Philip Sugden (historian)

Philip Sugden
Born (1947-01-27)January 27, 1947
Hull, England
Died April 26, 2014 (aged 67)
Nationality English
Fields history
Institutions University of Hull
Chenet School
Alma mater Hull College of Commerce; University of Hull
Known for Jack the Ripper and other studies in the history of crime

Philip Sugden (January 27, 1947 – found dead April 26, 2014) was an English historian, best known for his comprehensive study of Jack the Ripper case, including the books The Complete History of Jack the Ripper, first published in 1994, and The Life and Times of Jack the Ripper (1996). He was one of the few professional historians who worked on the case.

Early life

Philip Sugden was born on January 27, 1947 in Moorhouse Road, Kingston-upon-Hull, England, the younger of twin boys. Both boys, John and Philip, became internationally acclaimed historians. Their father, John Henry Sugden (1914–1996), was a painter and decorator, whose seasonal trade made him vulnerable to spells of unemployment and short hours; their mother, Lily (née Cuthbertson, 1914–1981), eventually took part-time factory work to keep the boys at school. A sister, Sylvia (1937–1954), died in adolescence, but the brothers were constant companions, sharing interests and projects in what became a lifelong partnership. Living just inside the western boundary of the city, they grew up close to the countryside, and enjoying many open spaces; both became great devotees of the natural world. But their greatest inspiration came from literature. Avid readers, they particularly enjoyed the great stories of history, and from an early age began writing about their interests. The Sugden brothers attended Wold Road Primary School and Ainthorpe High School, where they were encouraged by an innovatory headmaster, Harold F. Brown, and two inspirational teachers, Stanley R. ('Taffy') Thomas and Joan Wright, who recognized their potential. Although conscientious, the boys remained more interested in their own projects than routine schoolwork. At the age of fifteen they both attempted to produce historical novels for publication. John finished his book, but failed to find a publisher. Philip abandoned his companion piece, and both had to satisfy themselves with furnishing primitive features for the school magazine. They left school at the age of 16 and for four years worked as administrators in local industry. Philip was employed by Humber Joiners in Stepney Lane, Hull, and in the offices of the Hull Corporation Parks Department in Ferensway before completing his A-level G. C. E. courses at the Hull College of Commerce. His preference to read for a degree in Zoology was frustrated by weaknesses in his formal science, but he graduated from the University of Hull with the departmental prize in History in 1972. He immediately started working on his Ph.D. under the supervision of Kenneth R. Andrews, but the dissertation on early Stuart maritime expansion remained unfinished, partly because of Sugden's meticulous nature and repeated rewriting, and partly because his grant ran out. In 1976, he took a position at Chenet School in Cannock, where he taught History, English and Economics. But although a very successful teacher, his first love remained research and writing, and he had become absorbed in the history of crime in the Georgian era. A detailed study of the London underworld of Jack Sheppard, a celebrated criminal of the early eighteenth-century, became a lifelong preoccupation.[1]

