Simon Sebag Montefiore

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Simon Sebag Montefiore
Born27 June 1965
London, United Kingdom
EducationLudgrove School
Harrow School
Alma materGonville and Caius College, Cambridge
OccupationAuthor
SpouseSanta Montefiore
Children2
Parent(s)Stephen Eric Sebag Montefiore
Phyllis April Jaffé

Simon Jonathan Sebag Montefiore (/ˌsaɪmən ˌsiːbæɡ ˌmɒnt[invalid input: 'ɨ']fiˈɔːri/; born 27 June 1965) is a British historian, television presenter and award-winning author of popular history books and novels.[1][2]

Early life

Simon Montefiore was born in London. His father was Stephen Eric Sebag Montefiore and his brother is Hugh Sebag-Montefiore. They are descended from a line of wealthy Sephardi Jews who were diplomats and bankers all over Europe and who originated from Morocco and Italy. At the start of the 19th century, his great-uncle, Sir Moses Montefiore, was an international financier who worked with the Rothschild family and who became a philanthropist.[3] His mother, Phyllis April Jaffé, comes from a Lithuanian Jewish family of scholars. Her parents fled the Russian Empire at the beginning of the 20th century. They bought tickets for New York City, but were cheated, being instead dropped off at Cork, Ireland. Due to the Limerick boycott in 1904 his grandfather Henry Jaffé left the country and moved to Newcastle, England.

Montefiore was educated at Ludgrove School and Harrow School. He read history at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge[4] where he received his Doctorate of Philosophy (PhD).[5] He won an Exhibition to Caius College.[6]

Career

Montefiore worked as a banker, a foreign affairs journalist, and a war correspondent covering the conflicts during the fall of the Soviet Union.

Montefiore's book Catherine the Great & Potemkin was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize, the Duff Cooper Prize, and the Marsh Biography Award.[7] Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar won History Book of the Year at the 2004 British Book Awards.[8] Young Stalin won the LA Times Book Prize for Best Biography,[9] the Costa Book Award,[10] the Bruno Kreisky Award for Political Literature, Le Grand Prix de la Biographie Politique[11] and was shortlisted for the James Tait Black Memorial Prize.[12] Jerusalem: The Biography was a number one non-fiction Sunday Times bestseller and a global bestseller and won The Book of the Year Prize from the Jewish Book Council.[13] His latest history is The Romanovs, 1613–1918.

Montefiore's debut novel King's Parade was published in 1991. The Spectator called the book "embarrassing" and "extremely silly".[14] Montefiore is also the author of the acclaimed novels Sashenka and One Night in Winter. One Night in Winter won the Political Novel of the Year Prize[15] and was longlisted for the Orwell Prize.[16] He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and Visiting Professor of Humanities at the University of Buckingham.

Personal life

Montefiore lives in London with his wife, the novelist Santa Montefiore, and their two children.[4]

Books

Non Fiction
  • The Romanovs 1613–1918 (2016)
  • Titans of History (2012)
  • Jerusalem: The Biography (2011)
  • Young Stalin (2007)
  • Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar (2004)
  • Catherine the Great and Potemkin (2001) (originally published as The Prince of Princes: The Life of Potemkin)
Fiction
  • One Night in Winter (2013)
  • Sashenka (2008)
  • My Affair with Stalin (1997)[17]
  • King's Parade (1991)[18]

Television

  • Jerusalem: The Making of a Holy City, 3 part series, 8 December 2011 – 23 December 2011[19]
  • Rome: A History of the Eternal City, 3 part series, 5–19 December 2012[20]
  • Byzantium: A Tale of Three Cities, 3 part series, 5 December 2013 – 19 December 2013[21]
  • Blood and Gold: The Making of Spain, 3 part series, 8 December 2015 – 22 December 2015[22]

CDs

  • Speeches that Changed The World

DVDs

Notes and references

  1. ^ Jonathen Rosen (28 October 2011). "Caliphs, Crusaders, and the Bloody History of Jerusalem". New York Times. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  2. ^ Ward, Vicky (22 January 2008). "History in the Making". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
  3. ^ David Shasha (15 June 2010). "Moses Montefiore: The Most Important Jew of the 19th Century". Huffington Post. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Simon Sebag Montefiore". Newsnight Review. BBC News. 18 July 2008. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
  5. ^ Simon Sebag Montefiore. "About the author". Retrieved 25 January 2016.
  6. ^ Hermione Eyre (28 January 2011). "The historian who introduced David Cameron to Prince Charles". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  7. ^ "Catherine the Great & Potemkin by Simon Sebag Montefiore".
  8. ^ Galaxy British Book Awards: History Book of the Year 2004
  9. ^ "2007 Los Angeles Times Book Prizes Awarded". Los Angeles Times. 25 April 2008. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
  10. ^ Anderson, Hephzibah (2 January 2008). "A.L. Kennedy's 'Day,' Montefiore's 'Young Stalin' Win Costas". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
  11. ^ "Simon Sebag Montefiore – The Author". Orion Books. 2008. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
  12. ^ Flood, Alison (26 August 2008). "Biographer celebrates 'fairy gold' prize win". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
  13. ^ "NJBA Winners". Retrieved 25 January 2016.
  14. ^ Caroline Moore (17 May 1991). "Made young with young desires". The Spectator.
  15. ^ Sarah Thrift (19 March 2014). "Political Book Awards winners announced". Politicos. Retrieved 25 January 2016.
  16. ^ "The Orwell Prize long list". Retrieved 25 January 2016.
  17. ^ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/917082.My_Affair_With_Stalin
  18. ^ http://archive.spectator.co.uk/article/18th-may-1991/30/made-young-with-young-desires
  19. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01852x1
  20. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01p6vtb
  21. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03l2shc
  22. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06rwgdf
  23. ^ BBC Media Centre

External links

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