Caroline Moorehead
Encyclopedia
Caroline Moorehead is a human rights journalist and biographer.
Born in London, England, Moorehead received a BA from the University of London
in 1965.
Moorehead has written six biographies, of Bertrand Russell
, Heinrich Schliemann
, Freya Stark
, Iris Origo
, Martha Gellhorn
, and most recently, the life of Lucie de la Tour du Pin (the daughter in law of Jean-Frédéric de la Tour du Pin
), who experienced the French Revolution
and left a rich collection of letters as well as a memoir that cover the decades from the fall of the Ancien Regime up to the rise of Napoleon III.
Moorehead has also written a number of non-fiction
pieces centered on human rights including a history of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Dunant's Dream, based on previously unseen archives in Geneva
, Troublesome People, a book on pacifists, and a work on terrorism
, Hostages to Fortune. Her most recent work in this category is on refugees in the modern world named Human Cargo, published in 2004. Moorehead is currently working on a new book about 230 French women of the Resistance
who were sent to Auschwitz, and of whom only forty-nine survived.
She has written many book reviews for assorted papers and reviews, including the TLS
, Literary Review
, Telegraph
, Independent
, Spectator
, and New York Review of Books. She specialized in human rights as a journalist, contributing a column first to the Times
and then the Independent, and co-producing and writing a series of programs on human rights for BBC television.
She is a trustee and director of Index on Censorship
and a governor of the British Institute of Human Rights. She has served on the committees of the Royal Society of Literature
, of which she is a Fellow; the Society of Authors
; English PEN
; and the London Library
. She also helped start a legal advice centre for asylum seekers from the Horn of Africa
in Cairo
, where she helps run a number of educational projects.
She was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
in 1993. She was awarded an OBE in 2005 for services to literature.
Born in London, England, Moorehead received a BA from the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
in 1965.
Moorehead has written six biographies, of Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, and social critic. At various points in his life he considered himself a liberal, a socialist, and a pacifist, but he also admitted that he had never been any of these things...
, Heinrich Schliemann
Heinrich Schliemann
Heinrich Schliemann was a German businessman and amateur archaeologist, and an advocate of the historical reality of places mentioned in the works of Homer. Schliemann was an archaeological excavator of Troy, along with the Mycenaean sites Mycenae and Tiryns...
, Freya Stark
Freya Stark
Dame Freya Madeline Stark, Mrs. Perowne, DBE was a British explorer and travel writer. She wrote more than two dozen books on her travels, which were mainly in Arabia, Iran and Afghanistan....
, Iris Origo
Iris Origo
Dame Iris Margaret Origo, Marchesa of Val d'Orcia, DBE , née Cutting, was an Anglo-Irish writer, who devoted much of her life to the improvement of the Tuscan estate at La Foce, near Montepulciano, which she purchased with her husband in the 1920s.-Origins and upbringing:Origo was the daughter of...
, Martha Gellhorn
Martha Gellhorn
Martha Gellhorn was an American novelist, travel writer and journalist, considered by The London Daily Telegraph amongst others to be one of the greatest war correspondents of the 20th century. She reported on virtually every major world conflict that took place during her 60-year career...
, and most recently, the life of Lucie de la Tour du Pin (the daughter in law of Jean-Frédéric de la Tour du Pin
Jean-Frédéric de la Tour du Pin-Gouvernet
Jean-Frédéric de La Tour du Pin Gouvernet was a French nobleman and politician. His full titles were Comte de Paulin, Marquis de la Roche-Chalais et de Cénevières, Vicomte de Calvignac, Comte de Chastelard, Vicomte de Tesson et d’Ambleville, Baron de Cubzac, Seigneur du Cubzaguais, Seigneur de...
), who experienced the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
and left a rich collection of letters as well as a memoir that cover the decades from the fall of the Ancien Regime up to the rise of Napoleon III.
Moorehead has also written a number of non-fiction
Non-fiction
Non-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...
pieces centered on human rights including a history of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Dunant's Dream, based on previously unseen archives in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Troublesome People, a book on pacifists, and a work on terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
, Hostages to Fortune. Her most recent work in this category is on refugees in the modern world named Human Cargo, published in 2004. Moorehead is currently working on a new book about 230 French women of the Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
who were sent to Auschwitz, and of whom only forty-nine survived.
She has written many book reviews for assorted papers and reviews, including the TLS
The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement is a weekly literary review published in London by News International, a subsidiary of News Corporation.-History:...
, Literary Review
Literary Review
Literary Review is a British literary magazine founded in 1979 by Anne Smith, then head of the Department of English at Edinburgh University. Its offices are currently on Lexington Street in Soho, London, and it has a circulation of 44,750. Britain's principal literary monthly, the magazine was...
, Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, Spectator
The Spectator
The Spectator is a weekly British magazine first published on 6 July 1828. It is currently owned by David and Frederick Barclay, who also owns The Daily Telegraph. Its principal subject areas are politics and culture...
, and New York Review of Books. She specialized in human rights as a journalist, contributing a column first to the Times
Times
The Times is a UK daily newspaper, the original English language newspaper titled "Times". Times may also refer to:In newspapers:*The Times , went defunct in 2005*The Times *The Times of Northwest Indiana...
and then the Independent, and co-producing and writing a series of programs on human rights for BBC television.
She is a trustee and director of Index on Censorship
Index on Censorship
Index on Censorship is a campaigning publishing organisation for freedom of expression, which produces an award-winning quarterly magazine of the same name from London. The present chief executive of Index on Censorship, since 2008, is the author, broadcaster and commentator John Kampfner, former...
and a governor of the British Institute of Human Rights. She has served on the committees of the Royal Society of Literature
Royal Society of Literature
The Royal Society of Literature is the "senior literary organisation in Britain". It was founded in 1820 by George IV, in order to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". The Society's first president was Thomas Burgess, who later became the Bishop of Salisbury...
, of which she is a Fellow; the Society of Authors
Society of Authors
The Society of Authors is a trade union for professional writers that was founded in 1884 to protect the rights of writers and fight to retain those rights .It has counted amongst its members and presidents numerous notable writers and poets including Tennyson The Society of Authors (UK) is a...
; English PEN
International PEN
PEN International , the worldwide association of writers, was founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere....
; and the London Library
London Library
The London Library is the world's largest independent lending library, and the UK's leading literary institution. It is located in the City of Westminster, London, England, United Kingdom....
. She also helped start a legal advice centre for asylum seekers from the Horn of Africa
Horn of Africa
The Horn of Africa is a peninsula in East Africa that juts hundreds of kilometers into the Arabian Sea and lies along the southern side of the Gulf of Aden. It is the easternmost projection of the African continent...
in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, where she helps run a number of educational projects.
She was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
Royal Society of Literature
The Royal Society of Literature is the "senior literary organisation in Britain". It was founded in 1820 by George IV, in order to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". The Society's first president was Thomas Burgess, who later became the Bishop of Salisbury...
in 1993. She was awarded an OBE in 2005 for services to literature.
Resources
- http://bookcriticscircle.blogspot.com "Critical Mass"
- http://www.rlf.org.uk "Current Fellows: Caroline Moore"
- http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk "Current affairs: Human Cargo by Caroline Moorehead"