonly known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman Lyric poetry, lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Oc ...
edited a collection of articles on the CCNY affair in ''
The Bertrand Russell Case ''The Bertrand Russell Case'', known officially as ''Kay v. Board of Higher Education'', was a case concerning the appointment of Bertrand Russell as Professor of Philosophy of the College of the City of New York, as well as a collection of art ...
''. Russell soon joined the
Barnes Foundation The Barnes Foundation is an art collection and educational institution promoting the appreciation of art and horticulture. Originally in Merion, the art collection moved in 2012 to a new building on Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia, ...
, lecturing to a varied audience on the
history of philosophy The history of philosophy is the systematic study of the development of philosophical thought. It focuses on philosophy as rational inquiry based on argumentation, but some theorists also include myth, religious traditions, and proverbial lor ...
; these lectures formed the basis of ''
A History of Western Philosophy ''History of Western Philosophy'' is a 1946 book by British philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872–1970). A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic philosophers to the early 20th century, each major division of the book is prefaced by ...
''. His relationship with the eccentric Albert C. Barnes soon soured, and he returned to the UK in 1944 to rejoin the faculty of Trinity College.


Later life

Russell participated in many broadcasts over the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
, particularly ''
The Brains Trust ''The Brains Trust'' was an informational BBC radio and later television programme popular in the United Kingdom in the 1940s and 1950s, on which a panel of experts tried to answer questions sent in by the audience. History The series was crea ...
'' and for the
Third Programme The BBC Third Programme was a national radio station produced and broadcast from 1946 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 3. It first went on the air on 29 September 1946 and became one of the leading cultural and intellectual forces ...
, on various topical and philosophical subjects. By this time Russell was known outside academic circles, frequently the subject or author of magazine and newspaper articles, and was called upon to offer opinions on a variety of subjects, even mundane ones. En route to one of his lectures in
Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...
, Russell was one of 24 survivors (out of 43 passengers) of an aeroplane crash in Hommelvik in October 1948. He said he owed his life to smoking since the people who drowned were in the non-smoking part of the plane. ''
A History of Western Philosophy ''History of Western Philosophy'' is a 1946 book by British philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872–1970). A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic philosophers to the early 20th century, each major division of the book is prefaced by ...
'' (1945) became a best-seller and provided Russell with a steady income for the remainder of his life. In 1942, Russell argued in favour of a moderate
socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
, capable of overcoming its metaphysical principles. In an inquiry on
dialectical materialism Dialectical materialism is a materialist theory based upon the writings of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels that has found widespread applications in a variety of philosophical disciplines ranging from philosophy of history to philosophy of scien ...
, launched by the Austrian artist and philosopher
Wolfgang Paalen Wolfgang Robert Paalen (July 22, 1905 in Vienna, Austria – September 24, 1959 in Taxco, Mexico) was an Austrian-Mexican painter, sculptor, and Aesthetics, art philosopher. A member of the Abstraction-Création group from 1934 to 1935, he joine ...
in his journal '' DYN'', Russell said: "I think the metaphysics of both
Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a 19th-century German idealism, German idealist. His influence extends across a wide range of topics from metaphysical issues in epistemology and ontology, to political phi ...
and
Marx Karl Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, political theorist, economist, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. He is best-known for the 1848 pamphlet '' The Communist Manifesto'' (written with Friedrich Engels) ...
plain nonsense—Marx's claim to be 'science' is no more justified than
Mary Baker Eddy Mary Baker Eddy (née Baker; July 16, 1821 – December 3, 1910) was an American religious leader and author, who in 1879 founded The Church of Christ, Scientist, the ''Mother Church'' of the Christian Science movement. She also founded ''The C ...
's. This does not mean that I am opposed to socialism." In 1943, Russell expressed support for
Zionism Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...
: "I have come gradually to see that, in a dangerous and largely hostile world, it is essential to Jews to have some country which is theirs, some region where they are not suspected aliens, some state which embodies what is distinctive in their culture". In a speech in 1948, Russell said that if the
USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
's aggression continued, it would be morally worse to go to war after the USSR possessed an
atomic bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear expl ...
than before it possessed one, because if the USSR had no bomb the West's victory would come more swiftly and with fewer casualties than if there were atomic bombs on both sides. At that time, only the United States possessed an atomic bomb, and the USSR was pursuing an aggressive policy towards the countries in Eastern Europe which were being absorbed into the Soviet Union's
sphere of influence In the field of international relations, a sphere of influence (SOI) is a spatial region or concept division over which a state or organization has a level of cultural, economic, military, or political exclusivity. While there may be a formal a ...
. Many understood Russell's comments to mean that Russell approved of a first strike in a war with the USSR, including
Nigel Lawson Nigel Lawson, Baron Lawson of Blaby, (11 March 1932 – 3 April 2023) was a British politician and journalist. A member of the Conservative Party, he served as Member of Parliament for Blaby in Leicestershire from 1974 to 1992, and served ...
, who was present when Russell spoke of such matters. Others, including
Griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: ''gryps'' or ''grypus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk ...
, who obtained a transcript of the speech, have argued that he was explaining the usefulness of America's atomic arsenal in deterring the USSR from continuing its domination of Eastern Europe. Just after the atomic bombs exploded over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Russell wrote letters, and published articles in newspapers from 1945 to 1948, stating clearly that it was morally justified and better to go to war against the USSR using atomic bombs while the United States possessed them and before the USSR did. In September 1949, one week after the USSR tested its first A-bomb, but before this became known, Russell wrote that the USSR would be unable to develop nuclear weapons because following Stalin's purges only science based on Marxist principles would be practised in the Soviet Union. After it became known that the USSR had carried out its nuclear bomb tests, Russell declared his position advocating the total abolition of atomic weapons. In 1948, Russell was invited by the BBC to deliver the inaugural
Reith Lectures The Reith Lectures is a series of annual BBC radio lectures given by leading figures of the day. They are commissioned by the BBC and broadcast on Radio 4 and the World Service. The lectures were inaugurated in 1948 to mark the historic contrib ...
