Christopher Smout
Encyclopedia
Thomas Christopher Smout CBE
, FBA, FRSE
, (born 19 December 1933) is a Scottish academic, historian
, author
and Historiographer Royal
in Scotland.
, from 1959 until 1980. At Edinburgh, he rose steadily through the academic ranks in the Department of Economic History -- as an Assistant Lecturer (1959-1962), as a Lecturer
(1962-1964), and as a Reader
(1964-1970) before being appointed as Professor of Economic History in 1970.
At St Andrews University from 1980 to 1991, Smout held the Chair of Scottish History. He is now Professor Emeritus in History at St Andrews University.
Smout was a Visiting Professor at the University of Strathclyde
since 1991; and he has lectured in Japan, in China, in the United States, in Canada and in Australia.
Smout has written extensively on demographic history and many aspects of economic history. Since the mid-1990s, he has developed the new discipline of environmental history in Scotland, giving the Ford Lectures in Oxford in 1999, published under the title of Nature Contested, Environmental History in Scotland and Northern England since 1600. His most recent publications in this field have been in woodland history. His focus extends beyond the purely academic; and for example, Smout has argued that conservationists should judge species based on whether or not they are pests, ignoring their origins.
Smout used his position to argue in favor of reviving the title "Princess Lyon;" and he suggested that the Princess Royal
should be known by this title when she is in Scotland, much in the same way her brother, the Prince of Wales
and Duke of Cornwall
is traditionally identified as the Duke of Rothesay
, Earl of Carrick
and Lord of the Isles
when he is in Scotland.
Smout has also interested himself in small local issues in which his raised voice and expressed point-of-view can make a difference.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, FBA, FRSE
Royal Society of Edinburgh
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity, operating on a wholly independent and non-party-political basis and providing public benefit throughout Scotland...
, (born 19 December 1933) is a Scottish academic, historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and Historiographer Royal
Historiographer Royal
The Historiographer Royal is a member of the Royal household in Scotland. The office was created in 1681, and was in abeyance from 1709 until 1763 when it was revived for Principal William Robertson of Edinburgh University. The post, which now has no formal responsibilities or salary, is held by...
in Scotland.
Career
Smout taught at the University of EdinburghUniversity of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, from 1959 until 1980. At Edinburgh, he rose steadily through the academic ranks in the Department of Economic History -- as an Assistant Lecturer (1959-1962), as a Lecturer
Lecturer
Lecturer is an academic rank. In the United Kingdom, lecturer is a position at a university or similar institution, often held by academics in their early career stages, who lead research groups and supervise research students, as well as teach...
(1962-1964), and as a Reader
Reader (academic rank)
The title of Reader in the United Kingdom and some universities in the Commonwealth nations like Australia and New Zealand denotes an appointment for a senior academic with a distinguished international reputation in research or scholarship...
(1964-1970) before being appointed as Professor of Economic History in 1970.
At St Andrews University from 1980 to 1991, Smout held the Chair of Scottish History. He is now Professor Emeritus in History at St Andrews University.
Smout was a Visiting Professor at the University of Strathclyde
University of Strathclyde
The University of Strathclyde , Glasgow, Scotland, is Glasgow's second university by age, founded in 1796, and receiving its Royal Charter in 1964 as the UK's first technological university...
since 1991; and he has lectured in Japan, in China, in the United States, in Canada and in Australia.
Smout has written extensively on demographic history and many aspects of economic history. Since the mid-1990s, he has developed the new discipline of environmental history in Scotland, giving the Ford Lectures in Oxford in 1999, published under the title of Nature Contested, Environmental History in Scotland and Northern England since 1600. His most recent publications in this field have been in woodland history. His focus extends beyond the purely academic; and for example, Smout has argued that conservationists should judge species based on whether or not they are pests, ignoring their origins.
Smout used his position to argue in favor of reviving the title "Princess Lyon;" and he suggested that the Princess Royal
Princess Royal
Princess Royal is a style customarily awarded by a British monarch to his or her eldest daughter. The style is held for life, so a princess cannot be given the style during the lifetime of another Princess Royal...
should be known by this title when she is in Scotland, much in the same way her brother, the Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
and Duke of Cornwall
Duke of Cornwall
The Duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in the peerage of England.The present Duke of Cornwall is The Prince of Wales, the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, the reigning British monarch .-History:...
is traditionally identified as the Duke of Rothesay
Duke of Rothesay
Duke of Rothesay was a title of the heir apparent to the throne of the Kingdom of Scotland before 1707, of the Kingdom of Great Britain from 1707 to 1801, and now of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland....
