J. C. Holt

Professor Sir James Clarke Holt FBA (born 26 April 1922) is an English medieval historian and was the third Master of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge University.

Educated at Bradford Grammar School, Holt graduated, and subsequently took his DPhil, at the University of Oxford. He held the positions of Professor of Medieval History at the University of Nottingham (1962 - 1965), Professor of History at the University of Reading (1965 - 1978) and Professor of Medieval History at the University of Cambridge from 1978 until his retirement in 1988. From 1981 until 1988 he served as the Master of Fitzwilliam College.

Holt became a Fellow of the British Academy in 1978 and was its Vice President from 1987 - 1989, president of the Royal Historical Society (1981–1985) and was knighted for his work as an historian.

Holt made his fame with the book Magna Carta, which came out in its original edition in 1965. In this work he treated the charter in the context of the political framework of its time. The book has since been fully revised, and is still considered authoritative within its field. He has also published other works on the same period, such as The Northerners: A Study in the Reign of King John, and Robin Hood.

Selected works

• The Northerners: A Study in the Reign of King John, (1961)
• Magna Carta, (1965)
• Robin Hood, (1982)
• Magna Carta and Medieval Government, (1985)
• Foundations for the Future: The University of Cambridge, (1995)
• Colonial England, 1066-1215, (1997)

External links

• Transcript of Interview with Prof Sir James Holt (interview took place in Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, 16 May 2008). Includes photograph & autobiographical details.
• MP3 audio file of the Interview with Prof Sir James Holt, 16 May 2008.

Academic offices
Preceded by Edward Miller	Master of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge 1981–1988	Succeeded by Gordon Cameron