—what was to become an annual series of lectures, still broadcast by the BBC. His series of six broadcasts, titled ''Authority and the Individual'', explored themes such as the role of individual initiative in the development of a community and the role of state control in a progressive society. Russell continued to write about philosophy. He wrote a foreword to ''Words and Things'' by
Ernest Gellner Ernest André Gellner (9 December 1925 – 5 November 1995) was a French-born British-Czech philosopher and social anthropologist described by ''The Daily Telegraph'', when he died, as one of the world's most vigorous intellectuals, and by '' ...
, which was highly critical of the later thought of
Ludwig Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrian philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. From 1929 to 1947, Witt ...
and of
ordinary language philosophy Ordinary language philosophy (OLP) is a philosophical methodology that sees traditional philosophical problems as rooted in misunderstandings philosophers develop by distorting or forgetting how words are ordinarily used to convey meaning in ...
.
Gilbert Ryle Gilbert Ryle (19 August 1900 – 6 October 1976) was a British philosopher, principally known for his critique of Cartesian dualism, for which he coined the phrase " ghost in the machine". Some of Ryle's ideas in philosophy of mind have been ca ...
refused to have the book reviewed in the philosophical journal ''
Mind The mind is that which thinks, feels, perceives, imagines, remembers, and wills. It covers the totality of mental phenomena, including both conscious processes, through which an individual is aware of external and internal circumstances ...
'', which caused Russell to respond via ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
''. The result was a month-long correspondence in ''The Times'' between the supporters and detractors of ordinary language philosophy, which was ended when the paper published an editorial critical of both sides but agreeing with the opponents of ordinary language philosophy. In the King's
Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are ...
of 9 June 1949, Russell was awarded the
Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...
, and the following year he was awarded the
Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning ''for'' Literature (), is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in ...
. When he was given the Order of Merit,
George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...
was affable but embarrassed at decorating a former jailbird, saying, "You have sometimes behaved in a manner that would not do if generally adopted". Russell merely smiled, but afterwards claimed that the reply "That's right, just like your
brother A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...
" immediately came to mind. In 1950, Russell attended the inaugural conference for the
Congress for Cultural Freedom The Congress for Cultural Freedom (CCF) was an anti-communist cultural organization founded on 26 June 1950 in West Berlin. At its height, the CCF was active in thirty-five countries. In 1966 it was revealed that the Central Intelligence Agency w ...
, a
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
-funded anti-communist organisation committed to the deployment of culture as a weapon during the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
. Russell was one of the known patrons of the Congress until he resigned in 1956. In 1952, Russell was divorced by Spence, with whom he had been very unhappy. Conrad, Russell's son by Spence, did not see his father between the time of the divorce and 1968 (at which time his decision to meet his father caused a permanent breach with his mother). Russell married his fourth wife, Edith Finch, soon after the divorce, on 15 December 1952. They had known each other since 1925, and Edith had taught English at Bryn Mawr College near Philadelphia, sharing a house for 20 years with Russell's old friend
Lucy Donnelly Lucy Martin Donnelly (September 18, 1870 – August 3, 1948) was a teacher of English at Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh language, Welsh: ) is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal art ...
. Edith remained with him until his death, and, by all accounts, their marriage was a happy, close, and loving one. Russell's eldest son John suffered from
mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness, a mental health condition, or a psychiatric disability, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. A mental disorder is ...
, which was the source of ongoing disputes between Russell and his former wife Dora. In 1962 Russell played a public role in the
Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis () in Cuba, or the Caribbean Crisis (), was a 13-day confrontation between the governments of the United States and the Soviet Union, when American deployments of Nuclear weapons d ...
: in an exchange of telegrams with Soviet leader
Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and the Premier of the Soviet Union, Chai ...
, Khrushchev assured him that the Soviet government would not be reckless. Russell sent this telegram to
President Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...
: According to historian Peter Knight, after JFK's
assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...
, Russell, "prompted by the emerging work of the lawyer Mark Lane in the US ... rallied support from other noteworthy and left-leaning compatriots to form a 'Who Killed Kennedy committee' in June 1964, members of which included
Michael Foot Michael Mackintosh Foot (23 July 19133 March 2010) was a British politician who was Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposition from 1980 to 1983. Foot beg ...
MP, the wife of
Tony Benn Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), known between 1960 and 1963 as Viscount Stansgate, was a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician and political activist who served as a Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabine ...
MP, the publisher
Victor Gollancz Sir Victor Gollancz (; 9 April 1893 – 8 February 1967) was a British publisher and humanitarian. Gollancz was known as a supporter of left-wing politics. His loyalties shifted between liberalism and communism; he defined himself as a Christian ...
, the writers
John Arden John Arden (26 October 1930 – 28 March 2012) was an English playwright who at his death was lauded as "one of the most significant British playwrights of the late 1950s and early 60s". Career Born in Barnsley, son of the manager of a glass ...
and J. B. Priestley, and the Oxford history professor
Hugh Trevor-Roper Hugh Redwald Trevor-Roper, Baron Dacre of Glanton, (15 January 1914 – 26 January 2003) was an English historian. He was Regius Professor of Modern History (Oxford), Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford. Trevor-Rope ...
." Russell published a highly critical article in '' The Minority of One'' weeks before the
Warren Commission The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, known unofficially as the Warren Commission, was established by President of the United States, President Lyndon B. Johnson through on November 29, 1963, to investigate the A ...
report was published, setting forth ''16 Questions on the Assassination.'' Russell equated the
Oswald Oswald may refer to: People *Oswald (given name), including a list of people with the name * Oswald (surname), including a list of people with the name Fictional characters *Oswald the Reeve, who tells a tale in Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbu ...
case with the Dreyfus affair of late 19th-century France, in which the state convicted an innocent man. Russell also criticised the American press for failing to heed any voices critical of the official version.


