Lawrence Freedman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sir Lawrence Freedman
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Freedman in 2013
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| Born | 1948 (age 76–77) England
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| Education | Whitley Bay Grammar School |
| Alma mater | University of Manchester (BA), University of York (BPhil), University of Oxford (DPhil) |
| Occupation | Academic, historian and author |
| Spouse(s) | Judith Freedman |
Sir Lawrence David Freedman, born in 1948, is a famous British expert. He is a historian and author who studies how countries deal with each other. He focuses on topics like foreign policy, international relations, and strategy. People often call him a top expert in "strategic studies" in Britain. He was also part of the Iraq Inquiry, which looked into the Iraq War. He is now a Professor Emeritus of War Studies at King's College London. This means he is a retired professor who is still highly respected.
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Sir Lawrence Freedman's Early Life and Education
Sir Lawrence Freedman is from a Jewish family. He went to Whitley Bay Grammar School when he was younger. After that, he studied at several universities. He earned degrees from the University of Manchester and the University of York. He then went to the University of Oxford, where he was a student at Nuffield College.
His special project at Oxford, finished in 1975, was about how the United States saw the Soviet Union's military power. He also taught part-time at Balliol College.
Sir Lawrence Freedman's Career and Work
Before joining King's College London, Sir Lawrence worked at important places. These included the International Institute for Strategic Studies and Royal Institute of International Affairs. In 1982, he became a Professor of War Studies at King's College London. He led that department until 1997.
Later, in 2000, he became the first head of the college's School of Social Science and Public Policy. From 2003 to 2013, he was a Vice Principal at King's College London. He retired from King's in December 2014. He was also made a special member, called a Fellow, of the college in 1992. In 2015, he became a visiting professor at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford.
Sir Lawrence helped write an important speech in 1999 for Tony Blair, who was the Prime Minister at the time. This speech explained what became known as the 'Blair doctrine'.
He was also the official historian for the Falklands campaign. He wrote a detailed book about it called The Official History of the Falklands Campaign. This book was published in two parts in 2006.
Sir Lawrence Freedman's Books and Writings
Sir Lawrence is very interested in current defense and foreign policy issues. He has written many books and articles. He has written a lot about nuclear strategy and the Cold War. The Cold War was a long period of tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. He also often writes reviews for the magazine Foreign Affairs.
Some of his recent books include:
- The Revolution in Strategic Affairs
- Strategic Coercion (which he edited)
- An illustrated book about the Cold War
- A collection of essays on British defense policy
- Kennedy's Wars, which covers big events in the early 1960s. These events included crises over Berlin, Cuba, and Vietnam. This book won an award called the Arthur Ross Prize.
- A book about deterrence, which means stopping an enemy by making them fear the consequences. This book came out in 2004.
- A Choice of Enemies: America Confronts the Middle East (2008). This book won two awards: the Lionel Gelber Prize and the Duke of Westminster's Medal for Military Literature.
- Strategy: A History (2013). This book was named one of the best books of 2013 by the Financial Times. It also won the W J McKenzie Book Prize.
Sir Lawrence Freedman's Awards and Recognition
Sir Lawrence has received many honors for his work. In 1995, he became a Fellow of the British Academy. This is a very high honor for experts in the humanities and social sciences. He was also made a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 1996. In 2003, he became a Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George. This is why he is called "Sir."
In 2006, he received the Chesney Gold Medal from the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). This award recognized his important contributions to defense and international security. The award praised him for teaching many students and military officers about how war changes. It also noted his work on the Soviet threat and the Cold War. After the Cold War, he helped discuss new security issues like terrorism.
He also received the Distinguished Scholar Award in 2007 and the George G Bell Award in 2008. In 2009, he became a member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom. This happened when he was appointed to the Iraq Inquiry.
Sir Lawrence Freedman's Family Life
Sir Lawrence is married to Judith Freedman. She is also a professor, specializing in tax law at Worcester College, Oxford. They have two children, Ruth and Sam. Their son, Sam, is an expert in education policy. He used to advise Michael Gove, a government minister, and now works at the Institute for Government.
Selected Publications
- War, strategy, and international politics: essays in honour of Sir Michael Howard edited by Robert O'Neill, Lawrence Freedman, and Paul Hayes (1992); ISBN: 0-19-822292-0
- Freedman, Lawrence D. "The Special Relationship, then and now". Foreign Affairs. May/June 2006.
- Freedman, Lawrence (2013). Strategy: A History. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN: 978-0-19-932515-3.
- Freedman, Lawrence (2017). The Future of War: A History. New York: Public Affairs.
- Freedman, Sir Lawrence (2019). Ukraine and the Art of Strategy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Freedman, Lawrence (2022). Command: The Politics of Military Operations from Korea to Ukraine. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
