Theodore Zeldin (born 22 August 1933) is a British academic and current Associate Fellow of

Green Templeton College, Oxford Green Templeton College (GTC) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. The college is located on the former Green College site on Woodstock Road next to the Radcliffe Observatory Quarter in North Oxford and i ...

. He is the author of ''A History of French Passions'', a quotidian history of the French people, as well as ''An Intimate History of Humanity''. He is also a Fellow of

St Antony's College, Oxford St Antony's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1950 as the result of the gift of French merchant Sir Antonin Besse of Aden, St Antony's specialises in international relations, economics, politic ...

, having previously been its dean for 13 years, and a Fellow of the

British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...

and the

Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820 by King George IV to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 800 Fellows, elect ...

Personal life

Theodore Zeldin was born on 22 August 1933, the son of

Russian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest po ...

parents who later chose to become naturalised

British subjects The term "British subject" has several different meanings depending on the time period. Before 1949, it referred to almost all subjects of the British Empire (including the United Kingdom, Dominions, and colonies, but excluding protectorates ...

. His father was a civil engineer, an expert in bridge-building, a colonel in the Russian Czarist Army, and a socialist who rejected the

Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

. Zeldin's mother, the daughter of an industrialist, was a dentist who completed her training in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. Escaping from the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

, Zeldin's parents emigrated to

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

, where his father worked for the

British Colonial Service The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...

building railways. He was disappointed by the failure of the movement for Arab-Jewish solidarity, which he favoured together with other scientists and intellectuals, and of which the railwaymen's trade union was a vocal advocate. Zeldin was educated at the English School Heliopolis (a coeducational

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

) and at Aylesbury Grammar School. He graduated from

Birkbeck, University of London Birkbeck, University of London (formally Birkbeck College, University of London), is a Public university, public research university located in London, England, and a constituent college, member institution of the University of London. Establ ...

at the age of 17, having studied philosophy, history, and

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

, and then from

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

studying

modern history The modern era or the modern period is considered the current historical period of human history. It was originally applied to the history of Europe and Western history for events that came after the Middle Ages, often from around the year 1500, ...

. He received Firsts from both, followed by a doctorate from the newly established

St Antony's College St Antony's College is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1950 as the result of the gift of French merchant Sir Antonin Besse of Aden, St Antony's specialises in intern ...

in Oxford. He has been a Fellow (now Emeritus) of the college since 1957 and was its dean for thirteen years, playing a lead role in developing it as the university's centre for international studies. Now, as an Associate Fellow of Green-Templeton College, Oxford, he is active in its Future of Work project. Zeldin has been elected a Fellow of the

and of the

, and is a member of the European Academy. He has been decorated as a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

, a Commander of the

Légion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

and a Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters of France. Zeldin also holds the Wolfson Prize, Britain's top award for history. He has been married to Deirdre Wilson, the co-inventor of

relevance theory Relevance theory is a framework for understanding the interpretation of utterances. It was first proposed by Dan Sperber and Deirdre Wilson, and is used within cognitive linguistics and pragmatics. The theory was originally inspired by the work ...

, since 1975; they live in an

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

house outside

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 ...

. His hobbies are 'gardening, painting and mending things'.

Publications

* ''The Political System of Napoleon III'' (1958) * Edited (with Anne Troisier de Diaz) Émile Ollivier, ''Journal: 1846-1863'' (1961) * ''Émile Ollivier and the Liberal Empire of Napoleon III'' (1963) * ''Conflicts in French Society: Anticlericalism, Education and Morals in the Nineteenth Century: Essays'' (1970) * ''France, 1848-1945: Volume I - Ambition, Love and Politics'' (1973) ''Volume II - Intellect, Taste and Anxiety'' (1977) (Oxford History of Modern Europe series). Rearranged and reissued with additional material as: *''History of French Passions'': vol 1: ''Ambition and Love''; vol 2: ''Intellect and Pride''; vol 3: ''Taste and Corruption''; vol 4: ''Politics and Anger''; vol 5: ''Anxiety and Hypocrisy'' (1979-81) * ''The French'' (1982) * Foreword to Jeremy Jennings, ''Georges Sorel: The Character and Development of His Thought'' (1985) * Introduction to ''Le tunnel sous la Manche: chronique d'une passion franco-anglaise'' (1987) * ''Happiness'' (novel) (1988) * ''An Intimate History of Humanity'' (1994) * ''Conversation'' (2000) * ''Guide to an Unknown City'' (2004) * ''Guide to an Unknown University'' (2006) * ''Gary Hill & Gerry Judah'' (with Jenny Blyth) (2007) * ''The Hidden Pleasures of Life: A New Way of Remembering the Past and Imagining the Future'' (2015)

References

External links

The Oxford Muse
– Zeldin's website
Feast of Strangers

Zeldin talks about "Happiness", ICA 1988

Theodore Zeldin interview
by Máirtín Mac Con Iomaire (Oxford Oral History Project)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zeldin, Theodore 1933 births Living people Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Alumni of Birkbeck, University of London Alumni of St Antony's College, Oxford Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Fellows of St Antony's College, Oxford People educated at Aylesbury Grammar School British people of Russian-Jewish descent 20th-century British historians 21st-century British historians 20th-century British male writers 21st-century British male writers Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Commanders of the Legion of Honour Commandeurs of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Conversationalists Elocutionists Wolfson History Prize winners Historians of the University of Oxford Fellows of Green Templeton College, Oxford