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James A. Williamson
James Alexander Williamson (1886-1964) was a prominent English writer on maritime history and expert on the John Cabot voyages. He also wrote many other books on explorers, exploration and discover...view moreJames Alexander Williamson (1886-1964) was a prominent English writer on maritime history and expert on the John Cabot voyages. He also wrote many other books on explorers, exploration and discovery, including James Cook, whom he considered to have been “the greatest explorer of his age and the greatest maritime explorer of his country in any age.”
Williamson was born in England in 1886, the son of James Ireland Williamson, and was educated at Watford Grammar School in Hertfordshire. He went on to study at the University of London, where he earned his B.A. in 1906, his M.A. in 1909, and was awarded a Ph.D. in 1924 with a thesis on “The Carribee Islands under the proprietary patents”.
In 1910, Williamson became an assistant master in history at Westminster City School, a post he held until 1937. His teaching career was interrupted in 1914-1919 by service in the British Army. In 1926, the University of London selected him as the first recipient of the Julian Corbett Prize in Naval History. He was Ford’s Lecturer in British History at Oxford University in 1939.
Williamson served as a vice-president of both the Hakluyt Society and the Historical Association. He passed away in Chichester on December 31, 1964, aged 68.view less