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Janet Nelson

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Dame Janet Nelson
DBE FRHistS FBA
Born
Janet Laughland Muir

(1942-03-28)28 March 1942
Blackpool, Lancashire, England
Died14 October 2024(2024-10-14) (aged 82)
Other namesJinty Nelson
Spouse
Howard Nelson
​
​
(m. 1965; div. 2010)​
Children2
Academic background
Alma materNewnham College, Cambridge
ThesisRituals of Royal Inauguration in Early Medieval Europe (1967)
Doctoral advisorWalter Ullmann
Academic work
DisciplineHistory
Sub-disciplineMedieval history
InstitutionsKing's College, London
Main interestsMedieval kingship

Dame Janet Laughland Nelson DBE FRHistS FBA (née Muir; 28 March 1942 – 14 October 2024), also known as Jinty Nelson, was a British historian and professor of Medieval History at King's College London.

Early life and education

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Janet Muir was born on 28 March 1942 in Blackpool, Lancashire, the daughter of William Wilson Muir and Elizabeth Barnes Muir (née Laughland). She was educated at Keswick School, Cumbria, and at Newnham College, Cambridge, where she received her BA degree in 1964 and her PhD degree in 1967.[1][2][3]

In 1965 Muir married Howard George Horatio Nelson.[4] They had a son named Billy and a daughter named Lizzie before divorcing in 2010.[2]

Career

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Nelson was appointed a lecturer at King's College, London, in 1970, promoted to Reader in 1987, to Professor in 1993, and Director of the Centre for Late Antique and Medieval Studies in 1994, retiring in 2007.

Elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society in 1979, Nelson was appointed the Society's first female President in 2001. She was President of the Ecclesiastical History Society (1993–94)[5] and was a Vice-President of the British Academy (2000–01). In 2013 she gave the British Academy's Raleigh Lecture on History.[6] Elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society in 1979, she was appointed the Society's first female President in 2001.[7] The Jinty Nelson Award for Inspirational Teaching & Supervision in History was established by the Royal Historical Society in January 2018.[7]

Nelson's research focused on early medieval Europe, including Anglo-Saxon England. She published widely on kingship, government, political ideas, religion and ritual, and increasingly on women and gender during this period. From 2000 to 2010 she co-directed, with Simon Keynes (of Cambridge University), the AHRC-funded project Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England.[8] Her last book King and Emperor, a biography of Charlemagne, was published in 2019.[9]

Explaining her approach, she said: ".. my research has centred on early medieval European themes: politics and ritual, women's history and gender, ecclesiastical, social and cultural history. As my publications suggest, I tend to stick to choices, once made. My preferred genres are articles rather than books, collaborative and interdisciplinary projects rather than solo ones."[10]

Death

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Nelson died on 14 October 2024, at the age of 82.[11]

Honours

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Nelson was appointed a Dame Commander (DBE) in the 2006 Birthday Honours and held honorary doctorates from the Universities of East Anglia (2004),[12] St Andrews (2007),[13] Queen's University Belfast (2009),[14] York (2010),[15] Liverpool (2010)[16] and Nottingham (2010).[1]

Works

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  • —— (2019). King and Emperor: A New Life of Charlemagne. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0520314207.[17]
  • ——; Kempf, D., eds. (2015). Reading the Bible in the Middle Ages. Bloomsbury Publishing.[18]
  • —— (2007). Courts, Elites and Gendered Power in the Early Middle Ages. Aldershot.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • ——; Wormald, D., eds. (2007). Lay Intellectuals in the Carolingian World. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • ——; Reuter, Timothy, eds. (2007). Medieval Politics and Modern Mentalities. Cambridge.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • ——; Linehan, P., eds. (2003). The Medieval World. London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • ——; Stafford, P.; Martindale, J., eds. (2001). Law, Laity and Solidarities: Essays in Honour of Susan Reynolds. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
  • ——; Theuws, F., eds. (2000). Rituals of Power from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages. Leiden.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • —— (1999). Rulers and Ruling Families in Earlier Medieval Europe. London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • —— (1996). The Frankish World, 750–900. London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • —— (1992). Charles the Bald. London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • —— (1991). The Annals of St-Bertin. Manchester: Manchester University Press. ISBN 978-0719034251.
  • —— (1986). Politics and Ritual in Early Medieval Europe. London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

Television

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Nelson appeared on BBC television and radio, notably as an expert on Michael Wood's 2013 series King Alfred and the Anglo Saxons.[19]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Graduation celebrations for the class of 2010". The University of Nottingham. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  2. ^ a b "NELSON, Dame Janet Laughland, Dame Jinty Nelson) in Who's Who". Oxford University Press. 1 December 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  3. ^ "Birthdays", The Guardian, p. 43, 28 March 2014
  4. ^ Fouracre, Paul; Ganz, David, eds. (3 January 2020). "Introduction: Dame Jinty Nelson . . . An Appreciation". Frankland: The Franks and the world of the early middle ages. Manchester University Press. pp. 1–6. ISBN 978-1-5261-4825-4.
  5. ^ "Past Presidents of the EHS | Ecclesiastical History Society". history.ac.uk. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Raleigh Lectures on History". The British Academy. text video
  7. ^ a b "Jinty Nelson Award for Inspirational Teaching & Supervision in History - RHS". RHS. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
  8. ^ "Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England: Team". pase.ac.uk. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  9. ^ King and Emperor. penguin.co.uk. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  10. ^ "Jinty Nelson passes away". 16 October 2024.
  11. ^ "Dame Jinty Nelson (1942–2024), historian and former President of the Royal Historical Society". royalhistsoc.org. 16 October 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  12. ^ "Honorary Graduates of the University". 14 August 2017. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Honorary degrees (21 June 2007)". University of St Andrews news. 22 June 2007. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  14. ^ "07-2009 Press Releases | News". Queen's University Belfast. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  15. ^ "University of York honours 11 for their contributions to society - News and events". The University of York. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  16. ^ "World leading scientists among 2010 honours - News". University of Liverpool. 16 July 2010. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  17. ^ Nelson, Janet L. (2019). King and Emperor: A New Life of Charlemagne. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0520314207 – via Google Books.
  18. ^ Harkins, Franklin T. (2019). "Review of Reading the Bible in the Middle Ages ed. by Jinty Nelson and Damien Kempf". The Catholic Historical Review. 105 (3): 573–575. doi:10.1353/cat.2019.0109. ISSN 1534-0708. S2CID 211649817.
  19. ^ BBC Four – King Alfred and the Anglo Saxons. Accessed 21 August 2013.
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Professional and academic associations
Preceded by President of the Ecclesiastical History Society
1993–1994 		Succeeded by
Preceded by President of the Royal Historical Society
2001–2005 		Succeeded by
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