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Arthur Geoffrey DickensFBA (6 July 1910 – 31 July 2001)[1] was anEnglishHistorian,academic andauthor, notable for his contributions to history surroundingTudor England and theReformation.[2]
He was born inHull,Yorkshire, on 6 July 1910, and educated atHymers College andMagdalen College, Oxford.
He served during theSecond World War in theRoyal Artillery. From May to October 1945 he served with the military government inLübeck, where he had to supervise and edit the local newspaper.
In 1949, Dickens was appointed professor of history at theUniversity of Hull, later becoming deputy principal and dean of the Faculty of Arts, 1950–53, andpro-vice-chancellor, 1959–62. He took up the post of professor of history atKing's College London in 1962, where he remained until becoming director of theInstitute of Historical Research (IHR) and professor of history in theUniversity of London, 1967–77. Dickens was also active in other bodies, including being president of theEcclesiastical History Society, 1966–68;[3] a member of the Advisory Council on Public Records, 1968–76; an advisor to the Council on the Export of Works of Art, 1968–76; secretary, chairman and general secretary of the British National Committee of Historical Sciences, 1967–79; foreign secretary of theBritish Academy, 1969–79; and vice-president of theBritish Record Society, 1978–80. Dickens enjoyed "a deep love affair with Germany",[4] was a moving force in the establishment of the German Historical Institute in London and was decorated by the German government.[5] He died in London at the age of 91.[1]
His book on theEnglish Reformation was, for many years the standard text on the subject, relying as it did on detailed examination of parish records.[citation needed]
He was elected a fellow of theBritish Academy in 1966.
Papers of Professor Dickens are held by Senate House Library, University of London, and are available to be consulted there.[6]
