Hugh Macilwain Last (3 December 1894 – 25 October 1957) was

Camden Professor of Ancient History The Camden Professorship of Ancient History at the University of Oxford was established in 1622 by English antiquary and historian William Camden, Clarenceux King of Arms, and endowed with the income of the manor of Bexley, becoming the first and ...

at 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 ...

and Principal of Brasenose College, Oxford.

Early life

Last was born in London on 3 December 1894; his father was William Last, director of the

Science Museum A science museum is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, industry and industrial machinery, etc. Modern trends in mu ...

. He was educated at

St Paul's School, London (''By Faith and By Learning'') , established = , closed = , type = Independent school Public school , religion = Church of England , president = , he ...

and then

Lincoln College, Oxford Lincoln College (formally, The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford, situated on Turl Street in central Oxford. Lincoln was founded in 1427 by Richard Fleming, the ...

. Starting late at university because of health problems, he obtained a first-class degree in '' literae humaniores'' (classics) in 1918.

Academic career

Last was appointed as a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of St John's College, Oxford in 1919. His interest in the history of

Ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 B ...

had been sparked at school by the classical historian

T. Rice Holmes Thomas Rice Edward Holmes, FBA (24 May 1855 – 4 August 1933), who usually published his works under the names T. Rice Holmes or T.R.E. Holmes, was a scholar best known for his extensive and "fundamental" work on Julius Caesar and his Gall ...

, who taught at St Paul's, and continued at Lincoln under

William Warde Fowler William Warde Fowler (16 May 1847 – 15 June 1921) was an England, English historian and ornithologist, and tutor at Lincoln College, Oxford, Lincoln College, Oxford. He was best known for his works on religion in ancient Rome, ancient Roman ...

. His interests also broadened into related spheres such as ancient Oriental history. In 1927, he was appointed as a university lecturer in Roman history, and became

in 1936, a post that carried with it a fellowship at

Brasenose College Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the m ...

. During the Second World War he worked at the British codebreaking centre at

Bletchley Park Bletchley Park is an English country house and estate in Bletchley, Milton Keynes ( Buckinghamshire) that became the principal centre of Allied code-breaking during the Second World War. The mansion was constructed during the years following ...

, and in 1948 became the Principal of Brasenose, despite his health and the college's poor financial position. He was on the governing body of

Abingdon School Abingdon School is a day and boarding independent school for boys in Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England. The twentieth oldest independent British school, it celebrated its 750th anniversary in 2006. The school was described as "highly ...

from 1947-1950.

Later life

He retired because his health difficulties in 1956. He died, unmarried, on 25 October 1957.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Last, Hugh Macilwain 1894 births 1957 deaths English classical scholars People educated at St Paul's School, London Alumni of Lincoln College, Oxford Fellows of St John's College, Oxford Fellows of Brasenose College, Oxford Principals of Brasenose College, Oxford Historians of antiquity Camden Professors of Ancient History Governors of Abingdon School Presidents of The Roman Society