Arthur Bryant facts for kids

Sir Arthur Wynne Morgan Bryant (18 February 1899 – 22 January 1985) was a famous English historian and writer. He wrote many books about English history. He also wrote a regular column for The Illustrated London News magazine.

Some of his most well-known books were about Samuel Pepys, a famous diarist. He also wrote about English history from the 1700s and 1800s. Sir Arthur Bryant was a favorite historian of several British prime ministers, including Winston Churchill and Clement Attlee.

Sir Arthur Bryant often wrote about England's past in a very romantic way. He believed in old traditions and disliked modern business and money systems. He thought people should focus on their duties more than their rights.

Early Life and Education

Arthur Bryant was born in 1899 in Dersingham, England. His father, Sir Francis Morgan Bryant, worked for the Prince of Wales. Arthur grew up near Buckingham Palace in London. This helped him learn a lot about British traditions and history from a young age.

He went to school at Harrow School. Even though he planned to join the army, he won a scholarship to Pembroke College, Cambridge in 1916. Instead, he joined the Royal Flying Corps in October 1917. This was during the First World War. He was part of the first group to bomb towns in Germany's Rhineland area.

After the war, in 1919, he studied Modern History at Queen's College, Oxford. He did very well in his studies.

Starting His Career

Arthur Bryant first worked at a school in London. There, he saw how important education was for bringing people together. This made him want to become a historian. He was a popular young man and often convinced his friends to help him teach children at a library he started. This library was in Charles Dickens's old house in London.

In 1923, he became a lawyer but soon left to become a headmaster. He led the Cambridge School of Arts, Crafts, and Technology. At 24, he was the youngest headmaster in England. He was very good at his job, and the school grew from 300 to 2,000 students in just three years.

He also organized big historical shows called "pageants." These included the Cambridge Pageant in 1924 and the Oxford Pageant in 1926.

In 1927, he started teaching history at Oxford University. His first book, The Spirit of Conservatism, came out in 1929.

Becoming a Famous Historian

Writing About History

In 1929, a friend asked Arthur Bryant to write a new book about Charles II of England. He started the book with Charles's exciting escape after the Battle of Worcester. This made the book very popular. It was chosen as a top book in October 1931 and became a best-seller. This success encouraged him to keep writing history books.

He also continued to create large historical pageants. These included shows in Wisbech and Hyde Park, London. He even put on a Naval Night Pageant in Greenwich. The King, Queen, and other important people attended this show. People called him "the English Max Reinhardt" because his pageants were so good.

Bryant helped start the National Book Association. This group published some of his own writings.

Views and Controversies

In January 1939, a new English version of Mein Kampf was published. Arthur Bryant wrote the introduction for it. In this introduction, he praised Adolf Hitler but also said he disagreed with the persecution of Jewish people.

His book Unfinished Victory, published in 1940, talked about Germany's recent history. It tried to explain how Germany rebuilt itself after World War I. Bryant suggested that some German Jews had gained a lot from economic problems. He criticized the destruction of Jewish shops but also said that Nazi Germany might create a "happier Germany."

At first, many people liked the book. But as World War II continued, public opinion changed. People no longer supported any kind of compromise with Germany. Bryant realized his mistake and tried to buy back unsold copies of the book.

After France fell in 1940, Bryant's writing changed. He started to celebrate British patriotism. His book English Saga, published at the end of 1940, described England as an "island fortress" fighting for its freedom. His popular essays and books helped people feel stronger during the war.

Later Works

During the 1940s, his books were popular because they were easy to read. However, some younger historians later questioned how much research went into them. For example, his books English Saga (1940) and The Years of Endurance (1942) were criticized. He often compared Napoleon to Hitler in his writings. These criticisms, along with his popularity, meant he never received the highest academic awards.

In the 1950s, his main work was a two-volume collection of Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke's diaries. These books, The Turn of the Tide (1957) and The Triumph in the West (1959), caused a lot of discussion. They criticized Winston Churchill, who was very popular at the time. These diaries are still important for understanding the British military during the war.

Final Years and Legacy

In his later years, Arthur Bryant wrote several books about broad English history. These included Set in a Silver Sea (1984) and Freedom's Own Island (1986). He continued to have many readers.

He was honored by the Queen in 1954, becoming a Knight. In 1967, he was given the Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour award. These honors were given to him by Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who was a big fan of his work.

Sir Arthur Bryant passed away on January 22, 1985, at the age of 85. He was cremated, and his ashes were placed in Salisbury Cathedral.

Bryant's grave in Salisbury Cathedral

His Writings and Influence

Arthur Bryant wrote over forty books in his lifetime. Together, they sold more than two million copies. He also wrote a play about Samuel Pepys, which was performed many times in London. He gave many speeches in Great Britain, the United States, and Europe.

From 1936 until his death, he wrote a regular column called "Our Note Book" for The Illustrated London News. He wrote about 2.7 million words for that magazine!

Even though some professional historians didn't always agree with his popular books, many prime ministers praised his work. These included Stanley Baldwin, Neville Chamberlain, Churchill, Attlee, Macmillan, Wilson, James Callaghan, and Margaret Thatcher.

Some historians, like J. H. Plumb, felt that Bryant wanted more academic recognition than he received. Plumb said that Bryant "wrote far better than nearly all professional historians." However, he also felt that Bryant sometimes "over-wrote."

Another historian, Andrew Roberts, called Bryant a "fraudulent scholar." However, Julia Stapleton later wrote a full study that responded to these criticisms.

Arthur Bryant himself knew that writing broad historical stories could be difficult. He once wrote that it was a "great presumption" for one person to try and cover a nation's entire history. He believed that someone had to try, so that ordinary readers could understand their country's past.

List of Works

• King Charles II (1931)
• Macaulay (1932)
• Samuel Pepys (three volumes: 1933, 1935, 1938)
• The Man and the Hour: Studies of Six Great Men of Our Time (1934)
• The England of Charles II (1935)
• The American Ideal (1936)
• George V (1936)
• Unfinished Victory (1940)
• English Saga, 1840–1940 (1940)
• The Years of Endurance, 1793–1802 (1942)
• Years of Victory, 1802–1812 (1944)
• The Age of Elegance, 1812–1822 (1950)
• The Story of England: Makers of the Realm (1953)
• The Turn of the Tide 1939–1943 (1957) - Alanbrooke Diaries, vol. 1
• Triumph in the West 1943–1946 (1959) - Alanbrooke Diaries, vol. 2
• The Age of Chivalry (1963)
• The Fire and the Rose (1965)
• The Medieval Foundation (1966)
• Protestant Island (1967)
• The Lion and the Unicorn: A Historian's Testament (1969)
• The Great Duke; or the Invincible General (1971) - biography of the Duke of Wellington
• A Thousand Years of British Monarchy (1975)
• The Elizabethan Deliverance (1980)
• Spirit of England (1982)
• Set in a Silver Sea: A History of Britain and the British People (1984) - vol. 1
• Freedom's Own Island: A History of Britain and the British People (1986) - vol. 2
• Search for Justice: A History of Britain and the British People (1990) - vol. 3