Political causes

Bertrand Russell was opposed to war from a young age; his opposition to World War I was used as grounds for his dismissal from Trinity College at Cambridge. This incident fused two of his controversial causes, as he had failed to be granted fellow status which would have protected him from firing, because he was not willing to either pretend to be a devout Christian, or at least avoid admitting he was agnostic. He later described the resolution of these issues as essential to freedom of thought and expression, citing the incident in
Free Thought and Official Propaganda "Free Thought and Official Propaganda" is a speech (and subsequent publication) delivered in 1922 by Bertrand Russell on the importance of unrestricted freedom of expression in society, and the problem of the state and political class interfering ...
, where he explained that the expression of any idea, even the most obviously "bad", must be protected not only from direct State intervention but also economic leveraging and other means of being silenced: Russell spent the 1950s and 1960s engaged in political causes primarily related to
nuclear disarmament Nuclear disarmament is the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons. Its end state can also be a nuclear-weapons-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated. The term ''denuclearization'' is also used to describe the pro ...
and opposing the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
. The 1955
Russell–Einstein Manifesto The Russell–Einstein Manifesto was issued in London on 9 July 1955 by Bertrand Russell in the midst of the Cold War. It highlighted the dangers posed by nuclear weapons and called for world leaders to seek peaceful resolutions to international ...
was a document calling for nuclear disarmament and was signed by eleven of the most prominent nuclear physicists and intellectuals of the time. In October 1960 " The Committee of 100" was formed with a declaration by Russell and
Michael Scott Michael Scott, Michael Scot, or Mike Scott may refer to: Academics * Michael Scot (1175 – c. 1232), mathematician and astrologer * Michael L. Scott (born 1959), American academic and computer scientist * Mike Scott, British linguist and designer ...
, entitled "Act or Perish", which called for a "movement of nonviolent resistance to nuclear war and weapons of mass destruction". In September 1961, at the age of 89, Russell was jailed for seven days in
Brixton Prison HM Prison Brixton is a Category C training establishment men's prison, located in Brixton area of the London Borough of Lambeth, in inner- South London. The prison is operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. Before 2012, it was used as a loca ...
for a "breach of the peace" after taking part in an anti-nuclear demonstration in London. The magistrate offered to exempt him from jail if he pledged himself to "good behaviour", to which Russell replied: "No, I won't." From 1966 to 1967, Russell worked with
Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary criticism, literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th ...
and many other intellectual figures to form the Russell Vietnam War Crimes Tribunal to investigate the conduct of the United States in Vietnam. He wrote many letters to world leaders during this period. Early in his life, Russell supported
eugenicist Eugenics is a set of largely discredited beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetics, genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter the frequency of various human Phenotype, phenotypes by ...
policies. In 1894, he proposed that the state issue certificates of health to prospective parents and withhold public benefits from those considered unfit. In 1929, he wrote that people deemed "mentally defective" and "feebleminded" should be sexually sterilised because they "are apt to have enormous numbers of illegitimate children, all, as a rule, wholly useless to the community." Russell was also an advocate of
population control Population control is the practice of artificially maintaining the size of any population. It simply refers to the act of limiting the size of an animal population so that it remains manageable, as opposed to the act of protecting a species from ...
: On 20 November 1948, in a public speech at
Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...
, addressing a gathering arranged by the New Commonwealth, Russell shocked some observers by suggesting that a preemptive nuclear strike on the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
was justified. Russell argued that war between the United States and the Soviet Union seemed inevitable, so it would be a humanitarian gesture to get it over with quickly and have the United States in the dominant position. Currently, Russell argued, humanity could survive such a war, whereas a full
nuclear war Nuclear warfare, also known as atomic warfare, is a War, military conflict or prepared Policy, political strategy that deploys nuclear weaponry. Nuclear weapons are Weapon of mass destruction, weapons of mass destruction; in contrast to conven ...
after both sides had manufactured large stockpiles of more destructive weapons was likely to result in the
extinction Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...
of the
human race Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are great apes characterized by their hairlessness, bipedalism, and high intelligenc ...
. Russell later relented from this stance, instead arguing for mutual disarmament by the nuclear powers. In 1956, before and during the
Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, also known as the Second Arab–Israeli War, the Tripartite Aggression in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel, was a British–French–Israeli invasion of Egypt in 1956. Israel invaded on 29 October, having done so w ...
, Russell expressed his opposition to European imperialism in the Middle East. He viewed the crisis as another reminder of the pressing need for an effective mechanism for international governance, and to restrict national sovereignty in places such as the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...
area "where general interest is involved". At the same time the Suez Crisis was taking place, the world was also captivated by the Hungarian Revolution and the subsequent crushing of the revolt by intervening Soviet forces. Russell attracted criticism for speaking out fervently against the Suez war while ignoring Soviet repression in Hungary, to which he responded that he did not criticise the Soviets "because there was no need. Most of the so-called Western World was fulminating". Although he later feigned a lack of concern, at the time he was disgusted by the brutal Soviet response, and on 16 November 1956, he expressed approval for a declaration of support for Hungarian scholars which
Michael Polanyi Michael Polanyi ( ; ; 11 March 1891 – 22 February 1976) was a Hungarian-British polymath, who made important theoretical contributions to physical chemistry, economics, and philosophy. He argued that positivism is a false account of knowle ...
had cabled to the Soviet embassy in London twelve days previously, shortly after Soviet troops had entered
Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...
. In November 1957 Russell wrote an article addressing US President
Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...
and Soviet Premier
Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and the Premier of the Soviet Union, Chai ...
, urging a summit to consider "the conditions of co-existence". Khrushchev responded that peace could be served by such a meeting. In January 1958 Russell elaborated his views in ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...
'', proposing a cessation of all nuclear weapons production, with the UK taking the first step by unilaterally suspending its own nuclear weapons program if necessary, and with Germany "freed from all alien armed forces and pledged to neutrality in any conflict between East and West". US Secretary of State
John Foster Dulles John Foster Dulles (February 25, 1888 – May 24, 1959) was an American politician, lawyer, and diplomat who served as United States secretary of state under President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1953 until his resignation in 1959. A member of the ...
replied for Eisenhower. The exchange of letters was published as ''The Vital Letters of Russell, Khrushchev, and Dulles''.''Yours Faithfully, Bertrand Russell'' (pp. 212–213). Russell was asked by ''
The New Republic ''The New Republic'' (often abbreviated as ''TNR'') is an American magazine focused on domestic politics, news, culture, and the arts from a left-wing perspective. It publishes ten print magazines a year and a daily online platform. ''The New Y ...
'', a liberal American magazine, to elaborate his views on world peace. He urged that all nuclear weapons testing and flights by planes armed with nuclear weapons be halted immediately, and negotiations be opened for the destruction of all
hydrogen bombs A thermonuclear weapon, fusion weapon or hydrogen bomb (H-bomb) is a second-generation nuclear weapon design. Its greater sophistication affords it vastly greater destructive power than first-generation nuclear bombs, a more compact size, a lowe ...
, with the number of conventional nuclear devices limited to ensure a balance of power. He proposed that Germany be reunified and accept the Oder-Neisse line as its border, and that a neutral zone be established in Central Europe, consisting at the minimum of Germany, Poland, Hungary, and
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
, with each of these countries being free of foreign troops and influence, and prohibited from forming alliances with countries outside the zone. In the Middle East, Russell suggested that the West avoid opposing
Arab nationalism Arab nationalism () is a political ideology asserting that Arabs constitute a single nation. As a traditional nationalist ideology, it promotes Arab culture and civilization, celebrates Arab history, the Arabic language and Arabic literatur ...
, and proposed the creation of a United Nations peacekeeping force to guard Israel's frontiers to ensure that Israel was prevented from committing aggression and protected from it. He also suggested Western recognition of the People's Republic of China, and that it be admitted to the UN with a permanent seat on the
UN Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
. He was in contact with Lionel Rogosin while the latter was filming his anti-war film ''Good Times, Wonderful Times'' in the 1960s. He became a hero to many of the youthful members of the New Left. In early 1963, Russell became increasingly vocal in his disapproval of the Vietnam War, and felt that the US government's policies there were near-genocidal. In 1963, he became the inaugural recipient of the
Jerusalem Prize The Jerusalem Prize for the Freedom of the Individual in Society is a biennial literary award given to writers whose works have dealt with themes of human freedom in society. It is awarded at the Jerusalem International Book Forum (previously kn ...
, an award for writers concerned with the freedom of the individual in society. In 1964, he was one of eleven world figures who issued an appeal to Israel and the Arab world, Arab countries to accept an arms embargo and international supervision of nuclear plants and rocket weaponry. In October 1965, he tore up his Labour Party card because he suspected Harold Wilson's Labour government was going to send troops to support the United States in Vietnam.


