Thomas Lionel Hodgkin
Encyclopedia
Thomas Lionel Hodgkin was an English Marxist historian of Africa
"who did more than anyone to establish the serious study of African history" in the UK. His wife was the scientist Dorothy Hodgkin.
, he was the son of Robert Howard Hodgkin, Provost of Queen's College, Oxford, and Dorothy Forster Smith, daughter of the historian Alfred Lionel Smith. He was educated at Winchester
and Balliol College, Oxford
before using a demyship
at Magdalen College, Oxford
to travel, spending 1932-3 on John Garstang
's archaeological dig at Jericho
. From 1934 to 1936 he was in the Palestine civil service, where he started to become critical of British imperialism. Resigning from the colonial service after the April 1936 Arab uprising
, he hoped to stay in Palestine but was ordered to leave by the British administration.
Returning to London, where he stayed with his father's cousin Margery Fry
and joined the Communist Party
, he briefly tried training as a schoolteacher before entering adult education. He met and married Dorothy Crowfoot in 1937. In 1939, declared ineligible for military service on medical grounds (he suffered from narcolepsy
), Hodgkin became a Workers' Educational Association
tutor in north Staffordshire
. In September 1945 he became Secretary of the Oxford delegacy for extra-mural studies, and a Balliol fellow. He first visited the Gold Coast
in 1947, and became interested in African history as well as the contemporary problems of African nationalism. Befriending Kwame Nkrumah
in 1951, he published a pamphlet for the Union of Democratic Control
supporting independence for the Gold Coast.
In 1952 Hodgkin left his Oxford job and travelled in Africa. After publishing Nationalism in Colonial Africa (1956), he became interested in Africa's Islamic history. He took part-time appointments at Northwestern University
in Illinois
and McGill University
in Montreal
, was joint secretary of a commission on reform of Ghana's universities, and in 1962 returned to Ghana for three years to head the new Institute for African Studies at the University of Ghana
. From 1965 until his 1970 retirement he was Lecturer in the Government of New States at Oxford University.
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
"who did more than anyone to establish the serious study of African history" in the UK. His wife was the scientist Dorothy Hodgkin.
Life
Thomas Lionel Hodgkin was born into an academic family. Named after his grandfather, the historian Thomas HodgkinThomas Hodgkin (historian)
Thomas Hodgkin , British historian, son of John Hodgkin , barrister and Quaker minister, and Elizabeth Howard ....
, he was the son of Robert Howard Hodgkin, Provost of Queen's College, Oxford, and Dorothy Forster Smith, daughter of the historian Alfred Lionel Smith. He was educated at Winchester
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 Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
before using a demyship
Demyship
A demyship is a form of scholarship, specifically at Magdalen College, Oxford. Oscar Wilde, Lewis Gielgud, Lord Denning andT. E. Lawrence were famous recipients. It is derived from demi-socii or half-fellows. Magdalen's founder, William of Waynflete, originally provided them for the College...
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...
to travel, spending 1932-3 on John Garstang
John Garstang
John Garstang was a British archaeologist of the ancient Near East, especially Anatolia and the southern Levant....
's archaeological dig at Jericho
Jericho
Jericho ; is a city located near the Jordan River in the West Bank of the Palestinian territories. It is the capital of the Jericho Governorate and has a population of more than 20,000. Situated well below sea level on an east-west route north of the Dead Sea, Jericho is the lowest permanently...
. From 1934 to 1936 he was in the Palestine civil service, where he started to become critical of British imperialism. Resigning from the colonial service after the April 1936 Arab uprising
Palestinian general strike
The Palestinian general strike lasted from April–October 1936 in the British Mandate of Palestine and was part of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine....
, he hoped to stay in Palestine but was ordered to leave by the British administration.
Returning to London, where he stayed with his father's cousin Margery Fry
Margery Fry
Margery Fry was a British prison reformer as well as one of the first women to become a magistrate.Margery Fry was born in London, the eighth child of Sir Edward Fry and his wife, Mariabella Hodgkin , who were Quakers. She was educated at home until, at the age of 17, she went to Miss Lawrence's...
and joined the Communist Party
Communist Party of Great Britain
The Communist Party of Great Britain was the largest communist party in Great Britain, although it never became a mass party like those in France and Italy. It existed from 1920 to 1991.-Formation:...
, he briefly tried training as a schoolteacher before entering adult education. He met and married Dorothy Crowfoot in 1937. In 1939, declared ineligible for military service on medical grounds (he suffered from narcolepsy
Narcolepsy
Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder, or dyssomnia, characterized by excessive sleepiness and sleep attacks at inappropriate times, such as while at work. People with narcolepsy often experience disturbed nocturnal sleep and an abnormal daytime sleep pattern, which often is confused with insomnia...
), Hodgkin became a Workers' Educational Association
Workers' Educational Association
The Workers’ Educational Association seeks to provide access to education and lifelong learning for adults from all backgrounds, and in particular those who have previously missed out on education. The International Federation of Workers Education Associations has consultative status to UNESCO...
tutor in north Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
. In September 1945 he became Secretary of the Oxford delegacy for extra-mural studies, and a Balliol fellow. He first visited the Gold Coast
Gold Coast (British colony)
The Gold Coast was a British colony on the Gulf of Guinea in west Africa that became the independent nation of Ghana in 1957.-Overview:The first Europeans to arrive at the coast were the Portuguese in 1471. They encountered a variety of African kingdoms, some of which controlled substantial...
in 1947, and became interested in African history as well as the contemporary problems of African nationalism. Befriending Kwame Nkrumah
Kwame Nkrumah
Kwame Nkrumah was the leader of Ghana and its predecessor state, the Gold Coast, from 1952 to 1966. Overseeing the nation's independence from British colonial rule in 1957, Nkrumah was the first President of Ghana and the first Prime Minister of Ghana...
in 1951, he published a pamphlet for the Union of Democratic Control
Union of Democratic Control
The Union of Democratic Control was a British pressure group formed in 1914 to press for a more responsive foreign policy. While not a pacifist organization, it was opposed to military influence in government.-World War I:...
supporting independence for the Gold Coast.
In 1952 Hodgkin left his Oxford job and travelled in Africa. After publishing Nationalism in Colonial Africa (1956), he became interested in Africa's Islamic history. He took part-time appointments at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
and McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, was joint secretary of a commission on reform of Ghana's universities, and in 1962 returned to Ghana for three years to head the new Institute for African Studies at the University of Ghana
University of Ghana
The University of Ghana is the oldest and largest of the thirteen Ghanaian universities and tertiary institutions. It is one of the best universities in Africa and by far the most prestigious in West Africa...
. From 1965 until his 1970 retirement he was Lecturer in the Government of New States at Oxford University.
Works
- Nationalism in Colonial Africa, 1956
- (ed.) Nigerian Perspectives, 1960. 2nd edn, 1975
- African Political Parties, 1961
- Vietnam: the Revolutionary Path, 1981