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Stewart Cowley

British writer and artist (1947-)

Correspondence, annotated notebooks and portrait silhouettes prepared for research
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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 20, 2026
Entity authorityQ26202550
Source-derived summary

Stewart Cowley (born 1947) (also Steven Caldwell, Hubert Venables) is a British writer and artist, best known for his works in the "Terran Trade Authority" universe.

Terran Trade Authority

The original four books are:

Spacecraft 2000-2100 AD (by Stewart Cowley, 1978) (UK ISBN 060038439X and US ISBN 0890092117 Editions) [SC1]

Great Space Battles (by Stewart Cowley and Charles Herridge, 1979) (UK ISBN 0600383687/US ISBN 0890092605) [GSB]

SpaceWreck: Ghost Ships and Derelicts of Space (by Stewart Cowley, 1979) (UK ISBN 0600329909/US ISBN 0896730220) [SW]

Starliners: Commercial Travel in 2200 AD (by Stewart Cowley, 1980) (UK ISBN 0600353575/US ISBN 0896730700) [SL]

In addition, the books Spacecraft 2000-2100 AD and Great Space Battles were collected together and published as Spacebase 2000 (1984, UK ISBN 0600385469/US ISBN 0312749406).

In 2005-2006 the series was republished as:

Spacecraft 2100 to 2200 AD (by K. Scott Agnew, Jeff Lilly & Stewart Cowley) (July–August 2006) (Book info ISBN 097801510X) [SC2]

Local Space: A Guide to the TTA Universe (October 2006)

The Terran Trade Authority Roleplaying Game (by K. Scott Agnew & Jeff Lilly, with foreword by Stewart Cowley) (October 2006) (Book info ISBN 0978015118) (Now out of Print)

The Terran Trade Authority: The Proxima War, Role Playing Game (by Jeff Lilly and Jonathan M. Thompson, foreword by Stewart Cowley) (2014) Published by Battlefield Press International

Reception

Composer Jonn Serrie cited the series as an inspiration for a number of his own works, and said the art in the series, "came from the portfolios of some of the finest space artists in the world".

Foreign language editions

The books were published in many languages.

French

No information yet available.

German

The series was published 1981 under the name "Der große galaktische Krieg" (The great galactic war) by Condor Verlag which also published Marvel Comics in the 70s and 80s.

1. Die Schlacht im Weltraum (The battle in space) (1981)

2. Der Kampf zwischen den Sternen (The battle between the stars) (1981)

3. Die Kampfraumer des Imperiums (The battlecruisers of the empire) (1981)

4.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Stewart Cowley” as british writer and artist (1947-). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Stewart, Cowley and British.

Editorial reviewA useful biographical orientation record, particularly for establishing names, roles and a first chronology. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1947, 2000, 1978, 1979—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1947-05-24. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Stewart, Cowley and British providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Stewart Cowley”, the useful work is to connect “british writer and artist (1947-)” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q26202550. VIAF identifies the subject as 41838451. The Library of Congress control number is n79026608. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1947, 2000, 1978 and 1979.

Critical limits

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.

Best used for
  • Establishing names and roles
  • Building a first chronology
  • Locating cited institutions
Verify next

Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Stewart Cowley”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Stewart Cowley primary sources, Stewart Cowley archive and Stewart research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Stewart Cowley”?
  2. Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
  3. How has the subject’s reputation changed across later accounts?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Stewart Cowley” 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.