Jean Edward Smith (October 13, 1932 – September 1, 2019) was a biographer and the John Marshall Professor of Political Science at

Marshall University Marshall University is a public research university in Huntington, West Virginia. It was founded in 1837 and is named after John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States. The university is currently composed of nine colleges ...

. He was also

professor emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

after having served as professor of

political economy Political economy is the study of how economic systems (e.g. markets and national economies) and political systems (e.g. law, institutions, government) are linked. Widely studied phenomena within the discipline are systems such as labour ...

there for thirty-five years. Smith was also on the faculty of the Master of American History and Government program at

Ashland University Ashland University is a private university in Ashland, Ohio. The university consists of a main campus and several off-campus centers throughout central and northern Ohio. Ashland was founded in 1878 as Ashland College. It is affiliated with T ...

. The winner of the 2008 Francis Parkman Prize and the 2002 finalist for the

Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography The Pulitzer Prize for Biography is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished biography, autobiography or memoir by an American author o ...

, Smith was called "today’s foremost biographer of formidable figures in American history."

Education and military service

A graduate of McKinley High School in Washington, D.C., Smith received an A.B. from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

in 1954. While attending Princeton, Smith was mentored under law professor and political scientist William M. Beaney. Serving in the military from 1954 to 1961, he rose to the rank of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

(RA)

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

(

Artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during si ...

). Smith served in

West Berlin West Berlin (german: Berlin (West) or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin during the years of the Cold War. Although West Berlin was de jure not part of West Germany, lacked any sovereignty, and was under mi ...

and

Dachau Dachau () was the first concentration camp built by Nazi Germany, opening on 22 March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents which consisted of: communists, social democrats, and other dissidents. It is lo ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

. In 1964, he obtained a Ph.D. from the Department of Public Law and Government of

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

Career

Smith began his teaching career as assistant professor of government at

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

, a post he held from 1963 until 1965. He then became a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professo ...

of political economy at the

in 1965 until his retirement in 1999. Smith also served as visiting professor at several universities during his tenure at the University of Toronto and after his retirement including the Freie Universität in Berlin,

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private research university in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll in 1789 as Georgetown College, the university has grown to comprise eleven undergraduate and graduate ...

, the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

’s Woodrow Wilson Department of Government and Foreign Affairs, the University of California at San Diego, and

in Huntington, West Virginia. He died on September 1, 2019, from complications of Parkinson's disease with his family by his side.

Bibliography

Smith won the 2008 Francis Parkman Prize for ''FDR'', his 2007 biography. He was the 2002 finalist for the

for ''Grant'', his 2001 biography. * ''The Defense of Berlin''. Baltimore:

Johns Hopkins University Press The Johns Hopkins University Press (also referred to as JHU Press or JHUP) is the publishing division of Johns Hopkins University. It was founded in 1878 and is the oldest continuously running university press in the United States. The press publ ...

, 1963. () * ''The Wall as Watershed''. Arlington, Virginia:

Institute for Defense Analyses The Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA) is an American non-profit corporation that administers three federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs) – the Systems and Analyses Center (SAC), the Science and Technology Policy Institute ...

, 1966. *
Germany Beyond the Wall: People, Politics, and Prosperity
'. Boston: Little, Brown, 1969. * ''The Papers of Lucius D. Clay: Germany, 1945-1949''. (ed.) Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 1974. * ''The Evolution of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...

with Four Plausible Threat Scenarios''. (with Steven L. Canby), Ottawa, Canada: Canada Department of National Defence, 1987. * ''The Conduct of American Foreign Policy Debated''. (with Herbert Levine) New York: McGraw-Hill, 1990. * ''Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Debated''. (with Herbert Levine) 1988. () * ''The Constitution and American Foreign Policy''. * ''Lucius D. Clay: An American Life''. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1990. () * ''George Bush's War''. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1992. () * ''John Marshall: Definer of a Nation''. New York: Henry, Holt & Company, 1996. () * ''The Face of Justice: Portraits of

John Marshall John Marshall (September 24, 1755July 6, 1835) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the fourth Chief Justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longes ...

''. (with William H. Gerdts, Wendell D. Garrett, Frederick S. Voss, and David B. Dearinger), Huntington, West Virginia: Huntington Museum of Art, 2001. () * ''Grant''. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2001. () * ''FDR''. New York: Random House, 2007. () * ''Eisenhower in War and Peace''. New York: Random House, 2012. () * ''Bush''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2016. () * ''The Liberation of Paris: How Eisenhower,

de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Governm ...

, and von Choltitz Saved the City of Light''. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2019. ()

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Jean Edward 1932 births 2019 deaths 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers Ashland University faculty Columbia University alumni Dartmouth College faculty Georgetown University faculty Legal historians Marshall University faculty Military personnel from Washington, D.C. Official biographers to the presidents of the United States Princeton University alumni United States Army officers University of California, San Diego faculty University of Toronto faculty University of Virginia faculty Writers from Washington, D.C. American male non-fiction writers