Peter Dronke
Encyclopedia
Ernest Peter Michael Dronke FBA
(born 1934) is a scholar specialising in Medieval Latin
literature. He is one of the 20th century's leading scholars of medieval Latin lyric
, and his book The Medieval Lyric (1968) is considered the standard introduction to the subject.
in 1934; in 1939, his family settled in New Zealand
. Dronke earned his bachelor's and master's degree
s at Wellington
. In 1955 he received a travelling scholarship to study at Magdalen College, Oxford
. He took up a lectureship
in Medieval Latin at the University of Cambridge
in 1961 and became a fellow of Clare Hall in 1964. He was awarded a personal readership
in 1979 and a personal chair in Medieval Latin literature in 1989. He became a Fellow of the British Academy in 1984. In 2001, he retired.
Dronke married fellow medievalist
Ursula Brown
in 1961.
British Academy
The 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...
(born 1934) is a scholar specialising in Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration. Despite the clerical origin of many of its authors,...
literature. He is one of the 20th century's leading scholars of medieval Latin lyric
Lyric poetry
Lyric poetry is a genre of poetry that expresses personal and emotional feelings. In the ancient world, lyric poems were those which were sung to the lyre. Lyric poems do not have to rhyme, and today do not need to be set to music or a beat...
, and his book The Medieval Lyric (1968) is considered the standard introduction to the subject.
Life and career
Dronke was born in CologneCologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
in 1934; in 1939, his family settled in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. Dronke earned his bachelor's and master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
s at Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
. In 1955 he received a travelling scholarship to study at Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
. He took up a lectureship
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...
in Medieval Latin at the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
in 1961 and became a fellow of Clare Hall in 1964. He was awarded a personal readership
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...
in 1979 and a personal chair in Medieval Latin literature in 1989. He became a Fellow of the British Academy in 1984. In 2001, he retired.
Dronke married fellow medievalist
Medieval studies
-Development:The term 'medieval studies' began to be adopted by academics in the opening decades of the twentieth century, initially in the titles of books like G. G. Coulton's Ten Medieval Studies , to emphasize a greater interdisciplinary approach to a historical subject...
Ursula Brown
Ursula Dronke
Ursula Dronke is a medievalist and former Reader in Old Norse at the University of Oxford. She is the Emeritus Vigfússon Reader in Ancient Icelandic Literature and Antiquities and an Emeritus Fellow of Linacre College. She also formerly taught in the Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages at...
in 1961.
Selected works
- Medieval Latin and the Rise of the European Love-Lyric, 2 vols., (1965-6)
- The Medieval Lyric (1968)
- Poetic Individuality in the Middle Ages: New Departures in Poetry 1000-1500 (1970)
- Women Writers of the Middle Ages: A Critical Study of Texts from Perpetua to Marguerite PoreteMarguerite PoreteMarguerite Porete was a French mystic and the author of The Mirror of Simple Souls, a work of Christian spirituality dealing with the workings of Divine Love. She was burnt at the stake for heresy in Paris in 1310 after a lengthy trial, after refusing to remove her book from circulation or recant...
(1984) - DanteDANTEDelivery of Advanced Network Technology to Europe is a not-for-profit organisation that plans, builds and operates the international networks that interconnect the various national research and education networks in Europe and surrounding regions...
and Medieval Latin Traditions (1986) - A History of Twelfth-Century Western Philosophy, editor (1988)
- Nine Medieval Latin Plays (1994)