Final years, death and legacy

In June 1955, Russell had leased Plas Penrhyn in Penrhyndeudraeth, Merionethshire, Wales and on 5 July of the following year it became his and Edith's principal residence. Russell published his three-volume autobiography in 1967, 1968, and 1969. He made a cameo appearance playing himself in the anti-war Hindi film Aman (film), ''Aman'', by Mohan Kumar (director), Mohan Kumar, which was released in India in 1967. This was Russell's only appearance in a feature film. On 23 November 1969, he wrote to ''The Times'' newspaper saying that the preparation for show trials in Czechoslovakia was "highly alarming". The same month, he appealed to Secretary General U Thant of the United Nations to support an international war crimes commission to investigate alleged torture and genocide by the United States in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The following month, he protested to Alexei Kosygin over the expulsion of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn from the Soviet Union of Writers. On 31 January 1970, Russell issued a statement condemning "Israel's aggression in the Middle East", and in particular, Israeli bombing raids being carried out deep in Egyptian territory as part of the War of Attrition, which he compared to German bombing raids in the Battle of Britain and the US bombing of Vietnam. He called for an Israeli withdrawal to the pre-Six-Day War borders, stating "The aggression committed by Israel must be condemned, not only because no state has the right to annexe foreign territory, but because every expansion is an experiment to discover how much more aggression the world will tolerate." This was Russell's final political statement or act. It was read out at the International Conference of Parliamentarians in Cairo on 3 February 1970, the day after his death. Russell died of influenza, just after 8 pm on 2 February 1970 at his home in Penrhyndeudraeth, aged 97. His body was cremated in Colwyn Bay on 5 February 1970 with five people present. In accordance with his will, there was no religious ceremony but one minute's silence; his ashes were later scattered over the Welsh mountains. Although he was born in
Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...
, and died in Penrhyndeudraeth in Wales, Russell identified as English. Later in 1970, on 23 October, his will was published showing he had left an estate valued at £69,423 (equivalent to £ million in ).Russell, 1970, p.
at probatesearch.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
In 1980, a memorial to Russell was commissioned by a committee including the philosopher A. J. Ayer. It consists of a bust of Russell in Red Lion Square in London sculpted by Marcelle Quinton. Lady Katharine Jane Tait, Russell's daughter, founded the Bertrand Russell Society in 1974 to preserve and understand his work. It publishes the ''Bertrand Russell Society Bulletin'', holds meetings and awards prizes for scholarship, including the Bertrand Russell Society Award. She also authored several essays about her father; as well as a book, ''My Father, Bertrand Russell'', which was published in 1975. All members receive ''Russell: The Journal of Bertrand Russell Studies''. For the sesquicentennial of his birth, in May 2022, McMaster University's Bertrand Russell Archive, the university's largest and most heavily used research collection, organised both a physical and virtual exhibition on Russell's anti-nuclear stance in the post-war era
''Scientists'' ''for Peace: the Russell-Einstein Manifesto and the Pugwash Conference''
which included the earliest version of the
Russell–Einstein Manifesto The Russell–Einstein Manifesto was issued in London on 9 July 1955 by Bertrand Russell in the midst of the Cold War. It highlighted the dangers posed by nuclear weapons and called for world leaders to seek peaceful resolutions to international ...
. The Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation held a commemoration at Conway Hall in Red Lion Square, London, on 18 May, the anniversary of his birth. For its part, on the same day, ''La Estrella de Panamá'' published a biographical sketch by Francisco Díaz Montilla, who commented that "[if he] had to characterize Russell's work in one sentence [he] would say: criticism and rejection of dogmatism." Bangladesh's first leader, Mujibur Rahman, named his youngest son Sheikh Russel in honour of Bertrand Russell.


