D. R. Thorpe
Encyclopedia
D. R. Thorpe (born 1943) is an historian and biographer who has written biographies of three British Prime Ministers of the mid 20th century, Sir Anthony Eden, Sir Alec Douglas-Home and Harold Macmillan
.
, Edinburgh (leaving a few years before Tony Blair
entered the school) and Selwyn College, Cambridge
. He taught history at Charterhouse
, a public school in Surrey
, for over 30 years. Among other academic appointments, he was Archives Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge
and a Fellow of St Antony's College, Oxford
and Brasenose College, Oxford.
, Lord Curzon and R. A. Butler, three men who came close to reaching the "top of the greasy pole" (Disraeli's phrase, applied by Thorpe to Home's ascent to the premiership ). He was subsequently the official biographer of the former Foreign Secretary, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Speaker
of the House of Commons Selwyn Lloyd
(1989) and of Sir Alec Douglas-Home (1996) and Sir Anthony Eden (2003).
's earlier official biography of Eden (1986), Thorpe's, which was undertaken at the invitation of Eden's widow, Clarissa
, in 1991, did much to restore Eden's reputation, which had suffered considerably in the aftermath of the Suez Crisis
of 1956. Indeed, a feature of Thorpe’s biographical trilogy was that all three subjects, though having each held two of the three great offices of the British state (Eden and Home, in addition to being Prime Minister, both served more than one term as Foreign Secretary), tended, in retrospect, to be under-estimated. Lloyd was remembered as Eden’s compliant Foreign Secretary at the time of Suez who, as Chancellor, was dismissed ignominiously by Harold Macmillan in a major Cabinet reshuffle (the so-called "Night of the Long Knives
") in 1962; Home, then an hereditary peer
, seemed to many an unlikely choice to succeed Macmillan as Prime Minister in 1963 and narrowly lost a general election less than a year later; and Eden, though widely admired for his work at the Foreign Office, attracted, after his short, but momentous premiership, the famous judgement of Tacitus
on the Roman Emperor Galba
, Omnium consensu capax imperii nisi imperasset ("All would have pronounced him worthy of empire if he had never been emperor").
After completing Eden, Thorpe began work on a biography of Harold Macmillan. This was published as 'Supermac: The Life of Harold Macmillan' by Chatto & Windus on 9 September 2010. It is described by Vernon Bogdanor, Professor of Government at Oxford University, as 'the best biography of a post-war British Prime Minister yet written.' The book was one of the shortlisted six books (from a record 213 entries) for the prestigious Orwell Political Prize 2010. In August 2011 the book was one of the shortlisted six books (from over 100 entries) for the English Speaking Union Marsh Biography award, to be presented in November 2011.
On 22 November 'Supermac' was awarded the Biennial English Speaking Union Marsh Biography Award at a dinner at Dartmouth House, Headquarters of the English Speaking Union in London.
Harold Macmillan
Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
.
Education and academic career
Thorpe was educated at Fettes CollegeFettes College
Fettes College is an independent school for boarding and day pupils in Edinburgh, Scotland with over two thirds of its pupils in residence on campus...
, Edinburgh (leaving a few years before Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
entered the school) and Selwyn College, Cambridge
Selwyn College, Cambridge
Selwyn College is a constituent college in the University of Cambridge in England, United Kingdom.The college was founded by the Selwyn Memorial Committee in memory of the Rt Reverend George Selwyn , who rowed on the Cambridge crew in the first Varsity Boat Race in 1829, and went on to become the...
. He taught history at Charterhouse
Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School, originally The Hospital of King James and Thomas Sutton in Charterhouse, or more simply Charterhouse or House, is an English collegiate independent boarding school situated at Godalming in Surrey.Founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian...
, a public school in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, for over 30 years. Among other academic appointments, he was Archives Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge
Churchill College, Cambridge
Churchill College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.In 1958, a Trust was established with Sir Winston Churchill as its Chairman of Trustees, to build and endow a college for 60 fellows and 540 Students as a national and Commonwealth memorial to Winston Churchill; its...
and a Fellow of St Antony's College, Oxford
St Antony's College, Oxford
St Antony's College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England.St Antony's is the most international of the seven all-graduate colleges of the University of Oxford, specialising in international relations, economics, politics, and history of particular parts of the...
and Brasenose College, Oxford.
Published works
Thorpe's first book, The Uncrowned Prime Ministers (1980), examined the careers of Austen ChamberlainAusten Chamberlain
Sir Joseph Austen Chamberlain, KG was a British statesman, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize and half-brother of Neville Chamberlain.- Early life and career :...
