What do you think?
Rate this book
Smuts #1
Smuts, Vol. 1: The Sanguine Years, 1870-1919
Book by Hancock
223 pages, Hardcover
First published January 2, 1962
About the author
W.K. Hancock
46 books4 followersA distinguished historian of Australia, William Keith Hancock was educated at Melbourne Grammar School and later the University of Melbourne where he was resident at Trinity College from 1917. As the Australia-at-large Rhodes Scholar for 1921, Hancock went to Balliol College, Oxford in 1922. He graduated in 1924 with a Bachelor of Arts with first class honours in Modern History. He then became the first Australian to gain a Fellowship of All Souls College, Oxford in 1923. After returning to Australia he was Professor of Modern History at the University of Adelaide between 1924 and 1933.
From 1934 to 1944 Hancock was the Professor of History at University of Birmingham and during this war period was also appointed to the War Cabinet Offices. In 1941 he was appointed Supervisor of the United Kingdom Civil Series of the History of the Second World War and was thereafter editor of the series. Between 1944 and 1949, he returned to Oxford, becoming Chichele Professor of Economic History. In 1949 he left Oxford, taking up an appointment as the Director of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies. He served as the Professor of British Commonwealth Affairs at the University of London until 1956.
Hancock returned to Australia in 1957 to take up an appointment as Director of the Research School of Social Sciences at the Australian National University, a position he held until 1961. He was Professor of History at the Institute of Advanced Studies, ANU until his retirement in 1965. On his retirement he was made Emeritus Professor (1968) and created the first University Fellow of the ANU. Other positions he held were Chairman of the Editorial Board of the Australian Dictionary of Biography from 1958 to 1965 and inaugural President of the Australian Academy of the Humanities from 1969 to 1971.
From 1934 to 1944 Hancock was the Professor of History at University of Birmingham and during this war period was also appointed to the War Cabinet Offices. In 1941 he was appointed Supervisor of the United Kingdom Civil Series of the History of the Second World War and was thereafter editor of the series. Between 1944 and 1949, he returned to Oxford, becoming Chichele Professor of Economic History. In 1949 he left Oxford, taking up an appointment as the Director of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies. He served as the Professor of British Commonwealth Affairs at the University of London until 1956.
Hancock returned to Australia in 1957 to take up an appointment as Director of the Research School of Social Sciences at the Australian National University, a position he held until 1961. He was Professor of History at the Institute of Advanced Studies, ANU until his retirement in 1965. On his retirement he was made Emeritus Professor (1968) and created the first University Fellow of the ANU. Other positions he held were Chairman of the Editorial Board of the Australian Dictionary of Biography from 1958 to 1965 and inaugural President of the Australian Academy of the Humanities from 1969 to 1971.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 19, 2014
W.K. Hancock, architect and advisor of the Smuts Archive, locates the central essence of Jan Christiaan Smuts in the farms and “the hills of [his:] beginnings.” Echoing almost Jeffersonian sentiments, Hancock notes that “Throughout the rest of his life, these farms remained his shield against financial worry and his guarantee of freedom to live, think and act by the standard of his own will and judgment.” Drawn across the pages of two volumes, interspersed with maps, pictures, and what can only be considered a modest number of references by modern scholarship, Hancock illuminates the life one of the most complex, experienced, and influential figures of modern history. Known to many as an impressive international statesman, Smuts acted also as a fearsome military strategist and leader, as a philosopher and spiritual intellect, and ultimately left an indelible legacy as one of the central figures that critically shaped (or misshaped) the birth and early direction of the South African nation. Hancock’s careful narrative of Smuts’ life effectively treats the diverse aspects of this impressive man, blending the traditional elements of biography with a nuanced appreciation of Smuts’ vast intellectual life and work, and casting his prose with lyrical details that reflect his subject’s own spiritual outlook.
Hancock also demonstrates the rare ability to capture the fundamentals of strategy and conflict without belaboring his narrative with tactical detail or the indulgence of sensational prose. His description of General Smuts’ role in devising, defending and implementing an ambitious strategy opposing the British in the Boer Wars reflects a mixture of empathy and clear, resonant analysis. Of Smuts’ setting out upon the infamous invasion of the Cape Colony with his force of commandos, Hancock observes, “It was a brave speech. But perhaps too high flown? ...Some flourishes of rhetoric may be permitted to the leader of a forlorn hope; but if they are quite unrelated to the military realities of the time and place they will appear ridiculous in historical retrospect.” No higher tribute could thus be given to Smuts. Far from appearing ridiculous in defeat, the British subsequently came to rely heavily upon his military and diplomatic skills, even drafting his talents to the service of the Imperial War Cabinet in the First World War. In this first volume, Hancock’s work does justice to a man who did so much to contribute constructively to the shape of our modern world and yet, as the second volume might well document, eventually found himself fatally trapped by the cultural politics and sentiments of a previous century.
Hancock also demonstrates the rare ability to capture the fundamentals of strategy and conflict without belaboring his narrative with tactical detail or the indulgence of sensational prose. His description of General Smuts’ role in devising, defending and implementing an ambitious strategy opposing the British in the Boer Wars reflects a mixture of empathy and clear, resonant analysis. Of Smuts’ setting out upon the infamous invasion of the Cape Colony with his force of commandos, Hancock observes, “It was a brave speech. But perhaps too high flown? ...Some flourishes of rhetoric may be permitted to the leader of a forlorn hope; but if they are quite unrelated to the military realities of the time and place they will appear ridiculous in historical retrospect.” No higher tribute could thus be given to Smuts. Far from appearing ridiculous in defeat, the British subsequently came to rely heavily upon his military and diplomatic skills, even drafting his talents to the service of the Imperial War Cabinet in the First World War. In this first volume, Hancock’s work does justice to a man who did so much to contribute constructively to the shape of our modern world and yet, as the second volume might well document, eventually found himself fatally trapped by the cultural politics and sentiments of a previous century.
May 13, 2009
Could not be more comprehensive.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews