Bryan Ward-Perkins is an

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

and historian of the later

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

and early

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, with a particular focus on the transitional period between those two eras, an historical sub-field also known as

Late Antiquity Late antiquity is the time of transition from classical antiquity to the Middle Ages, generally spanning the 3rd–7th century in Europe and adjacent areas bordering the Mediterranean Basin. The popularization of this periodization in English ha ...

. Ward-Perkins is a fellow and tutor in history at

Trinity College, Oxford (That which you wish to be secret, tell to nobody) , named_for = The Holy Trinity , established = , sister_college = Churchill College, Cambridge , president = Dame Hilary Boulding , location = Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BH , coordinates ...

Early life and education

The son of historian

John Bryan Ward-Perkins John Bryan Ward-Perkins, (3 February 1912 – 28 May 1981) was a British Classical architectural historian and archaeologist, and director of the British School at Rome. Family and early life John Bryan Ward-Perkins was born on 3 February 19 ...

, he was born and raised in Rome and spoke Italian from childhood."A personal (and very patchy) account of medieval archaeology in the early 1970s in northern Italy"
by Bryan Ward-Perkins in ''European Journal of Post-Classical Archaeologies'', Vol. 1, 2011. He graduated from the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

with a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

(DPhil) degree in 1980: his

doctoral thesis A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...

was titled "Urban public building in Italy, north of Salerno 300–850 AD".

Academic interests

Ward-Perkins' published work has focused primarily on the urban and

economic history Economic history is the academic learning of economies or economic events of the past. Research is conducted using a combination of historical methods, statistical methods and the application of economic theory to historical situations and ins ...

of the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

and western Europe during

. His 2005 book, ''The Fall of Rome and the End of Civilization'', included statements addressing what he saw as an over-correction in the approaches of modern historiography to late Roman history. Using primarily archaeological evidence, Ward-Perkins takes issue with what he says is the "fashionable" idea that the western Roman Empire did not actually fall but instead experienced a mostly-benign transformation into the Christian kingdoms of

medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

. In his contrasting view, "the coming of the Germanic peoples was very unpleasant for the Roman population, and the long-term effects of the dissolution of the empire were dramatic." Ward-Perkins' contributions to fourteenth volume of ''

The Cambridge Ancient History ''The Cambridge Ancient History'' is a multi-volume work of ancient history from Prehistory to Late Antiquity, published by Cambridge University Press. The first series, consisting of 12 volumes, was planned in 1919 by Irish historian J. B. Bury ...

'' were praised by

Jan Willem Drijvers Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numb ...

and

Geoffrey Greatrex Geoffrey, Geoffroy, Geoff, etc., may refer to: People * Geoffrey (name), including a list of people with the name * Geoffroy (surname), including a list of people with the name * Geoffrey of Monmouth (c. 1095–c. 1155), clergyman and one of the m ...

, with the latter declaring that Ward-Perkins' chapters on the economy of the late Roman Empire were "among the finest of the volume".Geoffrey Greatrex, 'Reviewed Work: The Cambridge Ancient History XIV. Late Antiquity: Empire and Successors, AD 425–600 by Averil Cameron, Bryan Ward-Perkins and Michael Whitby', ''Phoenix'', Vol. 57, No. 1/2 (Spring - Summer, 2003), p. 183.

Awards and honours

*2006

Hessell-Tiltman Prize The Hessell-Tiltman History Prize is awarded to the best work of non-fiction of historical content covering a period up to and including World War II, and published in the year of the award. The books are to be of high literary merit, but not pr ...

, ''The Fall of Rome and the End of Civilization''

Selected works

*1984: ''From Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages: urban public building in Northern and Central Italy AD 300-850'' . Oxford:

Clarendon Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

*1998: "The Cities", in ''The Cambridge Ancient History, Vol. XIII: 337-425'' *2000: "Why Did The Anglo-Saxons not Become More British?" (''English Historical Review'', June 2000) *2001: ''The Cambridge Ancient History, Vol. XIV: 425-600'' (edited with

Averil Cameron Dame Averil Millicent Cameron ( Sutton; born 8 February 1940), often cited as A. M. Cameron, is a British historian. She was Professor of Late Antique and Byzantine History at the University of Oxford, and the Warden of Keble College, Oxford ...

and

Michael Whitby L. Michael Whitby is a British ancient historian of Late Antiquity. He specialises in late Roman history, early Byzantine history and historiography. He is currently pro-vice-chancellor and head of the College of Arts and Law at the University ...

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press A university press is an academic publishing hou ...

*2005: ''The Fall of Rome and the End of Civilization.'' Oxford:

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

References

External links

Staff profile at University of Oxford History Faculty

] at Oxford University Press
Podcast Bryan Ward-Perkins on the Fall of the Roman EmpireInterview about ''The Fall of Rome'' for ''Historically Speaking''.
(archived from the original) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ward-Perkins, Bryan English historians Fellows of Trinity College, Oxford Living people Year of birth missing (living people)