Marriages and issue

In 1889, Russell, at 17 years of age, met the family of Alys Pearsall Smith, an American Religious Society of Friends, Quaker five years his senior, who was a graduate of Bryn Mawr College near Philadelphia. He became a friend of the Pearsall Smith family. They knew him as "Lord John's grandson" and enjoyed showing him off. He fell in love with Alys, and contrary to his grandmother's wishes, married her on 13 December 1894. Their marriage began to fall apart in 1901 when it occurred to Russell, while cycling, that he no longer loved her. She asked him if he loved her, and he cruelly replied that he did not. Russell also disliked Alys's mother, finding her controlling and cruel. A lengthy period of separation began in 1911 with Russell's affair with Lady Ottoline Morrell, and he and Alys finally divorced in 1921 to enable Russell to remarry. During his years of separation from Alys, Russell had affairs (often simultaneous) with a number of women, including Morrell and the actress Lady Constance Malleson. Some have suggested that at this point he had an affair with Vivienne Haigh-Wood, the English governess and writer, and first wife of T. S. Eliot. In 1921, his second marriage was to Dora Winifred Black MBE (died 1986), daughter of Sir Frederick Black. Dora was six months pregnant when the couple returned to England. This was dissolved in 1935, having produced two children: * John Conrad Russell, 4th Earl Russell (1921–1987) * Lady Katharine Jane Russell (1923–2021), who married Rev. Charles Tait in 1948 and Issue (genealogy), had issue Russell's third marriage was to Patricia Helen Spence (died 2004) in 1936, with the marriage producing one child: * Conrad Sebastian Robert Russell, 5th Earl Russell (1937–2004), who became a historian and one of the leading figures in the
Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...
party. Russell's third marriage ended in divorce in 1952. He married Edith Finch in the same year. They remained married at the time of his death in 1972, and Finch subsequently died in 1978.


Titles, awards and honours

Upon his brother's death in 1931, Russell became the 3rd
Earl Russell Earl Russell, of Kingston Russell in the County of Dorset, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 30 July 1861 for the prominent Liberal politician Lord John Russell. He was Home Secretary from 1835 to 1839, For ...
of Kingston Russell, and the subsidiary title of Viscount Amberley of Amberley and of Ardsalla. He held both titles, and the accompanying seat in the House of Lords, until his death in 1970.


Honours and awards


Scholastic


Views


Philosophy

Russell is credited with being one of the founders of
analytic philosophy Analytic philosophy is a broad movement within Western philosophy, especially English-speaking world, anglophone philosophy, focused on analysis as a philosophical method; clarity of prose; rigor in arguments; and making use of formal logic, mat ...
. He was impressed by Gottfried Leibniz (1646–1716), and wrote on major areas of philosophy except aesthetics. He was prolific in the fields of metaphysics, Bertrand Russell's views on philosophy#Logic and philosophy of mathematics, logic and the philosophy of mathematics, the Bertrand Russell's views on philosophy#Philosophy of language, philosophy of language, Bertrand Russell's views on philosophy#Ethics, ethics and Bertrand Russell's views on philosophy#Epistemology, epistemology. When Brand Blanshard asked Russell why he did not write on aesthetics, Russell replied that he did not know anything about it, though he hastened to add "but that is not a very good excuse, for my friends tell me it has not deterred me from writing on other subjects". On ethics, Russell wrote that he was a utilitarian in his youth, yet he later distanced himself from this view. For the advancement of science and protection of liberty of expression, Russell advocated The Will to Doubt, the recognition that all human knowledge is at most a best guess, that one should always remember:


Religion

Russell described himself in 1947 as an agnostic or an atheism, atheist: he found it difficult to determine which term to adopt, saying: For most of his adult life, Russell maintained religion to be little more than superstition and, despite any positive effects, largely harmful to people. He believed that religion and the religious outlook serve to impede knowledge and foster fear and dependency, and to be responsible for much of our world's wars, oppression, and misery. He was a member of the advisory council of the British Humanist Association and the president of Cardiff Humanists until his death.


