Gordon Johnson,

FRAS FRAS may refer to: * Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, post-nominal letters * Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland Fellows of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland are individuals who have bee ...

(born 1943) is a British

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

colonial India Colonial India was the part of the Indian subcontinent that was occupied by European colonial powers during the Age of Discovery. European power was exerted both by conquest and trade, especially in spices. The search for the wealth and prosper ...

Biography

Born on 13 September 1943, Johnson was educated at

Richmond School Richmond School & Sixth Form College, often referred to simply as Richmond School, is a Mixed-sex education, coeducational secondary school located in North Yorkshire, England. It was created by the merger of three schools, the oldest of which ...

in North Yorkshire and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

. He was a fellow at Trinity from 1966 to 1974, and at Selwyn College from 1974 to 1993. He was appointed as a

lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

Oriental studies Oriental studies is the academic field that studies Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology. In recent years, the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Middle Eastern studi ...

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 ...

in 1974, remaining in that position until 2005. He was the President of

Wolfson College, Cambridge Wolfson College () is a colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The majority of students at the college are postgraduate education, postgraduates. The college also a ...

, from 1993 to 2010, and is now an honorary fellow of the college. He was the Director of the Cambridge University Centre of South Asian Studies from 1983 to 2001, and had been a Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the university from 2002 to 2010. He served as the first Provost of the Gates Cambridge Scholarship Trust from 2000 to 2010, and as chair of the Syndicate governing

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 ...

from 1981 to 2010. He was the President of the

Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS), was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the en ...

, 2015 to 2018. He is the General Editor of the ''New Cambridge History of India'', published in 1979.

Select publications

* A commentary on Cornford's 1908 book ''

Microcosmographia Academica ''Microcosmographia Academica'' ("A Study of a Tiny Academic World" in Latin) is a short pamphlet on university politics written by F. M. Cornford and published in 1908. It has acquired a small cult following as a pessimistic view of academic p ...

''.

References

External links

Brief biography on Wolfson College website
1943 births 20th-century British historians 21st-century British historians Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Historians of South Asia Honorary Fellows of Selwyn College, Cambridge Institute directors Living people Presidents of the Royal Asiatic Society Presidents of Wolfson College, Cambridge {{UK-historian-stub