Hugh Seton-Watson
Encyclopedia
George Hugh Nicholas Seton-Watson (London
, England
, 15 February 1916–Washington, DC, USA, 19 December 1984), was a British
historian
and political scientist specializing in Russia
.
, the activist and historian. He was educated at Winchester College
and New College
, Oxford, from where he graduated in 1938.
and Bucharest
at the start of the Second World War, Seton-Watson joined the British Special Operations Executive
. Interned by the Italians after the fall of Yugoslavia to the Axis in 1941, Seton-Watson was repatriated to Britain, and later posted to the British special forces
in Cairo, where he remained until 1944. In January 1944 he moved to Istanbul
where he performed intelliğgence activities among the refugees coming from the Balkans.
while on his way from Italy to Britain after the fall of Yugoslavia, finishing it in Cairo during the battle of El Alamein
in 1942.
In 1945 he was appointed praelector
in politics at University College
, Oxford. In 1951 he was appointed to the chair of Russian history at the University of London
, where he remained until 1983, exercising a major influence over British and American understandings of Russia during the Cold War
.
Seton-Watson's Nations and States: an Enquiry into the Origins of Nations and the Politics of Nationalism (1977) made a fundamental contribution to the study of nationalism
, though later overshadowed by the success of Benedict Anderson
's more theoretical Imagined Communities
.
.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, 15 February 1916–Washington, DC, USA, 19 December 1984), was a British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
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...
and political scientist specializing in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
Early life
Seton-Watson was one of the two sons of Robert William Seton-WatsonRobert William Seton-Watson
Robert William Seton-Watson , commonly referred to as R.W. Seton-Watson, and also known by the pseudonym Scotus Viator, was a British political activist and historian who played an active role in encouraging the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the emergence of Czechoslovakia and...
, the activist and historian. He was educated at Winchester College
Winchester College
Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...
and New College
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
, Oxford, from where he graduated in 1938.
War-time activities
After working for the British Foreign Office in BelgradeBelgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
and Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
at the start of the Second World War, Seton-Watson joined the British Special Operations Executive
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
. Interned by the Italians after the fall of Yugoslavia to the Axis in 1941, Seton-Watson was repatriated to Britain, and later posted to the British special forces
Special forces
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
in Cairo, where he remained until 1944. In January 1944 he moved to Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
where he performed intelliğgence activities among the refugees coming from the Balkans.
Academic career
Seton-Watson wrote most of his first major work, Eastern Europe between the Wars, 1918–1941 in Cape TownCape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
while on his way from Italy to Britain after the fall of Yugoslavia, finishing it in Cairo during the battle of El Alamein
El Alamein
El Alamein is a town in the northern Matrouh Governorate of Egypt. Located on the Mediterranean Sea, it lies west of Alexandria and northwest of Cairo. As of 2007, it has a local population of 7,397 inhabitants.- Climate :...
in 1942.
In 1945 he was appointed praelector
Praelector
A praelector is a traditional role at the colleges of the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford. The role differs between the two universities.At Cambridge, a praelector is a fellow of a college...
in politics at University College
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
, Oxford. In 1951 he was appointed to the chair of Russian history at the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, where he remained until 1983, exercising a major influence over British and American understandings of Russia during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
Work
After publishing The Decline of Imperial Russia, 1855–1914 in 1952, Seton-Watson published his most famous work, The Russian Empire, 1801–1917 in 1967. This became the standard history of late imperial Russia for a generation.Seton-Watson's Nations and States: an Enquiry into the Origins of Nations and the Politics of Nationalism (1977) made a fundamental contribution to the study of nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
, though later overshadowed by the success of Benedict Anderson
Benedict Anderson
Benedict Richard O'Gorman Anderson is Aaron L. Binenkorb Professor Emeritus of International Studies, Government & Asian Studies at Cornell University, and is best known for his celebrated book Imagined Communities, first published in 1983...
's more theoretical Imagined Communities
Imagined communities
Imagined communities are a concept coined by Benedict Anderson. He believes that a nation is a community socially constructed, imagined by the people who perceive themselves as part of that group...
.
Honors
Seton-Watson received a DLitt from Oxford in 1974 and an honorary doctorate from the University of Essex in 1983. In 1981 he was appointed CBECBE
CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...
.
Works
- Eastern Europe between the wars (Cambridge Univ. Press, 1945)
- The new imperialism: A background book (Bodley Head, 1961)
- Nationalism and communism: essays, 1946-1963 (Methuen, 1964)
- Nationalism old and new (Methuen, 1965)
- The Russian empire 1801-1917 (Clarendon, 1967)
- The ’sick heart’ of modern Europe: the problem of the Danubian lands (University of Washington Press, 1975)
- The imperialist revolutionaries: trends in world Communism in the 1960s and 1970s (Stanford: Hoover Institution Press, 1979.)
- Nations and states: an enquiry into the origins of nations and the politics of nationalism (Methuen, 1977)
- The imperialist revolutionaries (1979)
- Language and national consciousness (Oxford University Press, 1981)
- The making of a new Europe: R.W. Seton-Watson and the last years of Austria-Hungary. With Christopher Seton-Watson (Methuen, 1981)
- The decline of Imperial Russia 1855-1914 (Westview Press, 1985).
- The East European revolution (Westview Press, 1985)
- From Lenin to Khrushchev : the history of world communism (Westview Press, 1985)
- R.W. Seton-Watson and the Roumanians, 1906-20 (2 vols, Editura Ştiinţifică şi Enciclopedică, Bucureşti, 1988)