, Lord Curzon and R. A. Butler, three men who came close to reaching the "top of the greasy pole" (Disraeli's phrase, applied by Thorpe to Home's ascent to the premiership ). He was subsequently the official biographer of the former Foreign Secretary, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Speaker
Speaker of the British House of Commons
The Speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, the United Kingdom's lower chamber of Parliament. The current Speaker is John Bercow, who was elected on 22 June 2009, following the resignation of Michael Martin...
of the House of Commons Selwyn Lloyd
Selwyn Lloyd
John Selwyn Brooke Lloyd, Baron Selwyn-Lloyd CH PC CBE TD , known for most of his career as Selwyn Lloyd, was a British Conservative Party politician who served as Foreign Secretary from 1955 to 1960, then as Chancellor of the Exchequer until 1962...
(1989) and of Sir Alec Douglas-Home (1996) and Sir Anthony Eden (2003).
Selwyn Lloyd, Douglas-Home and Anthony Eden
As with Sir Robert Rhodes JamesRobert Rhodes James
Sir Robert Vidal Rhodes James was a British historian and Conservative Member of Parliament. He was born in India and began his education in private schools there, returning to England to attend Sedbergh School and then Worcester College, Oxford.He wrote his first book, a much-acclaimed biography...
's earlier official biography of Eden (1986), Thorpe's, which was undertaken at the invitation of Eden's widow, Clarissa
Clarissa Eden, Countess of Avon
Anne Clarissa Eden, Countess of Avon is the widow of Sir Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon , who was British Prime Minister from 1955-1957. She married Eden in 1952, becoming Lady Eden in 1954 when he was made a Knight of the Garter and Countess of Avon in 1961 on his elevation to the peerage...
, in 1991, did much to restore Eden's reputation, which had suffered considerably in the aftermath of the Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...
of 1956. Indeed, a feature of Thorpe’s biographical trilogy was that all three subjects, though having each held two of the three great offices of the British state (Eden and Home, in addition to being Prime Minister, both served more than one term as Foreign Secretary), tended, in retrospect, to be under-estimated. Lloyd was remembered as Eden’s compliant Foreign Secretary at the time of Suez who, as Chancellor, was dismissed ignominiously by Harold Macmillan in a major Cabinet reshuffle (the so-called "Night of the Long Knives
Night of the Long Knives (1962)
The epithet Night of the Long Knives is given to July 13, 1962, when the British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan sacked the following members of his Cabinet:*Lord Kilmuir — Lord Chancellor*Selwyn Lloyd — Chancellor of the Exchequer...
") in 1962; Home, then an hereditary peer
Hereditary peer
Hereditary peers form part of the Peerage in the United Kingdom. There are over seven hundred peers who hold titles that may be inherited. Formerly, most of them were entitled to sit in the House of Lords, but since the House of Lords Act 1999 only ninety-two are permitted to do so...
, seemed to many an unlikely choice to succeed Macmillan as Prime Minister in 1963 and narrowly lost a general election less than a year later; and Eden, though widely admired for his work at the Foreign Office, attracted, after his short, but momentous premiership, the famous judgement of Tacitus
Tacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
on the Roman Emperor Galba
Galba
Galba , was Roman Emperor for seven months from 68 to 69. Galba was the governor of Hispania Tarraconensis, and made a bid for the throne during the rebellion of Julius Vindex...
, Omnium consensu capax imperii nisi imperasset ("All would have pronounced him worthy of empire if he had never been emperor").
After completing Eden, Thorpe began work on a biography of Harold Macmillan. This was published as 'Supermac: The Life of Harold Macmillan' by Chatto & Windus on 9 September 2010. It is described by Vernon Bogdanor, Professor of Government at Oxford University, as 'the best biography of a post-war British Prime Minister yet written.' The book was one of the shortlisted six books (from a record 213 entries) for the prestigious Orwell Political Prize 2010. In August 2011 the book was one of the shortlisted six books (from over 100 entries) for the English Speaking Union Marsh Biography award, to be presented in November 2011.
On 22 November 'Supermac' was awarded the Biennial English Speaking Union Marsh Biography Award at a dinner at Dartmouth House, Headquarters of the English Speaking Union in London.
List of books
- The Uncrowned Prime Ministers (1980)
- Selwyn Lloyd (1989)
- Alec Douglas-Home (1996)
- Eden: The Life and Times Of Anthony Eden, First Earl of Avon 1897-1977 (2003)
- Supermac: The Life of Harold Macmillan (2010)