George Holmes (historian)
English historian (1927-2009)
George Arthur Holmes, FBA (22 April 1927 – 29 January 2009) was Chichele Professor of Medieval History at the University of Oxford, and a Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, 1989-94.
Early life and education
Holmes was born on 22 April 1927, at Aberystwyth, Cardiganshire, Wales, son of English watchmaker John Holmes and Welsh mother Margaret (née Thomas). John Holmes had moved from London to Wales to marry Margaret, whom he met on a cycling holiday.
Holmes was educated at Ardwyn County School and University College, Aberystwyth. He went on to Cambridge University for graduate study under M. M. Postan. In 1953, he married Anne Klein, a scholar of 19th century French literary culture. The couple had two sons and two daughters.
Academic career
In 1951, St John's College, Cambridge elected Holmes to a research fellowship. After having a year abroad at the University of Göttingen, in 1952-53, he moved to Oxford in 1954, where he became Tutor in Modern History at St Catherine's Society. When the University granted that Society full collegiate status, he became one of the founding Fellows of St Catherine's College, Oxford at its foundation in 1962.
“George Holmes (historian)” enters the record as english historian (1927-2009). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what George, Holmes and historian can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“George Holmes (historian)” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, George, Holmes and historian provides the most credible route into that argument.
The entry’s evidential value lies in the named roles, institutions and publications that can be tested against primary documentation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 23, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q5540690. VIAF identifies the subject as 56651216. The Library of Congress control number is n79150968. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1927, 2009, 1989 and 1953.
A concise life account rarely captures disputed attribution, private networks or the changing language used to describe a career. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.
- Establishing names and roles
- Building a first chronology
- Locating cited institutions
Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “George Holmes (historian)”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow George Holmes (historian) primary sources, George Holmes (historian) archive and George research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “George Holmes (historian)”?
- Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
- Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “George Holmes (historian)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.