William Dickinson

August 28, 1897 (age 65)

Leicester

He was raised in Yorkshire and educated at Mill Hill School in London. In the earlier years of his academic career, which began in the 1920s, his published scholarship focused on editing the court books of early modern sheriff courts. In 1940 he was appointed Sir William Fraser Professor of Scottish History and Palaeography at the University of Edinburgh, becoming the first English-born occupant of this Chair — the oldest and most distinguished Scottish history professorship in the world. Dickinson held the post longer than anyone before or since. In this phase of his career, the focus of Dickinson"s work shifted in the direction of the Scottish Reformation and general works for students, but he continued to pursue major editorial projects, including the writings of John Knox and the records of the medieval burgh of Aberdeen. In addition to his personal scholarship, he worked to build up and raise the profile of The Scottish Historical Review, widely regarded today as the world"s leading periodical for current research on Scottish history, efforts which his successor Gordon Donaldson considered to have been Dickinson"s most important contribution to Scottish history. Dickinson was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1963 New Year honours list, just months before his sudden death.