William Miller, FBA (8 December 1864 – 23 October 1945) was a British-born

medievalist The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vo ...

and journalist.

Biography

The son of a

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

mine owner, Miller was educated at

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. ...

and

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 ...

, where he gained a double first, and was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1889, but never practised law. He married Ada Mary Wright in 1895, and in 1896 published ''The Balkans'', followed in 1898 by ''Travels and Politics in the Near East''. In 1903 he and his wife left England for

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, and despite an effort by

Ronald Burrows Ronald Montagu Burrows (16 August 1867 – 14 May 1920) was a British archaeologist and academic, who served as Principal of King's College London from 1913 to 1920. Biography He was born on 16 August 1867 in Rugby, Warwickshire, England, t ...

to recruit Miller as the first incumbent of the Chair of

Modern Greek Modern Greek (, , or , ''Kiní Neoellinikí Glóssa''), generally referred to by speakers simply as Greek (, ), refers collectively to the dialects of the Greek language spoken in the modern era, including the official standardized form of the ...

and

Byzantine History This history of the Byzantine Empire covers the history of the Eastern Roman Empire from late antiquity until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453 AD. Several events from the 4th to 6th centuries mark the transitional period during which the Rom ...

, Language, and Literature at

London University 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- ...

, he and his wife spent the rest of their lives abroad. They lived in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

(at ''Via Palestro'' 36) until 1923, when Miller found

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

's rise to power distasteful, and they moved to

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

. There he was associated with the British School at Athens until the

German invasion of Greece The German invasion of Greece, also known as the Battle of Greece or Operation Marita ( de , Unternehmen Marita, links = no), was the attack of Greece by Italy and Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usu ...

in 1941. During his time in Rome and Athens, Miller also served as correspondent of the ''

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 ...

''. Together the couple lived in the Ocean View Hotel in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, for the rest of their lives. Miller died there in 1945, while Ada Mary surviving him by five years. They had no children. Miller was a

fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in the United Kingdom # C ...

and foreign corresponding member of Academy of Athens.

Works

Miller was particularly interested in the Frankish period of Greek history, covering the Crusader principalities established on Greek soil following the

Fourth Crusade The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) was a Latin Christian armed expedition called by Pope Innocent III. The stated intent of the expedition was to recapture the Muslim-controlled city of Jerusalem, by first defeating the powerful Egyptian Ayyubid S ...

. He was among the most eminent scholars of the field in the early 20th century, and produced a number of "landmark" studies. Although his work displays a "romantic view of the Crusades and the Frankish expansion into the Eastern Mediterranean" typical of 19th-century Western trends on the subject, and is considered "clearly outdated" given the research produced in recent decades, it has had a major influence and remains widely used to this day. Particularly the 1908 ''The Latins in the Levant'' has "remained for decades the standard English-language narrative account of the period", and is "still the main reference for undergraduates in search of information on medieval Greece". Its influence has also been felt in Greece, where already in 1909–1910 the Greek scholar

Spyridon Lambros Spyridon Lambros or Lampros ( el, Σπυρίδων Λάμπρος; 1851–1919) was a Greek history professor and briefly Prime Minister of Greece during the National Schism. Biography He was born in Corfu in 1851 and was educated in London, Paris ...

issued an expanded Greek translation of the work.

Selected bibliography

* * * * * *
(4th ed), 1936
* * * * * * * * *: Published in USA by C. Scribner’s Sons from name «Ottoman Empire and Greece»

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, William 1864 births 1945 deaths British expatriates in Italy British male journalists British medievalists British Byzantinists British expatriates in Greece British emigrants to South Africa Frankokratia Historians of the Crusades Historians of medieval Greece Scholars of Byzantine history Fellows of the British Academy Members of the Academy of Athens (modern)