R J Unstead
Encyclopedia
Robert John Unstead was a British historian and prolific author of history books, most of which were written for young readers.
Unstead went to Dover Grammar School for Boys
in Kent
, England
, from 1926 to 1934 where he was a prefect and house captain, captain of cricket
, vice-captain of soccer and in the school rugby union
team. He gained Advanced Level passes in History
, English
, Latin
and French
. He left school to go to Goldsmiths College
where he trained to be a teacher.
His teaching career, begun in 1936, was interrupted by the Second World War when he volunteered for the Royal Air Force
and became a physical training instructor. Later he became an operations room controller and joined Combined Operations for the Normandy
landings before service in Greece
, Italy
and France
.
After the war, Unstead resumed his teaching career and later became headmaster of The Grange Primary School, Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire
. He began to develop ideas for writing history books with pictures that would appeal to the young. He wrote and edited over 40 books, some of which sold in their millions. He visited Australia
and collaborated on five books on Australian history. Whilst in the USA, Unstead was invited to the White House
following his 'Story of Britain' being chosen by the Library of Congress
as one of the 'best books of the year' .
He was married to Florence and they had three daughters together. He was chairman of local school governors and had interests in golf
, gardening
and cricket
.
He died at Ipswich Hospital from heart failure on 5 May, 1988 and his funeral service was held on 11 May in the Parish Church of St. Andrew, Aldringham
, Suffolk
.
Unstead went to Dover Grammar School for Boys
Dover Grammar School for Boys
Dover Grammar School for Boys is a selective secondary school located in Dover, United Kingdom. The school is situated next to Astor College for the Arts, which is a non-selective school. It has a strong sporting rivalry with Astor and Sir Roger Manwood's School, a selective Grammar school in...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, 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...
, from 1926 to 1934 where he was a prefect and house captain, captain of cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
, vice-captain of soccer and in the school rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
team. He gained Advanced Level passes in History
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
. He left school to go to Goldsmiths College
Goldsmiths College
Goldsmiths, University of London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom which specialises in the arts, humanities and social sciences, and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It was founded in 1891 as Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute...
where he trained to be a teacher.
His teaching career, begun in 1936, was interrupted by the Second World War when he volunteered for the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
and became a physical training instructor. Later he became an operations room controller and joined Combined Operations for the Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
landings before service in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
After the war, Unstead resumed his teaching career and later became headmaster of The Grange Primary School, Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
. He began to develop ideas for writing history books with pictures that would appeal to the young. He wrote and edited over 40 books, some of which sold in their millions. He visited Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and collaborated on five books on Australian history. Whilst in the USA, Unstead was invited to the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
following his 'Story of Britain' being chosen by the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
as one of the 'best books of the year' .
He was married to Florence and they had three daughters together. He was chairman of local school governors and had interests in golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, gardening
Gardening
Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants. Ornamental plants are normally grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants are grown for consumption , for their dyes, or for medicinal or cosmetic use...
and cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
.
He died at Ipswich Hospital from heart failure on 5 May, 1988 and his funeral service was held on 11 May in the Parish Church of St. Andrew, Aldringham
Aldringham
Aldringham is a village in Suffolk, England. The village is located 1 mile south of Leiston and 3 miles northwest of Aldeburgh close to the North Sea coast. The parish includes the coastal village of Thorpeness. The mid-2005 population estimate for Aldringham cum Thorpe parish was...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
.
External links
- http://dovergrammar.co.uk/archives/pharosians/054-1988-jul.html Obituary in The Old Pharosians' Newsletter