Macgregor Knox
Encyclopedia
MacGregor Knox is an American historian of 20th century Europe, and since 1994 has been the Stevenson Professor of International History at the London School of Economics
. He is the son of the British-born classical scholar and historian Bernard Knox
and the novelist Bianca VanOrden.
Knox was educated at Harvard University
, graduating with a BA in 1967. He did his graduate studies at Yale University
, receiving an MA and PhD in 1977. Between Harvard and Yale he served in the United States Army
, including a tour of duty in Vietnam
in 1969 as a rifle platoon commander with the 173rd Airborne Brigade. He taught at the University of Rochester
before moving to his current post.
As a historian, Knox has specialized in the political, military and diplomatic history of Europe in the late 19th and 20th centuries, focusing on the two world wars and the emergence of dictatorship in the 1920s and 30s. He is fluent in French, Italian and German.
Knox's most recent work, To the Threshold of Power, is a comparative study of the rise of Benito Mussolini
and Fascism
in Italy
with that of Adolf Hitler
and National Socialism in Germany
. Knox argues that the origins of both dictatorships can be found in the late development of both countries as united states, their shared sense of grievance against the established European powers, Britain
and France
, and their common sense of frustration at the outcome of World War I
(Germany's sense of undeserved defeat, and Italy's sense of unrewarded victory). He rejects Marxist
views that Fascism and National Socialism were agents of, or represented the interests of, capitalism
or big business, and he is highly critical of both the Italian Socialist Party
and the Communist Party of Germany
, whose revolutionary rhetoric, he argues, provoked middle-class support for Fascism and National Socialism. On the other hand, he argues that the leadership of the Social Democratic Party of Germany
, from Friedrich Ebert
to Otto Braun
, was the strongest pillar of German democracy under the Weimar Republic
. He sees the failure of democracy in Italy and Germany as ultimately caused by the desire of the armies in both countries for an authoritarian regime that would suppress the parties of the left and allow rearmament, and a foreign policy that would reverse the verdicts of 1918.
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
. He is the son of the British-born classical scholar and historian Bernard Knox
Bernard Knox
Bernard MacGregor Walker Knox was an English classicist, author, and critic who became an American citizen. He was the first director of the Center for Hellenic Studies. In 1992 the National Endowment for the Humanities selected Knox for the Jefferson Lecture, the U.S...
and the novelist Bianca VanOrden.
Knox was educated at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, graduating with a BA in 1967. He did his graduate studies at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, receiving an MA and PhD in 1977. Between Harvard and Yale he served in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, including a tour of duty in Vietnam
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
in 1969 as a rifle platoon commander with the 173rd Airborne Brigade. He taught at the University of Rochester
University of Rochester
The University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs.The...
before moving to his current post.
As a historian, Knox has specialized in the political, military and diplomatic history of Europe in the late 19th and 20th centuries, focusing on the two world wars and the emergence of dictatorship in the 1920s and 30s. He is fluent in French, Italian and German.
Knox's most recent work, To the Threshold of Power, is a comparative study of the rise of Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
and Fascism
Italian Fascism
Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...
in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
with that of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and National Socialism in 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...
. Knox argues that the origins of both dictatorships can be found in the late development of both countries as united states, their shared sense of grievance against the established European powers, Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and their common sense of frustration at the outcome of 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...
(Germany's sense of undeserved defeat, and Italy's sense of unrewarded victory). He rejects Marxist
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
views that Fascism and National Socialism were agents of, or represented the interests of, capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
or big business, and he is highly critical of both the Italian Socialist Party
Italian Socialist Party
The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II...
and the Communist Party of Germany
Communist Party of Germany
The Communist Party of Germany was a major political party in Germany between 1918 and 1933, and a minor party in West Germany in the postwar period until it was banned in 1956...
, whose revolutionary rhetoric, he argues, provoked middle-class support for Fascism and National Socialism. On the other hand, he argues that the leadership of the Social Democratic Party of Germany
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
, from Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and...
to Otto Braun
Otto Braun
This article is about the Prime Minister of Prussia. For the German Communist and once the Comintern military adviser to the Chinese Communist revolution see Otto Braun ....
, was the strongest pillar of German democracy under the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
. He sees the failure of democracy in Italy and Germany as ultimately caused by the desire of the armies in both countries for an authoritarian regime that would suppress the parties of the left and allow rearmament, and a foreign policy that would reverse the verdicts of 1918.
Books
- Mussolini Unleashed, 1939-1941: Politics and Strategy in Fascist Italy's Last War. Cambridge University Press, 1982.
- German Nationalism and the European Response, 1890-1945. With Carole Fink and Isabel V. Hull. University of Oklahoma Press, 1985.
- Hitler's Italian Allies: Royal Armed Forces, Fascist Regime, and the War of 1940-43. Cambridge University Press, 2000.
- Common Destiny: Dictatorship, Foreign Policy, and War in Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. Cambridge University Press, 2000.
- The Dynamics of Military Revolution, 1300-2050. With Williamson R. Murray. Cambridge University Press, 2001.
- Destino comune. Dittatura, politica estera e guerra nell'Italia fascista e nella Germania nazista. Giulio Einaudi Editore, 2003.
- "Fascism: Ideology, Foreign Policy, and War." Liberal and Fascist Italy: 1900-1945. Adrian Lyttelton, ed. Oxford University Press, 2003.
- To the Threshold of Power, 1922/33: Origins and Dynamics of the Fascist and National Socialist Dictatorships, vol. 1. Cambridge University Press, 2007.