Kenneth Turpin was a former Provost of Oriel College, Oxford from 1957 to 1980. He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...

 from 1966 to 1969.

Turpin was born in Ludlow

Ludlow

Ludlow is a market town in Shropshire, England close to the Welsh border and in the Welsh Marches. It lies within a bend of the River Teme, on its eastern bank, forming an area of and centred on a small hill. Atop this hill is the site of Ludlow Castle and the market place...

, Shropshire

Shropshire

Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, in 1915 and was educated at Manchester Grammar School

Manchester Grammar School

The Manchester Grammar School is the largest independent day school for boys in the UK . It is based in Manchester, England...

. Entering Oriel to read Greats, quickly changing to history

History

History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...

, he graduated in 1939 with a first class degree and was awarded his BLitt for a thesis on Robert Harley

Robert Harley

Robert Harley may refer to:*Robert Harley , English statesman, Member of Parliament for Radnor and Herefordshire*Robert Harley , British Member of Parliament for Radnor...

 in 1940. Due to lung trouble he was considered unfit for military service

Military service

Military service, in its simplest sense, is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, whether as a chosen job or as a result of an involuntary draft . Some nations require a specific amount of military service from every citizen...

, he entered the Treasury as a temporary civil servant and from 1943 to 1945 served as assistant private secretary

Private Secretary

In the United Kingdom government, a Private Secretary is a civil servant in a Department or Ministry, responsible to the Secretary of State or Minister...

 to Clement Attlee

Clement Attlee

Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, PC, FRS was a British Labour politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, and as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955...

, then Deputy Prime Minister

Deputy Prime Minister

A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some counties, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, but is significantly different, though both...

.

With World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 over, Turpin returned to Oxford

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...

 as an administrator, from 1947 to 1957 he was secretary of faculties, after which he took up the offer of a professor

Professor

A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...

ial fellowship at Oriel, on Sir George Clark's

George Clark (historian)

Sir George Norman Clark was a 20th century English historian. Educated at Manchester Grammar School and Balliol College, Oxford, he became the inaugural Chichele Professor of Economic History at the University of Oxford in 1931 , a post he held until 1943...

 retirement in 1957, he was elected Provost. He researched into the history of the University in the 19th century and became a member of the Hebdomadal Council

Hebdomadal Council

The Hebdomadal Council was the chief executive body for the University of Oxford from its establishment in 1854 until its replacement, in the Michaelmas term of 2000, by the new University Council...

 and a curator of the University Chest

University Chest

The University Chest is a term used at the University of Oxford in connection with the financial aspects of the university and its administration. There has traditionally been an actual chest, an iron box that can be locked and used for storage...

. Turpin became Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University in 1966 and held the post for three years. He remained Provost until 1980.
After postponing his retirement for a year at the request of the Fellows of Oriel College, Turpin moved to Knighton in Powys

Powys

Powys is a local-government county and preserved county in Wales.-Geography:Powys covers the historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire , and a small part of Denbighshire — an area of 5,179 km², making it the largest county in Wales by land area.It is...

, Wales

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

, returning to Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

 after a few years. Just as he and his sister Mary had cared for their ageing parents, so Mary kept house and cared for him. Turpin's funeral was held in the chapel of Oriel College.

Publications

• Brock, M.G. and Curthoys, M.C., The History of the University of Oxford, Volume VI, Part 1, Chapter 6 "The Ascendancy of Oriel" is by Turpin — Oxford University Press
  Oxford University Press
  Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
  
  (1997) pp. 183–192. ISBN 0-19-951016-4.