Harold Temperley
Encyclopedia
Harold William Vazeille Temperley (20 April 1879 – 11 July 1939) was a British historian, Professor of Modern History at the University of Cambridge
from 1931, and Master of Peterhouse, Cambridge
.
, and he was heavily involved as editor in the publication of the British Government's official version of the diplomatic history of the early twentieth century. He also wrote on George Canning
and Eastern European history.
He was educated at Sherborne School
and latterly at first King's College, Cambridge
and Peterhouse, Cambridge
.
In World War I
he served in the British Army
at Gallipoli
, and was then seconded to the War Office
, working on intelligence and policy in the Balkans
. His History of Serbia was published in 1917.
He attended the Paris Peace Conference
of 1919 and later worked on an official history of it, on a scheme devised by George Louis Beer
and Lord Eustace Percy
. He was British representative on the Albanian boundary commission; and was an advisor in 1921 to Arthur Balfour
at the League of Nations
.
In the compilation of the British Documents on the Origins of the War he collaborated with George Peabody Gooch
, (1873-1968), another diplomatic historian and a Member of Parliament
for the Liberal Party
from 1906 to 1910. Gooch had spoken out against British policy in the Second Boer War
, and was also a historian of Germany
; his appointment was designed to give the project a credible independence. In the event Temperley and Gooch were constrained financially, and in the use of documents subject to a 'fifty year rule' limitation on their release. They had to employ tactical resignation threats, to get their own way. Lillian Margery Penson (1896-1963) was involved in this, and a later project on the Blue Books.
The historian Herbert Butterfield
was a student of Temperley's.
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
from 1931, and Master of Peterhouse, Cambridge
Peterhouse, Cambridge
Peterhouse is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the oldest college of the University, having been founded in 1284 by Hugo de Balsham, Bishop of Ely...
.
Overview
Temperley's field was modern diplomatic historyDiplomatic history
Diplomatic history deals with the history of international relations between states. Diplomatic history can be different from international relations in that the former can concern itself with the foreign policy of one state while the latter deals with relations between two or more states...
, and he was heavily involved as editor in the publication of the British Government's official version of the diplomatic history of the early twentieth century. He also wrote on George Canning
George Canning
George Canning PC, FRS was a British statesman and politician who served as Foreign Secretary and briefly Prime Minister.-Early life: 1770–1793:...
and Eastern European history.
He was educated at Sherborne School
Sherborne School
Sherborne School is a British independent school for boys, located in the town of Sherborne in north-west Dorset, England. It is one of the original member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference....
and latterly at first King's College, Cambridge
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....
and Peterhouse, Cambridge
Peterhouse, Cambridge
Peterhouse is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the oldest college of the University, having been founded in 1284 by Hugo de Balsham, Bishop of Ely...
.
In World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he served in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
at Gallipoli
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
, and was then seconded to the War Office
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
, working on intelligence and policy in the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
. His History of Serbia was published in 1917.
He attended the Paris Peace Conference
Paris Peace Conference, 1919
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris in 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities...
of 1919 and later worked on an official history of it, on a scheme devised by George Louis Beer
George Louis Beer
George Louis Beer was an American historian.Born in Staten Island, New York, he achieved success in the tobacco business. He studied at Columbia University and lectured on European History there from 1893 to 1897. After retiring from business, he wrote three books on the British-American...
and Lord Eustace Percy
Eustace Percy, 1st Baron Percy of Newcastle
Eustace Sutherland Campbell Percy, 1st Baron Percy of Newcastle PC , styled Lord Eustace Percy between 1899 and 1953, was a British diplomat, Conservative politician and public servant...
. He was British representative on the Albanian boundary commission; and was an advisor in 1921 to Arthur Balfour
Arthur Balfour
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, KG, OM, PC, DL was a British Conservative politician and statesman...
at the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
.
In the compilation of the British Documents on the Origins of the War he collaborated with George Peabody Gooch
George Peabody Gooch
George Peabody Gooch OM, CH was a British journalist, historian and Liberal Party politician. A follower of Lord Acton, he never held an academic position, but knew the work of historians of continental Europe.-Early life:...
, (1873-1968), another diplomatic historian and a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for the Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
from 1906 to 1910. Gooch had spoken out against British policy in the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
, and was also a historian of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
; his appointment was designed to give the project a credible independence. In the event Temperley and Gooch were constrained financially, and in the use of documents subject to a 'fifty year rule' limitation on their release. They had to employ tactical resignation threats, to get their own way. Lillian Margery Penson (1896-1963) was involved in this, and a later project on the Blue Books.
The historian Herbert Butterfield
Herbert Butterfield
Sir Herbert Butterfield was a British historian and philosopher of history who is remembered chiefly for two books—a short volume early in his career entitled The Whig Interpretation of History and his Origins of Modern Science...
was a student of Temperley's.
Works
- The life of Canning, (1905)
- History of SerbiaSerbiaSerbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
(1917) - Frederic the Great and Kaiser Joseph: An Episode of War and Diplomacy in the Eighteenth Century (1915)
- A history of the Peace Conference of Paris, (6 vols) 1920-24;
- The foreign policy of Canning, 1822-1827 (1925)
- British Documents on the Origins of the War, 1898-1914 (1926-1938) with George Peabody GoochGeorge Peabody GoochGeorge Peabody Gooch OM, CH was a British journalist, historian and Liberal Party politician. A follower of Lord Acton, he never held an academic position, but knew the work of historians of continental Europe.-Early life:...
- I. The end of British isolation
- II The Anglo-Japanese alliance and the Franco-British entente
- III. The testing of the entente, 1904-6
- IV The Anglo-Russian rapprochement, 1903-7
- V. The Near East: The Macedonian problem and the annexation of BosniaBosnia Province, Ottoman EmpireThe Bosnia Vilayet was an Ottoman vilayet, mostly based on the territory of the present-day state of Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as most of Slavonia, Lika and Dalmatia in present-day Croatia. It bordered Kosovo Vilayet to the south. Before the administrative reform in 1864, it was called the...
, 1903-9 - VI Anglo-German tension: armaments and negotiation, 1907-12
- VII The Agadir CrisisAgadir CrisisThe Agadir Crisis, also called the Second Moroccan Crisis, or the Panthersprung, was the international tension sparked by the deployment of the German gunboat Panther, to the Moroccan port of Agadir on July 1, 1911.-Background:...
- VIII. Arbitration, neutrality and security
- IX.1.The Balkan wars: The prelude. The Tripoli war
- IX.2 The Balkan wars: The League and Turkey
- X.1 The Near and Middle East on the eve of war
- X.2 The last years of peace
- XI The outbreak of war
- Europe in the Nineteenth Century (1927) with A. J. Grant, textbook later updated
- England and the Near East: The Crimea (1936)
- The Foundation of British Foreign Policy (1938) with L. M. Penson
- A Century of Diplomatic Blue Books, 1814-1914 (1938) with L. M. Penson