John Petrov Plamenatz (born as Jovan Petrov Plamenac; sr-cyrl, Јован Петров Пламенац; 16 May 1912 – 19 February 1975) was a Montenegrin political philosopher, who spent most of his academic life 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 ...
. He is best known for his analysis of political obligation and his theory of democracy.
Biography
Born to an upper-class family that had to flee
Montenegro
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, image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Podgorica
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, official_languages = M ...
after the German and Austro-Hungarian occupation in 1916, Plamenatz came to
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
as a boy and was raised there. His father Peter was a politician active in
True People's Party
The True People's Party ( sr, Права народна странка, Prava narodna stranka, abbr. ПНС/ PNS), also known as the Pravaši (''Rightists''), was a conservative and royalist political party in the Principality of Montenegro and the ...
and served for one term as a Foreign Minister for Montenegro, while his mother was of aristocratic background. Peter Plamenatz was forced to leave Montenegro in 1917, and John was sent to England.
He was educated at
Clayesmore School
Clayesmore School is an independent school for boys and girls, aged 2 – 18 years, in the village of Iwerne Minster, Dorset, England. It is both a day and boarding school and is a member of The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HM ...
, whose head master and founder,
Alexander Devine
Alexander Devine (19 December 1865 — 26 December 1930), often known as Lex Devine, was a British educator and activist for Montenegro, Montenegrin independence.
He became involved in social work at an early point, founding the Lads' Club Move ...
, was an activist for the Montenegrin cause, and at
Oriel College, Oxford
Oriel College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title formerly claimed by University College, wh ...
, where he read history. Plamenatz's speciality was political theory, which he spent most of his academic life teaching 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 ...
. When
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
broke out, he joined an anti-aircraft battery, and he was naturalized in 1941. At the end of the war, he returned to
All Souls, and he spent the rest of his life at Oxford. From 1951 to 1967 he was a research fellow at
Nuffield College
Nuffield College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is a graduate college and specialises in the social sciences, particularly economics, politics and sociology. Nuffield is one of Oxford's newer co ...
, before returning to All Souls as Chichele Professor. He was a Fellow of
All Souls College
All Souls College (official name: College of the Souls of All the Faithful Departed) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full members of t ...
, 1936–51, and from 1951 to 1967 a Fellow of
Nuffield College
Nuffield College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is a graduate college and specialises in the social sciences, particularly economics, politics and sociology. Nuffield is one of Oxford's newer co ...
. He returned to All Souls as a professorial Fellow in 1967 when he succeeded
Isaiah Berlin
Sir Isaiah Berlin (6 June 1909 – 5 November 1997) was a Russian-British social and political theorist, philosopher, and historian of ideas. Although he became increasingly averse to writing for publication, his improvised lectures and talks ...
as
Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory Chichele is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Henry Chichele ( 1364–1443), English religious leader
**Chichele Professorship
*Thomas Chichele
Sir Thomas Chicheley (25 March 1614 – 1 February 1699) of Wimpole Hall, Cambridg ...
.
He was a member of the
government in exile
A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group that claims to be a country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Governments in exile us ...
of the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. During this period he wrote "The Case of General Mihailovic".
In 1943 he married Marjorie Hunter, one of his students; there were no children. He lived at All Souls and at Scotland Mount, Hook Norton,
Banbury
Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census.
Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...
,
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
. His principal recreation was walking.
Works
* ''Consent, Freedom and Political Obligation'' (1938)
* ''What is Communism?'' (1947) with
Stephen King-Hall
William Stephen Richard King-Hall, Baron King-Hall of Headley (21 January 1893 – 2 June 1966) was a British naval officer, writer, politician and playwright who served as the member of parliament for Ormskirk from 1939 to 1945.
Early life and ...
* ''The English Utilitarians, with a reprint of Mill's Utilitarianism'' (1949) and later editions
* ''The Revolutionary Movement in France 1815 to 1871'' (1952)
* ''From Marx to Stalin'' (1953)
* ''German Marxism and Russian Communism'' (1954)
* ''On Alien Rule and Self-Government'' (1960)
* ''
Man & Society. A Critical Examination of Some Important Social & Political Theories from Machiavelli to Marx'' (2 vols, 1963) and later editions
* ''Readings from Liberal Writers, English and French'' (1965) editor
* ''Leviathan'', edited & abridged by John Plamenatz. Thomas Hobbes (Author). Publisher: London: Fontana (1969)
* ''Ideology'' (1970)
* ''Democracy and Illusion: An Examination of Certain Aspects of Modern Democratic Theory'' (1973)
* ''Karl Marx's Philosophy of Man'' (1975)
* ''Machiavelli, Hobbes, and Rousseau'' (2012)
References
*
Lecture referencing Plamenatz from the BBC*''Who was Who, 1971-80'', London : A. & C. Black, 1981
*, a collection of essays by and about Plamenatz.
Pierre_Birnbaum,_Geography_of_Hope:_Exile,_the_Enlightenment,_Disassimilation,_pp. 248–249.html" ;"title="Pierre Birnbaum">
Pierre_Birnbaum">Pierre_Birnbaum,_Geography_of_Hope:_Exile,_the_Enlightenment,_Disassimilation,_pp. 248–249
__External_links_
*
Plamenatz,_John_Petrov,_1912-1975
'_Geoffrey_Marshall_(constitutionalist).html" ;"title="Pierre Birnbaum
, Geography of Hope: Exile, the Enlightenment, Disassimilation, pp. 248–249">Pierre Birnbaum">Pierre Birnbaum
, Geography of Hope: Exile, the Enlightenment, Disassimilation, pp. 248–249
External links
*
Plamenatz, John Petrov, 1912-1975
' Geoffrey Marshall (constitutionalist)">Geoffrey Marshall, ''Proceedings Of The British Academy'' v.62, 1977
{{DEFAULTSORT:Plamenatz, John
1912 births
1975 deaths
Political philosophers
People educated at Clayesmore School
Chichele Professors of Social and Political Theory
Fellows of All Souls College, Oxford
Fellows of Nuffield College, Oxford
Montenegrin people of Jewish descent
Fellows of the British Academy
Montenegrin emigrants to the United Kingdom
Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom