H. G. Koenigsberger | |
|---|---|
| Born | Helmut Georg Koenigsberger 24 October 1918 Berlin, German Empire |
| Died | 8 March 2014(2014-03-08) (aged 95) London, England |
| Other names | Hilary George Kingsley |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Historian |
| Sub-discipline | |
Helmut Georg KoenigsbergerFBA (24 October 1918 – 8 March 2014) was a German-born British historian and academic. He was Professor of History atKing's College London from 1973 to 1984 and head of its history department.[1][2]
Koenigsberger was born inBerlin, the son of Georg Koenigsberger (d. 1932), chief architect of the borough ofTreptow, and Käthe, a sister of the physicistMax Born.[3][4][5] His elder brother was the architect and plannerOtto Königsberger.[1] Although his family wereLutheran Christians, they wereclassified as Jewish by the Nazis: both of his grandfathers had beennon-practising Jews.[5] His immediate family had all fled from Germany before 1939 under the advice of his brother Otto.[1] They received practical help from his uncle Max and from theQuakers: Jewish organisations refused to help them as "[they] were not Jewish by religion".[5]
From 1934, Koenigsberger was educated atAdams' Grammar School, Newport, an all-boysgrammar school inNewport, Shropshire, England, before going on to study history atGonville and Caius College, Cambridge, from 1937 to 1940.[1][4] On 12 May 1940, just before he was due to sit his Part IITripos exams (i.e., his 'finals'), he was designated anenemy alien by the British government and sent to a camp on the Isle of Wight and then on to a camp in Canada.[1][5] While in Canada, it was explained to him that "it would be easier to help him if hewere Jewish" and a Jewish organisation offered him help only if he "reconverted to Judaism".[1] After eight months internment, he was allowed to return to the UK.[5] By this stage the University of Cambridge had awarded him a "war degree" on the basis of his Part I exam results only, thereby denying him the possibility of attaining adouble first class honours[broken anchor] degree and, with it, a postgraduate scholarship - things that he could have achieved if he hadn't been interned.[5]
Koenigsberger spent a short period as a schoolmaster atprivate schools, working as an assistant master atBrentwood School, Essex from 1941 to 1942 and atBedford School, Bedfordshire from 1942 to 1944.[4] Knowing that military service would speed up his application for naturalisation, he joined theRoyal Navy in July 1944 as a writer, during the latter stages ofSecond World War.[4][5] He was required to anglicise his name and choose to be known as Hilary George Kingsley.[5] His work involved deciphering and translating German naval messages while serving aboard British ships, and was often done at night and in secret.[5] He wasdemobilised in October 1945, although he had wanted to return to Germany to service with theAllied Control Council.[5] He then resumed his birth name and returned to the University of Cambridge to undertakepostgraduate research in history. He completed hisDoctor of Philosophy (PhD) in 1949: his thesis concerned the government of Sicily in the sixteenth century and its relationship withHabsburg Spain.[5]
Koenigsberger's academic career began while he was still a PhD student at Cambridge, during which he had two articles published.[5] The first concerned therevolt of Palermo against Spanish rule in 1647 and was published inThe Cambridge Historical Journal in 1946.[6] The second was titled "English merchants in Naples and Sicily in the seventeenth century" and was published inThe English Historical Review in 1947.[7] His doctoral thesis was published as amonograph in 1951 with the title "The Government of Sicily Under Philip II of Spain: A Study in the Practice of Empire".[8]
Koenigsberger joinedQueen's University, Belfast as a lecturer ineconomic history in 1948.[4] His research interests moved to comparative studies and the application of statistical analysis to history.[9] He moved to theUniversity of Manchester in 1951, having been appointed asenior lecturer in economic history.[4]
He was Professor of Modern History at theUniversity of Nottingham from 1960 to 1966, before moving to the United States of America where he was Professor of Early Modern History atCornell University from 1966 to 1973. He returned to the United Kingdom in 1973 and served as Professor of History atKing's College London until his retirement in 1984.[9] His research coveredearly modern Europe,[2] and he is credited with its establishment as "a distinct and unified field of study".[1] He is also credited with developing the idea of "composite monarchy" (or "composite state").[2]
In 1961, Koenigsberger married Dorothy M. Romano.[4] Together they had twin daughters, Laura and Francesca.[1][4]
Koenigsberger was a keen violinist, and fell badly protecting his violin. This fall preceded his death, and he died on 8 March 2014, aged 95.[1][5]
Koenigsberger was elected aFellow of the British Academy (FBA) in 1989.[9] He was made a Commander of theOrder of Isabella the Catholic by the King of Spain in 1997.[4] He was made anHonorary Fellow of King's College (FKC) in 1999, the highest award that can be bestowed upon an individual by King's College London.[4]
His publications include:[9]
