Joseph Hugh Shennan (13 March 1933 – 25 May 2015) was a British historian who was

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

European Studies European studies is a field of study offered by many academic colleges and universities that focuses on the History of Western civilization and the evolution of Western culture, as well as on current developments in European integration. Some ...

(1974–98) and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (1993–98) at the

University of Lancaster Lancaster University (officially The University of Lancaster) is a collegiate public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several new univer ...

. One of the pioneers in

, his research focussed primarily on the history of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

during the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

as well as on the history of

early modern Europe Early modern Europe, also referred to as the post-medieval period, is the period of European history between the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, roughly the mid 15th century to the late 18th century. Histori ...

Life

Shennan was born in 1933 to primary school teachers Hugh and Mary Shennan. He studied

History History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

at the

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

where he received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in 1955. From 1955 to 1957 he did his

National Service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

. In 1957, he continued his studies at

Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th c ...

where he received his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in 1960. He taught as Assistant Lecturer and later as

Lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

at the

. From 1965, he was employed at the

and played an important role in the establishment of the History Department. Over the years he taught as a Senior Lecturer and Reader. In the 1970s he was one of the pioneers of

. In 1971, he and like-minded people founded the journal '' European Studies Review'' which he served as editor until 1979. The journal later became the '' European History Quarterly''. In 1974, he was appointed

. As such, he worked on building Lancaster's interdisciplinary School of European Studies and was its first director. From 1979 to 1984, he was Head of the History Department. During this time, he founded the ''Lancaster Pamphlets'', edited by the History Department, to which he also contributed three titles, ''France before the Revolution'' (1983), ''Louis XIV'' (1986) and ''International Relations in Europe, 1689–1789'' (1995). In 1985, he was appointed provisional

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

and in 1993 he was appointed Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the university. In 1998, he retired.

Publications

* * * * * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shennan, J. H. 1933 births 2015 deaths British academic journal editors Alumni of the University of Liverpool Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge 20th-century British historians 21st-century British historians Academics of the University of Liverpool Academics of Lancaster University Fellows of the Royal Historical Society Historians of France Historians of Europe Writers from Liverpool