Studies of the Whitechapel Murders

In 1988, unhappy at what he deemed to be a national decline in educational standards, Sugden left the profession and returned to Hull to concentrate upon full-time research and writing. It was at this time that his brother, John, suggested he tackle a subject that had interested him since his schooldays: the unsolved 'Jack the Ripper' murders of 1888. His book The Complete History of Jack the Ripper was completed after nine years of research and was first published in 1994. Sugden was the first professional historian to work on the case. He and his brother had long since largely forsaken the writing of history based principally upon the published work of others. Such work, they feared, predisposed the historian to follow paths ordained by predecessors. Rather, the Sugden brothers saw the detailed search for as many primary sources as were recoverable; their subjection to an original, careful and open-minded scrutiny; and a fair setting out of the conclusions as the best foundation for History. As John Sugden remarked, in his preface to 'Amy's Last Flight' (p. 4), his brother's "trademarks" were "the patient collection of relevant evidence, the even-handed and fearless evaluation of primary sources, and an inherent sympathy for those who had lived in other times and circumstances." Although Philip Sugden respected some of those who had written about Jack the Ripper, he was scathing about the amount of fraudulent and slipshod writing. In an essay for Camille Wolff's 'Who Was Jack the Ripper?' (p. 81) he remarked: "I'm afraid that I have no patience with the bogus Ripperology that has disgraced true crime writing in recent years. The formula has unfortunately become all too familiar. First choose who you want Jack the Ripper to be. Then plunder the books, the newspapers, and, if the budget will stretch to it, the Ripper files at the Public Record Office, for facts which can be bullied into investing your fantasy with a veneer of plausibility. If you can't find anything, no matter - invent it. I'm not saying that there aren't plenty of people out there, specialists and laymen, with a genuine interest in the Ripper case. Of course there are. And it was specifically for them that I wrote my Complete History." Sugden's book did not set out to name Jack the Ripper, but to painstakingly reconstruct the crimes within the context of the London of 1888, and to establish as accurate a record as possible. Only with such a foundation was it possible to measure the various suspects, and in his book he found insufficient evidence to accuse any of those named by the police or subsequent enquirers. The strongest case, he believed, could be made against the Polish-born George Chapman, but he emphasized that even that was highly circumstantial. It was this diligent sifting of evidence, impartial evaluation and honest reasoning that characterized 'The Complete History'. Sugden did not rule out the possibility that additional evidence might one day come to light to challenge his conclusions, but he insisted that such evidence be fully and scrupulously tested. The book received both critical and popular success. It was shortlisted for the Anthony Award in the United States, and at the time of Sugden's death had gone through two revised editions and an Italian translation, and sold about 140,000 copies. It was widely acknowledged to have set new standards in the historiography of the case.

Other work

After returning to his native city in 1988 Sugden occasionally taught day and evening classes at local schools, and for several years conducted popular courses in Local History at the Institute of Education in nearby Cottingham. He made contributions to his brother's books, making a research trip on behalf of 'Sir Francis Drake' (1990), proofing 'Nelson: The Sword of Albion' (2012)and just before his death transcribing Latin source materials for 'The Thief of Hearts'. He also published scholarly articles based on original research, including several entries for the 'Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'. His work on books of his own progressed slowly. Throughout his life Sugden's interests had been wide-ranging and he spoke authoritatively about numerous subjects, including natural history (especially fishes and the conservation movement), American frontier history, piracy and privateering, the great age of geographical discovery, crime in eighteenth century London, the campaigns of Alexander the Great and Hannibal, popular music (particularly American punk) and French cinema. In all of these areas he found topics of consuming interest, to which he devoted close and painstaking research. Two books were almost completed at the time of his death. 'A Cabinet of Curiosities' contained several studies of controversial or unexplained events relating to history and natural history. Some of these chapters, like 'The Complete History of Jack the Ripper', were master-classes in investigative history method. One of the chapters, dealing with the death of the Hull aviator Amy Johnson, was published posthumously. Sugden's greatest work was, however, his study of the career of the English criminal Jack Sheppard and the London underworld of early eighteenth century. The research spanned fifty years of Sugden's life, and was begun before historical crime became a fashionable subject among historians. For the most part Sugden worked tirelessly through an immense variety of largely unused manuscript sources, teaching himself Latin to decipher seventeenth and eighteenth-century legal documents. He contributed an article on Sheppard to 'The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography' and had almost completed 'The Georgian Underworld of Jack Sheppard' at the time of his death. Its completion has been undertaken by his brother, John. In his last years Philip was also laying the ground for a final book, a biography of Sir Henry Morgan. His intention was to reassess Morgan as a colonial soldier, rather than the buccaneer of popular legend, and to explore his political and administrative as well as his military and naval career. A work of a different and lighter kind, produced jointly with his brother, was a sprawling epistolary novel based on imaginary communities in contemporary Hull and Yorkshire.

Personal life

Sugden was a quiet, reclusive man. He declined nearly all invitations to speak at conferences or give radio or television interviews, and greatly distrusted televised history documentaries. He never married. After the death of his father he lived alone, apart from the regular visits of his brother, but was known to his friends and correspondents as a kind, affable and mild-mannered man, rich in conversation. Sugden cared little for money, and lived frugally. He enjoyed walking in the fields about his home, and enthusiastically supported environmental causes, becoming a member of The Otter Trust, the International Society for the Protection of Animals, and Yorkshire Wildlife, among several others. He was found dead on April 26, 2014, having suffered a cerebral hemorrhage.[1]

Bibliography

References

  1. 1 2 "Philip Sugden - obituary". The Daily Telegraph. May 16, 2014. Retrieved August 3, 2014.
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