David Bayne Horn (1901–1969) was a British historian specializing in diplomatic and

European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD 500), the Middle Ages (AD 500 to AD 1500), and the modern era (since AD 1500). The first early ...

of the 17th through 19th centuries.

Biography

Horn was born on 9 July 1901. His uncle, also David Bayne Horn (1851–1917?), had been assigned to the Public Works Department in

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

. Horn was educated first at Edinburgh Institution, then studied at

Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1582 ...

, where he earned a first class honors degree in history. He subsequently received his MA in 1922. In 1923, Horn joined the staff of the History Department of the University as an Assistant in History. In 1927 he became a Lecturer in History, and in 1929, he was awarded the degree of D.Litt. at the University for his thesis on Sir

Charles Hanbury Williams Sir Charles Hanbury Williams, KB (8 December 1708 – 2 November 1759) was a Welsh diplomat, writer and satirist. He was a Member of Parliament from 1734 until his death. Early life Hanbury was the son of a Welsh ironmaster and Member of Parl ...

and European diplomacy. In 1954, he became Professor of Modern History. A writer as well as a lecturer, Horn's main interest lay in the field of 18th century

diplomatic history Diplomatic history deals with the history of international relations between states. Diplomatic history can be different from international relations in that the former can concern itself with the foreign policy of one state while the latter deals ...

and, in particular, 18th century British foreign policy. In his research, he reconstructed the social and political lives of

diplomats A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internatio ...

and envoys through their private and public papers. In 1967 he wrote a short history of the University of Edinburgh; when he died on 7 August 1969, Horn was engaged in writing a full-length history.University of Edinburgh
D.B. Horn papers
1969. Accessed 25 September 2017.

Selected publications

*''A History of Europe, 1871-1920 (1927)'' *''British Diplomatic Representatives, 1689-1789'' (1932) *''Scottish Diplomatists, 1689-1789'' (1944) *''British Public Opinion and the First Partition of Poland'' (1945) *''British Diplomatic Service, 1689-1789'' (1961) *''Frederick the Great and the Rise of Prussia'' (1964) *''Great Britain and Europe in the Eighteenth Century'' (1967)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Horn, David Bayne 1901 births 1969 deaths 20th-century Scottish historians Academics of the University of Edinburgh