, Earl of Carrick
Earl of Carrick
The Earl of Carrick was the head of a comital lordship of Carrick in southwestern Scotland. The title emerged in 1186, when Donnchad, son of Gille Brigte, Lord of Galloway, became Mormaer or Earl of Carrick in compensation for exclusion from the whole Lordship of Galloway...
and Lord of the Isles
Lord of the Isles
The designation Lord of the Isles is today a title of Scottish nobility with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It emerged from a series of hybrid Viking/Gaelic rulers of the west coast and islands of Scotland in the Middle Ages, who wielded sea-power with fleets of...
when he is in Scotland.
Smout has also interested himself in small local issues in which his raised voice and expressed point-of-view can make a difference.
Public service commitments
- St Andrews Centre for Advanced Historical Studies, 1992-1997, Director.
- Institute for Environmental History, 1992-2001, Director.
- Scottish Natural HeritageScottish Natural HeritageScottish Natural Heritage is a Scottish public body. It is responsible for Scotland's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and scenic diversity. It advises the Scottish Government and acts as a government agent in the delivery of conservation designations, i.e...
(SNH), 1991-1997, Deputy Chairman. - National Museums of ScotlandNational Museums of ScotlandNational Museums Scotland is the organization that runs several national museums of Scotland. It is one of the country's National Collections, and holds internationally important collections of natural sciences, decorative arts, world cultures, science and technology, and Scottish history and...
, Trustee. - Scottish Coastal Archaeology and the Problem of Erosion Trust (SCAPE), Chairman.
- Institute of Scottish Historical Research, 2007.
Royal appointments
- Historiographer RoyalHistoriographer RoyalThe Historiographer Royal is a member of the Royal household in Scotland. The office was created in 1681, and was in abeyance from 1709 until 1763 when it was revived for Principal William Robertson of Edinburgh University. The post, which now has no formal responsibilities or salary, is held by...
of Scotland, 1993. - Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of ScotlandRoyal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of ScotlandThe Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government 'sponsored' [financed and with oversight] through Historic Scotland, an executive agency of the Scottish Government...
. - Royal Commission on Historical ManuscriptsRoyal Commission on Historical ManuscriptsThe Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts , a UK body, was established in 1869 "to make enquiry as to the places where manuscripts and private papers of historical interest were located and to report on their contents"....
, 2002-2005.
Selected works
- People and woods in Scotland : a history, 2003.
- (Co-Editor with Gordon Menzies) In search of Scotland, 2001.
- Nature contested : environmental history in Scotland and Northern England since 1600, 2000.
- (Co-Editor with RA Lambert) Rothiemurchus: Nature and People on a Highland Estate 1500-2000, 1999
- Scottish Woodland History, 1997.
- Prices, food, and wages in Scotland, 1550-1780, 1995.
- (Co-Editor with S Foster) The History of Soils and Field Systems, 1994.
- (Editor) Scotland Since Prehistory - Natural Change and Human Impact, 1993.
- (Editor) Scotland and the Sea, 1992.
- (Co-Editor with Sydney Wood)Scottish Voices 1745-1960, 1990.
- Scotland and Europe 1200-1850, 1986.
- A Century of the Scottish People 1830-1950, 1986.
- (Co-Editor with Michael FlinnMichael FlinnMichael W. Flinn was a British economic historian. Born into a middle-class family in 1917, he was educated at William Hulme's Grammar School in Manchester, serving as an officer in the Royal Artillery during the Second World War...
) The Search for wealth and stability : essays in economic and social history, 1979. - The state of the Scottish working-class in 1843 : a statistical and spatial enquiry based on the data from the Poor Law Commission Report of 1844, 1979.
- Comparative aspects of Scottish and Irish economic and social history, 1600-1900, 1977.
- (Co-Editor with Michael FlinnMichael FlinnMichael W. Flinn was a British economic historian. Born into a middle-class family in 1917, he was educated at William Hulme's Grammar School in Manchester, serving as an officer in the Royal Artillery during the Second World War...
) Essays in social history, 1974. - A History of the Scottish People 1560-1830, 1969.
- Scottish trade on the eve of union, 1660-1707, 1963.
Honours
- Order of the British EmpireOrder of the British EmpireThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, companion, 1994. - University of St AndrewsUniversity of St AndrewsThe University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
, honorary doctorate, 1999. - University of EdinburghUniversity of EdinburghThe University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, honorary doctorate, 1996. - University of GlasgowUniversity of GlasgowThe University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
, honorary doctorate, 2001. - University of StirlingUniversity of StirlingThe University of Stirling is a campus university founded by Royal charter in 1967, on the Airthrey Estate in Stirling, Scotland.-History and campus development:...
, honorary doctorate, 2002. - British AcademyBritish AcademyThe British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
, fellow. - Royal Society of EdinburghRoyal Society of EdinburghThe Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity, operating on a wholly independent and non-party-political basis and providing public benefit throughout Scotland...
, fellow.
External links
- University of Edinburgh: "Debating the Union of 1707." 10 January 2007 -- streaming audio