Conrad Russell
I thought I'd collect links for some of the obituaries of Conrad Russell. I never met him myself, but it seems that everyone I know of, or have read, who did liked him, which is an achievement in itself. He always seemed like a figure who stepped out of the past combining politics, academia and philosophy in an almost 19th century manner.
Peter Black saw him in action:
Peter Black saw him in action:
I have lost count of the number of times I watched him hypnotise a Liberal Democrat Conference with his wisdom, his erudition and his radicalism.The Times recalls his interesting directions for visitors:
I served with him for six months on the Party's Public Services Policy Working Group and saw him at work first hand. Part of his magic was that no matter how much he outclassed us in the intelligence stakes, he was always willing to acknowledge a valid point of view and take it on board. He was never stuffy and never arrogant. He was a humane caring man and the world will be poorer for having lost him.
And his directions to his office in the House were unique. “Turn right before you reach the statue of my great-grandfather,” he advised visitors, “then walk down the corridor past the rather sentimental Victorian painting of the parting of Lord and Lady Russell.”The Guardian reminds us of how he appeared in the Lords:
To describe Conrad as an eccentric is inadequate, though there was plenty of that about him. Those observing him speaking in the chamber from the Lords' visitors gallery might easily have been transported back to 1850: the courtesy of his manner and his honed, elegant use of English being of a piece with his hawkish, distinguished stoop. Anyone seeing him coming or going from the House in a crumpled suit carrying supermarket bags bulging with papers would have been forgiven for not recognising the same man...While the Telegraph reminds us of his antipathy to Blair:
already ill, he dragged himself into the House on May 4 last spring to continue the good fight against what he saw as inhumane provisions of the asylum and immigration bill. His contribution that day was studded with quotes from the MP for Knaresborough in the 17th-century Long Parliament, from Sir Thomas Wentworth ("God deliver us from this arbitrary government") and, to balance the verbal feast, a quote from Goldfinger rebuking James Bond.
The following year, after Tony Blair claimed that he never gave money to beggars, Russell suggested in a letter to The Daily Telegraph that "he should remember that need may happen to anyone. Belisarius in his day was the best general in the Roman Empire, but ended up sitting at the gates of Rome chanting 'give a ha'penny to Belisarius'. If, after Mr Blair has reformed the welfare state and gone out of office at the moment his pension fund goes broke, I find him at King's Cross chanting 'give a tenner to Tony', I will give to him, even if my gorge rises at it".
Nick got away with this at 1:50 AM
7 Comments:
I met him once - sharing an ashtray in the smoking bar at a party conference. A great man and we are the poorer for his passing.
I was very fortunate as a "scholarship boy" to be acquainted with Conrad Russell at Oxford in the late 1950s and often had dinner with him. The Union dining room was an egalitarian place where anyone could sit anywhere to enjoy - not the indifferent, cheap food - but good company. Conrad was always enteretaining and regaled all with his wit and insight. Being a lot to left of him politically, I didn't agree with much of what he said [what did I know back then?] but his entertainment and educational value was immense.
He was, even then at the age of about 22, a fountain of quotes and political anaylsis. He was so clearly an amazing intellect and his only blemish was his hatred of his father whom he ironically resembled in many ways. Woe betide anyone who mentioned the old curmudgeon in Conrad's presence.
Conrad was a delightful man whose career seemed fully to fulfil his wonderful early promise. His championing of the underpriviledged and the afflicted, and his excoriation of Blairism will be a lasting and powerful memorial.
RIP
RCH [Exeter 1956-59]
As with the very finest of historians, Conrad was able to inhabit his period with such totality that he made it applicable to today withotu thinking. If those who forget history are doomed to repeat it, Conrad was proof that those who remembered history could truly advise against making the same mistake again.
This was, I think, the key to his remarkable three handed career: Authoritative researcher and writer, active teacher, involved and campaigning politician.
But this depth of scholarship extended beyong his chosen period or indeed subject. I remember hearing to one revelatory lecture he gave about Family Law Reform to a Legal Association, which revealed itself in sharp point after sharp point; and all this from someone with no legal training. It turned out that he had written the whole piece out, with footnotes, at four days notice to fill in for someone else.
