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Michael David Knowles (born Michael Clive Knowles, 29 September 1896 – 21 November 1974) was an English
Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...
monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...
,
Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...
, and historian, who became Regius Professor of Modern History at the
University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
from 1954 to 1963.


Biography

Born Michael Clive Knowles on 29 September 1896 in Studley, Warwickshire, England, Knowles was educated at
Downside School Downside School is a co-educational Catholic independent boarding and day school in the English public school tradition for pupils aged 11 to 18. It is located between Bath, Frome, Wells and Bruton, and is attached to Downside Abbey. Originall ...
, run by the monks of Downside Abbey, and
Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 170 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as ...
, where he took a
first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
in both philosophy and classics.


Monk

In July 1914 Knowles finished at Downside School and immediately moved into the monastery. He was clothed in the September and became a member of the monastic community, being given the religious name of David, by which he was always known thereafter. After completing the
novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...
he was sent by the
abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...
to the Pontifical Athenaeum of St. Anselm in Rome for his theological studies. Returning to Downside, he was
ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...
a priest in 1922. His research into the early monastic history of England was assisted by the library built up at Downside by
Dom Dom or DOM may refer to: People and fictional characters * Dom (given name), including fictional characters * Dom (surname) * Dom La Nena (born 1989), stage name of Brazilian-born cellist, singer and songwriter Dominique Pinto * Dom people, an et ...
Raymund Webster. Dom David Knowles became the leader of a faction of the younger monks of the abbey who wanted to resist the growing demands of the school on the pattern of monastic life at the abbey. They advocated a more contemplative life as the goal of their lives as monks. This effort led to a period of major conflict within the community and he was transferred to
Ealing Abbey Ealing Abbey is a Catholic Benedictine monastery, monastic foundation on Castlebar Hill in Ealing. It is part of the English Benedictine Congregation. As of 2020, the Abbey had 14 monks. History The monastery at Ealing was founded in 1897 from ...
, another teaching establishment, where he resided 1933–1940.


Academic at Cambridge

In 1944 Knowles was elected into a research fellowship in medieval studies at Peterhouse in the University of Cambridge, where he would remain for the duration of his academic career. In 1947 he was appointed as Professor of Medieval History and then, in 1954, he became the Regius Professor of Modern History, a post he held until his retirement in 1963. He served as president of the
Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society, founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the Histori ...
from 1957 to 1961; and was the first President of the
Ecclesiastical History Society The Ecclesiastical History Society (EHS) is a British learned historical society founded in 1961 to foster interest in, and to advance the study of, all areas of the history of the Christian Church through twice yearly conferences and publication ...
(1961–63). While pursuing his academic life at Cambridge, Knowles was eventually, at the instigation of Abbot
Christopher Butler Christopher Butler (7 May 1902 – 20 September 1986), born Basil Butler, was a convert from the Church of England to the Roman Catholic Church, a Bishop, a scholar, and a Benedictine Monk. After his Solemn Profession as a Monk and his Or ...
, exclaustrated from Downside Abbey and finally released from his vows. Before his death on 21 November 1974 from a heart attack, however, he was readmitted to the order. Knowles is best known for his history of early English monasticism, ''The Monastic Order in England: A History of Its Development from the Times of St. Dunstan to the Fourth Lateran Council, 940–1216'' (1940). His three-volume work, ''The Religious Orders in England'' (1948–1959), is also highly regarded by scholars in English medieval ecclesiastical history. In 1962 he published a textbook, ''The Evolution of Medieval Thought'' (2nd ed. 1988), that "dominated medieval history courses in U.S. colleges for a quarter of a century". He has been criticised for excluding nunneries from consideration in ''Medieval Religious Houses'' on the grounds that there was insufficient evidence to draw on (a lack remedied in more recent scholarship).. See also


Published works

*''The American Civil War: A Brief Sketch'' (1926) *''The Monastic Order in England: A History of Its Development from the Times of St Dunstan to the Fourth Lateran Council, 943–1216'' (1940, 2nd ed. 1963) *''The Religious Houses of Medieval England'' (1940) *''The Prospects of Medieval Studies'' (1947) *''The Religious Orders in England'' (three volumes, forming a continuation after 1216 AD of ''The Monastic Order in England'') (1948–59) *''Archbishop Thomas Becket: A Character Study'' (1949) *''Monastic Constitutions of Lanfranc'' (1951) translator *''Episcopal Colleagues of Archbishop Thomas Becket'' (1951) Ford Lectures 1949 *''Monastic Sites From The Air'' (1952) with J. S. K. St. Joseph *''Medieval Religious Houses: England and Wales'', with R. Neville Hadcock (1953, 2nd ed. 1971) *''The Historian and Character'' (1954) Inaugural Lecture *''Charterhouse: The Medieval Foundation in the Light of Recent Discoveries'' (1954) with W. F. Grimes *''Cardinal Gasquet as an Historian'' (1957) *''The English Mystical Tradition'' (1961) *''The Evolution of Medieval Thought'' (1962) *''Saints and Scholars: Twenty-Five Medieval Portraits'' (1962) *''The Benedictines: A Digest for Moderns'' (1962) *''Great Historical Enterprises; Problems in Monastic History'' (1963) *''The Historian and Character and Other Essays'' (1963) with others, presentation volume *''Lord Macaulay, 1800–1859'' (1963) *''From Pachomius to Ignatius: A Study in the Constitutional History of the Religious Orders'' (1966) *''The Nature of Mysticism'' (1966) *''What is Mysticism?'' (1967) *''Authority'' (1969) *''Christian Monasticism'' (1969) *''The Christian Centuries: The Middle Ages'', volume 2 (1969) with Dimitri Obolensky *''The Heads of Religious Houses: England and Wales, 940–1216'' (1972) with
Christopher N. L. Brooke Christopher Nugent Lawrence Brooke (23 June 1927 – 27 December 2015) was a British medieval historian. From 1974 to 1994 he was Dixie Professor of Ecclesiastical History at the University of Cambridge. Early life and education Born on 2 ...
, Vera C. M. London *''Bare Ruined Choirs: The Dissolution of the English Monasteries'' (1976) *''Thomas Becket'' (1977)


References


Notes


Works cited

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Further reading

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External links


David Knowles
at the
National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: *National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra *National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...
, London. {{DEFAULTSORT:Knowles, David 1896 births 1974 deaths English Benedictines Benedictine scholars 20th-century English Roman Catholic priests Anglo-Saxon studies scholars British medievalists People educated at Downside School Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge Place of death missing People from Stratford-on-Avon District Pontifical Atheneum of St. Anselm alumni Historians of monasticism Professors of Medieval History (Cambridge) Fellows of the Royal Historical Society Presidents of the Royal Historical Society Presidents of the Ecclesiastical History Society Fellows of Peterhouse, Cambridge Mysticism scholars Regius Professors of History (Cambridge) Presidents of the Classical Association