# Robin Humphreys

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British historian

Robin Humphreys OBE Born Robert Arthur Humphreys (1907-06-06)6 June 1907 Died 2 May 1999(1999-05-02) (aged 91) Awards Order of Rio Branco (1972) Academic background Alma mater Peterhouse, Cambridge Academic work Discipline History Sub-discipline Latin American history Institutions University College, London

**Robert Arthur Humphreys** [OBE](/source/Officer_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire) (1907–1999), known as **Robin Humphreys**, was a British historian, the first professor of [Latin American studies](/source/Latin_American_studies) in the United Kingdom, and the founder of the [Institute of Latin American Studies](/source/Institute_of_Latin_American_Studies) at [University College London](/source/University_College_London). His books cover the emancipation of South America, British diplomacy in Central America, and the evolution of modern Latin America.[1][2]

## Life and career

Born on 6 June 1907, Humphreys was educated at [Lincoln Grammar School](/source/Lincoln_Christ's_Hospital_School) and [graduated](/source/Graduation) from [Peterhouse, Cambridge](/source/Peterhouse%2C_Cambridge). In 1934 he was appointed assistant lecturer in American history at [University College London](/source/University_College_London) (UCL).

During the [Second World War](/source/Second_World_War) Humphreys worked at the [British Foreign Office](/source/British_Foreign_Office) in a research capacity.

After the war he returned to UCL and was promoted to [reader](/source/Reader_(academic_rank)), becoming, in 1948, the UK's first [professor](/source/Professor) of Latin American history.[1]

In 1965 Humphreys was the founding Director of the [University of London](/source/University_of_London)'s [Institute of Latin American Studies](/source/Institute_of_Latin_American_Studies), a position he held until 1974. From 1965 to 1969 he also served as the President of the [Royal Historical Society](/source/Royal_Historical_Society).[1]

He died on 2 May 1999 aged 91.[2]

## Works

- *British Consular Reports on the Trade and Politics of Latin America, 1824-1826* (1940)[3]

- *Latin America* (1941)

- "The Study of Latin-American History in England"[4]

- *William Robertson and his History of America* (1954)

- "[William Hickling Prescott](/source/William_Hickling_Prescott): The Man and the Historian" (1959)[5]

- [*Tradition and Revolt in Latin America, and other essays*](https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=acls;cc=acls;view=toc;idno=heb05115.0001.001) (1969) Bloomsbury Publishing Plc[2]

- *Latin America and the Second World War* (2 vols., 1981–82)[6][2] - *Volume 1: 1939 - 1942*, Bloomsbury Academic, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-47428-822-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-47428-822-4) - *Volume 2: 1942 - 1945*, Bloomsbury Academic, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-47428-825-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-47428-825-5)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Lynch_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Lynch_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Lynch_1-2) [Lynch, John](/source/John_Lynch_(historian)) (2001), "Obituary: Robert Arthur Humphreys (1907-1999)", *[Hispanic American Historical Review](/source/Hispanic_American_Historical_Review)*, 81(1):135-138; [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1215/00182168-81-1-135](https://doi.org/10.1215%2F00182168-81-1-135)

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Obituary_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Obituary_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Obituary_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Obituary_2-3) [Lynch, John](/source/John_Lynch_(historian)) (20 May 1999). ["Obituary: Robin Humphreys"](http://h-net.msu.edu/cgi-bin/logbrowse.pl?trx=vx&list=H-LatAm&month=9905&week=c&msg=QeFrChSbLRcvGam3qZAn5A&user=&pw=). *H-LatAm*. [H-Net Discussion Networks](/source/H-Net_Discussion_Networks). Retrieved 8 February 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** London: Royal Historical Society 1940.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** *Bulletin of Spanish Studies*, 24 (no. 94) 1947, pp. 146-53.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** *[The Hispanic American Historical Review](/source/The_Hispanic_American_Historical_Review)*, 39-1-19 (Feb. 1959)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Tulchin, Joseph S. (October 1986). ["Review-R. A. Humphreys. Latin America and the Second World War. Volume 1, 1939–1942; Volume 2, 1942–1945"](https://academic.oup.com/ahr/article-abstract/91/4/1028/47244?redirectedFrom=fulltext). *[The American Historical Review](/source/The_American_Historical_Review)*. **91** (4): 1028–1029. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1086/ahr/91.4.1028](https://doi.org/10.1086%2Fahr%2F91.4.1028).

Academic offices Preceded by Goronwy Edwards President of the Royal Historical Society 1965–1969 Succeeded by Richard Southern

v t e Presidents of the Royal Historical Society 1871–1872 George Grote 1873–1878 John Russell, 1st Earl Russell 1878–1891 Henry Bruce, 1st Baron Aberdare 1891–1899 Sir M. E. Grant Duff 1899–1901 Sir Adolphus Ward 1901–1905 Sir George Prothero 1905–1909 William Hunt 1909–1913 William Cunningham 1913–1917 Sir Charles Firth 1917–1921 Sir Charles Oman 1921–1925 Sir John Fortescue 1925–1929 Frederick Tout 1929–1933 Sir Richard Lodge 1933–1937 Sir F. M. Powicke 1937–1945 Sir Frank Stenton 1946–1949 Robert William Seton-Watson 1949–1953 Theodore Plucknett 1953–1957 Hale Bellot 1957–1961 David Knowles 1961–1965 Sir Goronwy Edwards 1965–1969 Robin Humphreys 1969–1973 Sir R. W. Southern 1973–1977 Sir Geoffrey Elton 1977–1981 Sir John Habakkuk 1981–1985 Sir J. C. Holt 1985–1989 Gerald Aylmer 1989–1993 Michael Thompson 1993–1997 Sir Rees Davies 1997–2001 Sir P. J. Marshall 2001–2005 Dame Janet Nelson 2005–2008 Martin Daunton 2009–2012 Colin Jones 2012–2016 Peter Mandler 2016–2020 Margot Finn 2020-2024 Emma Griffin 2024-present Lucy Noakes

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