Society

Political and social activism occupied much of Russell's time for most of his life. Russell remained politically active almost to the end of his life, writing to and exhorting world leaders and lending his name to various causes. He was a prominent campaigner against Western intervention into the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
in the 1960s, writing essays and books, attending demonstrations, and even organising the Russell Tribunal in 1966 alongside other prominent philosophers such as
Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary criticism, literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th ...
and Simone de Beauvoir, which fed into his 1967 book ''War Crimes in Vietnam.'' Russell argued for a "scientific society", where war would be abolished, population growth would be limited, and prosperity would be shared. He suggested the establishment of a "single supreme world government" able to enforce peace, claiming that "the only thing that will redeem mankind is co-operation". He was one of the signatories of the agreement to convene a convention for drafting a world constitution. As a result, for the first time in human history, a World Constituent Assembly convened to draft and adopt the Constitution for the Federation of Earth. Russell also expressed support for guild socialism, and commented positively on several socialist thinkers and activists. According to Jean Bricmont and Normand Baillargeon, "Russell was both a Liberalism, liberal and a Socialism, socialist, a combination that was perfectly comprehensible in his time, but which has become almost unthinkable today. He was a liberal in that he opposed concentrations of power in all its manifestations, military, governmental, or religious, as well as the superstitious or nationalist ideas that usually serve as its justification. But he was also a socialist, even as an extension of his liberalism, because he was equally opposed to the concentrations of power stemming from the private ownership of the major means of production, which therefore needed to be put under social control (which does not mean state control)." Russell was an active supporter of the Homosexual Law Reform Society, being one of the signatories of A. E. Dyson's 1958 letter to ''The Times'' calling for a change in the law regarding male homosexual practices, which were partly legalised in 1967, when Russell was still alive. He expressed sympathy and support for the Palestinians, Palestinian people and was critical of Israel's actions. He wrote in 1960 that, "I think it was a mistake to establish a Jewish State in Palestine, but it would be a still greater mistake to try to get rid of it now that it exists." In his final written document, read aloud in Cairo three days after his death on 31 January 1970, he condemned Israel as an aggressive Imperialism, imperialist power, which "wishes to consolidate with the least difficulty what it has already taken by violence. Every new conquest becomes the new basis of the proposed negotiation from strength, which ignores the injustice of the previous aggression." In regards to the Palestinian people and Palestinian refugees, refugees, he wrote that, "No people anywhere in the world would accept being expelled en masse from their own country; how can anyone require the people of Palestine to accept a punishment which nobody else would tolerate? A permanent just settlement of the refugees in their homeland is an essential ingredient of any genuine settlement in the Middle East." Russell advocated for a universal basic income. In his 1918 book ''Roads to Freedom'', Russell wrote that "Anarchism has the advantage as regards liberty, Socialism as regards the inducement to work.  Can we not find a method of combining these two advantages? It seems to me that we can. [...] Stated in more familiar terms, the plan we are advocating amounts essentially to this: that a certain small income, sufficient for necessaries, should be secured to all, whether they work or not, and that a larger income – as much larger as might be warranted by the total amount of commodities produced – should be given to those who are willing to engage in some work which the community recognizes as useful...When education is finished, no one should be compelled to work, and those who choose not to work should receive a bare livelihood and be left completely free." In "Reflections on My Eightieth Birthday" ("Postscript" in his ''Autobiography''), Russell wrote: "I have lived in the pursuit of a vision, both personal and social. Personal: to care for what is noble, for what is beautiful, for what is gentle; to allow moments of insight to give wisdom at more mundane times. Social: to see in imagination the society that is to be created, where individuals grow freely, and where hate and greed and envy die because there is nothing to nourish them. These things I believe, and the world, for all its horrors, has left me unshaken".


Freedom of opinion and expression

Russell supported freedom of opinion and was an opponent of both censorship and indoctrination. In 1928, he wrote: "The fundamental argument for freedom of opinion is the doubtfulness of all our belief... when the State intervenes to ensure the indoctrination of some doctrine, it does so because there is no conclusive evidence in favour of that doctrine ... It is clear that thought is not free if the profession of certain opinions make it impossible to make a living". In 1957, he wrote: "'Free thought' means thinking freely ... to be worthy of the name freethinker he must be free of two things: the force of tradition and the tyranny of his own passions."


Education

Russell has presented ideas on the possible means of control of education in case of scientific dictatorship governments, of the kind of this excerpt taken from Chapter II "General Effects of Scientific Technique" of "The Impact of Science on society": He pushed his visionary scenarios even further into details, in Chapter III "Scientific Technique in an Oligarchy" of the same book, stating as an example:


Selected works

Below are selected Russell's works in English, sorted by year of first publication: * 1896. ''German Social Democracy''. London: Longman, Longmans, Green & Co. * 1897. ''An Essay on the Foundations of Geometry''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press * 1900. ''A Critical Exposition of the Philosophy of Leibniz''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press * 1903. ''
The Principles of Mathematics ''The Principles of Mathematics'' (''PoM'') is a 1903 book by Bertrand Russell, in which the author presented Russell's paradox, his famous paradox and argued his thesis that mathematics and logic are identical. The book presents a view of ...
''. Cambridge University Press * 1903. ''A Free man's worship, and other essays''. * 1905. ''
On Denoting "On Denoting" is an essay by Bertrand Russell. It was published in the philosophy journal ''Mind (journal), Mind'' in 1905. In it, Russell introduces and advocates his theory of denoting phrases, according to which definite descriptions and other ...
'', ''
Mind The mind is that which thinks, feels, perceives, imagines, remembers, and wills. It covers the totality of mental phenomena, including both conscious processes, through which an individual is aware of external and internal circumstances ...
'', Vol. 14. . Basil Blackwell * 1910. ''Philosophical Essays''. London: Longmans, Green * 1910–1913. ''
Principia Mathematica The ''Principia Mathematica'' (often abbreviated ''PM'') is a three-volume work on the foundations of mathematics written by the mathematician–philosophers Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell and published in 1910, 1912, and 1 ...
.'' (with
Alfred North Whitehead Alfred North Whitehead (15 February 1861 – 30 December 1947) was an English mathematician and philosopher. He created the philosophical school known as process philosophy, which has been applied in a wide variety of disciplines, inclu ...
). 3 vols. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press * 1912. ''The Problems of Philosophy''. London: Williams and Norgate * 1914. ''Our Knowledge of the External World as a Field for Scientific Method in Philosophy''. Chicago and London: Open Court Publishing. * 1916. ''Principles of Social Reconstruction''. London, George Allen and Unwin * 1916. ''Why Men Fight (book), Why Men Fight''. New York: The Century Co * 1916. ''The Policy of the Entente, 1904–1914: a reply to Professor Gilbert Murray''. Manchester: The National Labour Press * 1916. ''Justice in War-time''. Chicago: Open Court * 1917. ''Political Ideals''. New York: The Century Co. * 1918. ''s:Mysticism and Logic and Other Essays, Mysticism and Logic and Other Essays''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1918. ''Proposed Roads to Freedom: Socialism, Anarchism, and Syndicalism''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1919. ''Introduction to Mathematical Philosophy''. London: George Allen & Unwin. ( for Routledge paperback) * 1920. ''The Practice and Theory of Bolshevism''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1921. ''The Analysis of Mind''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1922. ''The Problem of China''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1922. ''
Free Thought and Official Propaganda "Free Thought and Official Propaganda" is a speech (and subsequent publication) delivered in 1922 by Bertrand Russell on the importance of unrestricted freedom of expression in society, and the problem of the state and political class interfering ...
'', delivered at South Place Institute * 1923. ''The Prospects of Industrial Civilization'', in collaboration with Dora Russell. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1923. ''The ABC of Atoms'', London: Kegan Paul. Trench, Trubner * 1924. ''Icarus; or, The Future of Science''. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner * 1925. ''The ABC of Relativity''. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner (revised and edited by Felix Pirani) * 1925. ''What I Believe''. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner * 1926. ''On Education, Especially in Early Childhood''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1927. ''The Analysis of Matter''. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner * 1927. ''An Outline of Philosophy''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1927. ''Why I Am Not a Christian''. London: Watts * 1927. ''Selected Papers of Bertrand Russell''. New York: Modern Library * 1928. ''Sceptical Essays''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1929. ''
Marriage and Morals ''Marriage and Morals'' is a 1929 book by philosopher Bertrand Russell, in which the author questions the Victorian notions of morality regarding sex and marriage. Russell argues that the laws and ideas about sex of his time were a potpourri ...
''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1930. ''The Conquest of Happiness''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1931. ''The Scientific Outlook'', London: George Allen & Unwin * 1932. ''Education and the Social Order'', London: George Allen & Unwin * 1934. ''Freedom and Organization, 1814–1914''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1935. ''In Praise of Idleness and Other Essays''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1935. ''Religion and Science''. London: Thornton Butterworth * 1936. ''Which Way to Peace?''. London: Jonathan Cape * 1937. ''The Amberley Papers: The Letters and Diaries of Lord and Lady Amberley'', with Patricia Russell, 2 vols., London: Leonard & Virginia Woolf at the Hogarth Press; reprinted (1966) as ''The Amberley Papers. Bertrand Russell's Family Background'', 2 vols., London: George Allen & Unwin * 1938. ''Power: A New Social Analysis''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1940. ''An Inquiry into Meaning and Truth''. New York: W. W. Norton & Company. * 1945. ''The Bomb and Civilisation''. Published in the ''Glasgow Forward'' on 18 August 1945 * 1946. ''
A History of Western Philosophy ''History of Western Philosophy'' is a 1946 book by British philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872–1970). A survey of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratic philosophers to the early 20th century, each major division of the book is prefaced by ...
and Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day'' New York: Simon and Schuster * 1948. ''Human Knowledge: Its Scope and Limits''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1949. ''Authority and the Individual''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1950. '. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1951. ''New Hopes for a Changing World''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1952. ''The Impact of Science on Society''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1953. ''Satan in the Suburbs and Other Stories''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1954. ''Human Society in Ethics and Politics''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1954. ''Nightmares of Eminent Persons and Other Stories''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1956. ''Portraits from Memory and Other Essays''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1956. ''Logic and Knowledge: Essays 1901–1950'', edited by Robert C. Marsh. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1957. ''Why I Am Not A Christian and Other Essays on Religion and Related Subjects'', edited by Paul Edwards. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1958. ''Understanding History and Other Essays''. New York: Philosophical Library * 1958. ''The Will to Doubt''. New York: Philosophical Library * 1959. ''Common Sense and Nuclear Warfare''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1959. ''My Philosophical Development''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1959. ''Wisdom of the West: A Historical Survey of Western Philosophy in Its Social and Political Setting'', edited by Paul Foulkes. London: Macdonald * 1960. ''Bertrand Russell Speaks His Mind'', Cleveland and New York: World Publishing Company * 1961. ''The Basic Writings of Bertrand Russell'', edited by R. E. Egner and L. E. Denonn. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1961. ''Fact and Fiction''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1961. ''Has Man a Future?'' London: George Allen & Unwin * 1963. ''Essays in Skepticism''. New York: Philosophical Library * 1963. ''Unarmed Victory''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1965. ''Legitimacy Versus Industrialism, 1814–1848''. London: George Allen & Unwin (first published as Parts I and II of ''Freedom and Organization, 1814–1914'', 1934) * 1965. ''On the Philosophy of Science'', edited by Charles A. Fritz, Jr. Indianapolis: The Bobbs–Merrill Company * 1966. ''The ABC of Relativity''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1967. ''Russell's Peace Appeals'', edited by Tsutomu Makino and Kazuteru Hitaka. Japan: Eichosha's New Current Books * 1967. ''War Crimes in Vietnam''. London: George Allen & Unwin * 1951–1969. ''The Autobiography of Bertrand Russell'', 3 vols., London: George Allen & Unwin. Vol. 2, 1956 * 1969. ''Dear Bertrand Russell... A Selection of his Correspondence with the General Public 1950–1968'', edited by Barry Feinberg and Ronald Kasrils. London: George Allen and Unwin Russell was the author of more than sixty books and over two thousand articles. Additionally, he wrote many pamphlets, introductions, and letters to the editor. One pamphlet titled, '''I Appeal unto Caesar': The Case of the Conscientious Objectors'', ghostwritten for Margaret Hobhouse, the mother of imprisoned peace activist Stephen Hobhouse, allegedly helped secure the release from prison of hundreds of conscientious objectors. His works can be found in anthologies and collections, including ''The Collected Papers of Bertrand Russell'', which McMaster University began publishing in 1983. By March 2017, this collection of his shorter and previously unpublished works included 18 volumes, and several more are in progress. A bibliography in three additional volumes catalogues his publications. The Russell Archives held by McMaster's William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections possess over 40,000 of his letters.


See also

* Cambridge University Moral Sciences Club * Criticism of Jesus * Joseph Conrad#Impressions, Joseph Conrad (Russell's impression) * List of peace activists * List of pioneers in computer science * ''Logicomix'', a graphic novel about the foundational quest in mathematics, the narrator of the story being Bertrand Russell and with his life as the main storyline * Information Research Department * Type theory * Type system


Notes


References


Citations


General and cited sources


Primary sources

* 1900, ''Sur la logique des relations avec des applications à la théorie des séries'', ''Rivista di matematica 7'': 115–148. * 1901, ''On the Notion of Order'', ''Mind (n.s.) 10'': 35–51. * 1902, (with
Alfred North Whitehead Alfred North Whitehead (15 February 1861 – 30 December 1947) was an English mathematician and philosopher. He created the philosophical school known as process philosophy, which has been applied in a wide variety of disciplines, inclu ...
), ''On Cardinal Numbers'', ''American Journal of Mathematics 24'': 367–384. * 1948, BBC Reith Lectures: Authority and the Individual A series of six radio lectures broadcast on the BBC Home Service in December 1948.


