William Norton Medlicott (11 May 1900 – 7 October 1987) was a British historian. He was educated at

Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College Haberdashers' Hatcham College (formerly Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College) is a state secondary school with academy status and a music specialism located in New Cross. The school was formerly a grammar school, then a comprehensive City Tech ...

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = � ...

and the

Institute of Historical Research The Institute of Historical Research (IHR) is a British educational organisation providing resources and training for historical researchers. It is part of the School of Advanced Study in the University of London and is located at Senate Hous ...

.''The Times'' (9 October 1987), p. 20. In 1926 Medlicott took up a post at University College, Swansea and in 1936 he married Dorothy Kathleen Coveney. Medlicott worked at the Board of Trade for the first year of 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 opposing ...

before being selected by Sir Keith Hancock to be a member of the

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for supporting the prime minister and Cabinet. It is composed of various units that support Cabinet committees and which co-ordinate the delivery of government objecti ...

Historical Section. Medlicott published the results of his research in his two-volume work ''The Economic Blockade''. From 1945 to 1953 he was Professor of History at the University College of the South-West and in 1953 he was elected to the Stevenson Chair of International History at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

. Medlicott succeeded in transforming it into the largest and most successful department of its type in Britain. In his works he sought to interpret twentieth-century international relations in relation to strategic and economic factors. In 1968 he was appointed to deliver the

Creighton Lecture The Creighton Lecture is an annual lecture delivered at King's College, London on a topic in history. The series, which memorializes historian and prelate Mandell Creighton, began in 1907 with a grant of £650, half of which was donated by his wi ...

, published a year later as ''Britain and Germany: The Search for an Agreement''. He was also secretary and president of the Historical Association for six years and was prominent in the

Royal Institute of International Affairs Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ...

. After a proposal from Donald Read, the

Medlicott Medal The Medlicott Medal for Service to History is awarded annually by the Historical Association. The award is named for William Norton Medlicott, and was first made in 1985. Twenty-seven men have won the award, and nine women. Winners *2020 Rana Mi ...

was established in 1985 to recognise services to history.The Historical Association,
2017 Medlicott Medal
, (14 June 2017), retrieved 7 July 2018.

Works

* ''Congress of Berlin and After'' (London: Methuen, 1938). * ''British Foreign Policy since Versailles'' (London: Methuen, 1940; 2nd ed. 1968). * ''The Economic Blockade:'' ** ''Volume I'' (London: His Majesty's Stationery Office, 1952). ** ''Volume II'' (London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1959). * ''Bismarck, Gladstone and the Concert of Europe'' (London: University of London Athlone Press, 1956). * ''The Coming of War in 1939'' (London: George Routledge and Kegan Paul for The Historical Association, 1963). * ''Contemporary England, 1914–1964'' (London: Longmans, 1967). * ''Britain and Germany: The Search for an Agreement'' (London: University of London Athlone Press, 1969).

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Medlicott, William Norton 1900 births 1987 deaths Alumni of University College London Academics of Swansea University Academics of the University of London Commanders of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century English historians