Likewise, at a party conference he once memorably began one fringe meeting entitled 'Why are the English so scared of Constitutional reform?' with the words:
"In order to answer this question fully, one would need to go back elevn hundred years to the time of the heptarchy*" There was a round of light laughter at the joke. But Conrad meant it. He took us through eleven hundred years of consitutional history in twenty minutes and it was breathaking. I learnt more about how we have arrived with the mess of a constitution that we have now - and more quickly - than by any other source.
There are other memories: the chain smoking, the ability to divide every sentence up into two halves, punctuated with a slightly raspy breath and the piling of between seven and eight spoonfuls of sugar into every cup of tea of coffee.
He did not live a healthy life and he did not care. Intellectual aristocracy of his type gave him certainty enough to do what he wanted and doubt enough to hold everything up to scrutiny. To have in your political party was a source of comforting pride.
As with the very finest of historians, Conrad was able to inhabit his period with such totality that he made it applicable to today without thinking. If those who forget history are doomed to repeat it, Conrad was proof that those who remember history can advise against making the same mistake again.
This was, I think, the key to his remarkable three handed career: Authoritative researcher and writer, active teacher, involved and campaigning politician.
But this depth of scholarship extended beyong his chosen period or indeed subject. I remember hearing to one revelatory lecture he gave about Family Law Reform to a Legal Association, which revealed itself in sharp point after sharp point; and all this from someone with no legal training. It turned out that he had written the whole piece out, with footnotes, at four days notice to fill in for someone else.
Likewise, at a party conference he once memorably began one fringe meeting entitled 'Why are the English so scared of Constitutional reform?' with the words:
"In order to answer this question fully, one would need to go back eleven hundred years to the time of the heptarchy*" There was a round of light laughter at the joke. But Conrad meant it. He took us through eleven hundred years of consitutional history in twenty minutes and it was breathtaking. I learnt more about how we have arrived with the mess of a constitution that we have now - and more quickly - than by any other source.
There are other memories: the chain smoking, the ability to divide every sentence up into two halves, punctuated with a slightly raspy breath and the piling of between seven and eight spoonfuls of sugar into every cup of tea of coffee.
He did not live a healthy life and he did not care. Intellectual aristocracy endowed him certainty enough to do what he wanted and doubt enough to hold everything up to scrutiny. To have him in your political party was a source of comforting pride.
I took two of Lord Russell's classes at Yale in the early 80s, when I was an undergraduate. He was one of the few brilliant men I've ever met - he would sometimes begin a lecture by quoting verbatim an entire letter from say "Lord to Lady Montagu," and then proceed to lecture about the beginnings of the English Civil War for an hour or so - all without any notes. I don't know what he was able to do in English politics but I'm sure it was history's loss when he joined the peers.
Ben
I knew Conrad Russell when he was five years old, very precotious for his age. He, with his father and mother stayed at our home for one summer, while their house in Chester Springs was being done over. He was quite independent, and had difficulty blending in with the other children living there. But he was a sweet little boy, and seemed older than his years.
Extraordinary man to have as your tutor. Do not remember what he taught me, but fondly remember him on hands and knees lighting his cigarette from the bar of an electric fire during a tutorial.
Extremely worried that his hair would go up in flames and looking round for something I could grab, if needs be, to put it out, he urged me to continue reading my essay.
Another time arrived to find him, fussing, (if you met him you would recognise what that entailed)And trying to ring the police, convinced someone had entered his room and stolen his electric shaver.(In a female college ???) Turned out, when his lovely wife turned up, that she had seen it on his desk and taken it home.
Wish I could remember some bon mots, but do remember he urging us all to read Sherlock Holmes.
Remember him holding court at the college ball, sitting on the floor, all arms and legs, smoking and knocking back wine.
Never met anyone so un self-conscious.
I blush to think how poor my history knowledge and understanding was, and still is. But will always remember Conrad running upstairs, two at a time,old back gown flapping round his gaunt frame,late,as ever, for something..... lovely man.
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