Secondary sources

* John Newsome Crossley. ''A Note on Cantor's Theorem and Russell's Paradox'', ''Australian Journal of Philosophy'' 51, 1973, 70–71. * Ivor Grattan-Guinness. ''The Search for Mathematical Roots 1870–1940''. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000. * Alan Ryan. ''Bertrand Russell: A Political Life'', New York: Oxford University Press, 1981.


Further reading

*


Books about Russell's philosophy

* A. J. Ayer, Alfred Julius Ayer. ''Russell'', London: Fontana, 1972. . A lucid summary exposition of Russell's thought. * Elizabeth Ramsden Eames. ''Bertrand Russell's Theory of Knowledge'', London: George Allen and Unwin, 1969. . A clear description of Russell's philosophical development. * Celia Green. ''The Lost Cause: Causation and the Mind-Body Problem'', Oxford: Oxford Forum, 2003. Contains a sympathetic analysis of Russell's views on causality. * A. C. Grayling. ''Russell: A Very Short Introduction'', Oxford University Press, 2002. * Nicholas Griffin (philosopher), Nicholas Griffin. ''Russell's Idealist Apprenticeship'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. * A. D. Irvine, ed. ''Bertrand Russell: Critical Assessments'', 4 volumes, London: Routledge, 1999. Consists of essays on Russell's work by many distinguished philosophers. * Michael K. Potter. ''Bertrand Russell's Ethics'', Bristol: Thoemmes Continuum, 2006. A clear and accessible explanation of Russell's moral philosophy. * P. A. Schilpp, ed. ''The Philosophy of Bertrand Russell'', Evanston and Chicago: Northwestern University, 1944. * John Slater. ''Bertrand Russell'', Bristol: Thoemmes Press, 1994.


Biographical books

* A. J. Ayer. ''iarchive:bertrandrussell00ayer/page/n9/mode/2up, Bertrand Russell'', New York: Viking Press, 1972, reprint ed. London: University of Chicago Press, 1988, * Andrew Brink. ''Bertrand Russell: A Psychobiography of a Moralist'', Atlantic Highlands, NJ: Humanities Press International, Inc., 1989, * Ronald W. Clark. ''The Life of Bertrand Russell'', London: Jonathan Cape, 1975, * Ronald W. Clark. ''Bertrand Russell and His World'', London: Thames & Hudson, 1981, * Rupert Crawshay-Williams. ''Russell Remembered'', London: Oxford University Press, 1970. Written by a close friend of Russell's * John Lewis (philosopher), John Lewis.
Bertrand Russell: Philosopher and Humanist
', London: Lawerence & Wishart, 1968 * Ray Monk. ''Bertrand Russell: Mathematics: Dreams and Nightmares'', London: Phoenix, 1997, * Ray Monk. ''Bertrand Russell: The Spirit of Solitude, 1872–1920'' Vol. I, New York: Routledge, 1997, * Ray Monk. ''Bertrand Russell: The Ghost of Madness, 1921–1970'' Vol. II, New York: Routledge, 2001, * Caroline Moorehead. ''Bertrand Russell: A Life'', New York: Viking, 1993, * George Santayana. "Bertrand Russell", in ''Selected Writings of George Santayana'', Norman Henfrey (ed.), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, I, 1968, pp. 326–329 * Peter Stone et al.
Bertrand Russell's Life and Legacy
'. Wilmington: Vernon Press, 2017. * Katharine Tait. ''My Father Bertrand Russell'', New York: Thoemmes Press, 1975 * Alan Wood (author), Alan Wood,
Bertrand Russell: The Passionate Sceptic
', London: George Allen & Unwin, 1957.


External links

* * * * * *
The Bertrand Russell Society

BBC ''Face to Face'' interview
with Bertrand Russell and John Freeman (British politician), John Freeman, broadcast 4 March 1959 * including the Nobel Lecture, 11 December 1950 "What Desires Are Politically Important?"
Interview with Ray Monk
at Today (BBC Radio 4), ''Today'', 18 May 2022 (from 2:58:35) {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Bertrand Bertrand Russell, 1872 births 1970 deaths 19th-century atheists 20th-century atheists 19th-century British writers 19th-century British mathematicians 19th-century British philosophers 20th-century British writers 20th-century British mathematicians 20th-century British philosophers Academics of the London School of Economics Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Analytic philosophers Anti–Vietnam War activists Atheist philosophers British atheism activists British anti–World War I activists Consequentialists Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament Critics of Christianity Critics of religions Critics of work and the work ethic De Morgan Medallists Deaths from influenza European democratic socialists Earls in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Empiricists British agnostics British anti-communists British anti-fascists British anti–nuclear weapons activists British atheists British essayists British historians of philosophy British humanists British logicians British mathematicians British Nobel laureates British pacifists British people of Scottish descent British people of Welsh descent British philosophers British prisoners and detainees British republicans British sceptics British socialists British political writers British political commentators British epistemologists Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge Free love advocates Infectious disease deaths in Wales Jerusalem Prize recipients John F. Kennedy conspiracy theorists Kalinga Prize recipients Liberal socialism Linguistic turn Members of the Order of Merit Nobel laureates in Literature People from Monmouthshire Philosophers of language Philosophers of mathematics Presidents of the Aristotelian Society Prisoners and detainees of the United Kingdom Richmond Park Russell family, Bertrand Russell Set theorists University of California, Los Angeles faculty University of Chicago faculty Utilitarians The Nation (U.S. magazine) people Atheism in the United Kingdom Nonviolence advocates Anti-Stalinist left