Henry Spenser Wilkinson (1 May 1853 in
Hulme
Hulme () is an inner city area and Ward (politics), electoral ward of Manchester, England, immediately south of Manchester city centre. It has a significant industrial heritage.
Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, the nam ...
, Manchester – 31 January 1937 in
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
) was the first
Chichele Professor of Military History
The Chichele Professorships are statutory professorships at the University of Oxford named in honour of Henry Chichele (also spelt Chicheley or Checheley, although the spelling of the academic position is consistently "Chichele"), an Archbishop o ...
at
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. While he was an English writer known primarily for his work on military subjects, he had wide interests. Earlier in his career he was the drama critic for London's ''
Morning Post
''The Morning Post'' was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by ''The Daily Telegraph''.
History
The paper was founded by John Bell. According to historian Robert Darnton, ''The Morning Po ...
''.
Early life and education
The second son of Thomas Read Wilkinson, a banker, and his wife Emma Wolfenden, he was born and raised near
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
. He was educated at
Owens College Owens may refer to:
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* Owens (surname), including a list of people with the name
* Ow ...
, Manchester and studied at
Merton College, Oxford
Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is one of the Colleges of Oxford University, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the ...
in 1873–1878. While at Oxford, he became interested in armies and began his lifelong interest in military affairs. As an undergraduate, he joined the
Oxford Volunteers. After Oxford, he read law at
Lincoln's Inn
The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...
and was called to the
bar
Bar or BAR may refer to:
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* Candy bar
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Science and technology
* Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment
* Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud
* Bar (u ...
in 1880. On returning to Manchester in 1880, he took a commission in the volunteers and also founded the
Manchester Tactical Society
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
.
In 1880, Wilkinson married Victoria Crowe (1868–1929), daughter of Sir
Joseph Archer Crowe
Sir Joseph Archer Crowe (25 October 1825, London – 6 September 1896, Gamburg an der Tauber, today Werbach, Germany) was an English journalist, consular official and art historian, whose volumes of the ''History of Painting in Italy'', co ...
and niece of the artist
Eyre Crowe
Sir Eyre Alexander Barby Wichart Crowe (30 July 1864 – 28 April 1925) was a British diplomat, an expert on Germany in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He is best known for his vehement warning, in 1907, that Germany's expansionism was mo ...
. Together, he and his wife had two sons and four daughters.
Career as a journalist
From 1882 to 1892 he was on the staff of the ''
Manchester Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', for which he wrote occasional pieces on military subjects and was sent on a short-term assignment to cover
Lord Wolseley's campaign in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
in 1883. He was made redundant in 1892 because of
C.P. Scott's view that Wilkinson did not follow the principles of the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
. Through his friendship with
Lord Roberts, Wilkinson obtained a post on the staff of the ''London
Morning Post
''The Morning Post'' was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by ''The Daily Telegraph''.
History
The paper was founded by John Bell. According to historian Robert Darnton, ''The Morning Po ...
'' from 1895 to 1914.
Convinced as early as 1874 that Great Britain was inadequately armed, he increasingly devoted his attention to the subject of the national defence. He became a key figure in the founding of the
Navy League of Great Britain
The Marine Society & Sea Cadets is seafarers' charity in the United Kingdom and the national organisation for sea cadets. It was formed in 2004 when the Sea Cadets and The Marine Society merged. It is a registered charity in England, Wales and ...
in 1894 and a serious student of the German military philosopher
Carl von Clausewitz
Carl Philipp Gottfried (or Gottlieb) von Clausewitz (; 1 June 1780 – 16 November 1831) was a Prussian general and military theorist who stressed the "moral", in modern terms meaning psychological, and political aspects of waging war. His mos ...
. During the early months of the
Boer War
The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...
(1899–1900) and made remarkably accurate forecasts of military movements. Wilkinson's views on military affairs were widely influential. At the
Foreign Office
Foreign may refer to:
Government
* Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries
* Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries
** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government
** Foreign office and foreign minister
* Unit ...
, Wilkinson's wife's brother, Sir
Eyre Crowe
Sir Eyre Alexander Barby Wichart Crowe (30 July 1864 – 28 April 1925) was a British diplomat, an expert on Germany in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He is best known for his vehement warning, in 1907, that Germany's expansionism was mo ...
, summarised much of Wilkinson's argument from his 1896 book ''The National Awakening'' in his famous 1 January 1907 memorandum on British relations with France and Germany.
Academic career
Wilkinson was very well connected to key figures in politics and in the armed forces as he journalist and had long hoped for an academic appointment, as his interests increasingly turned toward historical study. He was elected the first
Chichele Professor of Military History
The Chichele Professorships are statutory professorships at the University of Oxford named in honour of Henry Chichele (also spelt Chicheley or Checheley, although the spelling of the academic position is consistently "Chichele"), an Archbishop o ...
in 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 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 ...
in 1909. During World War I he became—like Clausewitz's foremost German proponent at the time,
Hans Delbrück
Hans Gottlieb Leopold Delbrück (; 11 November 1848 – 14 July 1929) was a German historian. Delbrück was one of the first modern military historians, basing his method of research on the critical examination of ancient sources, using auxiliary ...
—an energetic critic of his nation's counterproductive strategy and policy. He remained an influential voice in Britain until his death in 1937.
Bibliography
* ''Essays toward the Improvement of the Volunteer Forces'' (1886)
* ''The Brain of an Army'' (1890, 2 ed. 1895
reprinted 1913, an account of the
German general staff
The German General Staff, originally the Prussian General Staff and officially the Great General Staff (german: Großer Generalstab), was a full-time body at the head of the Prussian Army and later, the German Army, responsible for the continuou ...
* ''Imperial Defence'' (1892), with
Sir Charles Dilke
* ''The Command of the Sea'' (1894)
* ''The Brain of the Navy'' (1895)
* ''The Nation's Awakening'' (1896)
* ''British Policy in South Africa'' (1899)
* ''War and Policy'' (1900)
* as editor: ''The Nation's Need: Chapters on Education'' (1903)
* ''Britain at Bay'' (1909)
* ''
Hannibal
Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Puni ...
's March through the
Alps
The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
'' (1911)
* ''First Lessons in War'' (1914)
* ''The French Army before
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
'' (1915)
* ''The Nation's Servants'' (1916)
* ''The Defence of Piedmont, 1742–1748: A Prelude to the Study of Napoleon'' (1927)
For on-line examples of Wilkinson's writings, see:
Strategy in the Navy ''The Morning Post'', 3 August 1909. This essay is essentially an attack on the influential British naval theorist
Julian Stafford Corbett's interpretation of Clausewitz and on Corbett's influence on the Royal Navy.
Killing No Murder: An Examination of Some New Theories of War ''Army Quarterly'' 14 (October 1927). This is a bitingly critical response to
B.H. Liddell Hart
Sir Basil Henry Liddell Hart (31 October 1895 – 29 January 1970), commonly known throughout most of his career as Captain B. H. Liddell Hart, was a British soldier, military historian and military theorist. He wrote a series of military histo ...
's book, ''The Remaking of Modern Armies'' (London: J. Murray, 1927).
Sources
* Scammell, J. M. "Spenser Wilkinson and the Defense of Britain." ''Journal of Military History'' 4 (1940): 129–14
online*
William Archer William or Bill Archer may refer to:
* William Archer (British politician) (1677–1739), British politician
* William S. Archer (1789–1855), U.S. Senator and Representative from Virginia
* William Beatty Archer (1793–1870), Illinois politician ...
, ''Real Conversations'' (London, 1904)
*
John B. Hattendorf
John Brewster Hattendorf, D.Phil., D.Litt., L.H.D., FRHistS, FSNR, (born December 22, 1941) is an American naval historian. He is the author, co-author, editor, or co-editor of more than fifty books, mainly on British and American maritime hi ...
, "The Study of War History at Oxford" in Hattendorf and Malcolm H. Murfett, eds., ''The Limitations of Military Power'' (1990).
*
Jay Luvaas, ''The Education of an Army: British Military Thought, 1815–1940'' (1965.
*
A. J. A. Morris
Andrew James Anthony Morris (born 1936) is a historian.
He was educated at the London School of Economics and in 1974 was appointed Head of the School of Philosophy, Politics and History at Ulster College (now the University of Ulster). In 1981 he ...
, "Wilkinson, (Henry) Spencer (1853–1937)" in ''
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
''. (2004)
Wilkinson's Papers are located at the
National Army Museum
The National Army Museum is the British Army's central museum. It is located in the Chelsea district of central London, adjacent to the Royal Hospital Chelsea, the home of the "Chelsea Pensioners". The museum is a non-departmental public body. ...
, London. His correspondence with
Sir Charles Dilke is in the
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...
, Add MSS 43915-43916 and his Correspondence with Sir
Basil Liddell Hart
Sir Basil Henry Liddell Hart (31 October 1895 – 29 January 1970), commonly known throughout most of his career as Captain B. H. Liddell Hart, was a British soldier, military historian and military theorist. He wrote a series of military histo ...
is at
King's College London
King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...
For an extended discussion of Wilkinson, see
Chapter 9 "Major British Military Writers," an
section "Wilkinson on Liddell Hart and Clausewitz," in
Christopher Bassford
Christopher Bassford (born 1953) is an American military historian, best known for his works on the Prussian military philosopher Carl von Clausewitz.
Life
He was Professor of Strategy at the National War College in Washington, D.C., from 1999 ...
, ''Clausewitz in English: The Reception of Clausewitz in Britain and America, 1815–1945'' (New York: Oxford University Press, 1994).
References
*
External links
*
*
*
The South Manchester Tactical Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkinson, Spenser
British military writers
1853 births
1937 deaths
Alumni of Merton College, Oxford
Fellows of All Souls College, Oxford
British military historians
People from Hulme
Chichele Professors of the History of War