W.H. Dawson Papers

Letters written to William Harbutt Dawson from various correspondents. Subjects include: Debates in the House of Commons; British politics, Hitler's Germany; anti-semitism. The collection also includes notebooks, diaries and manuscript and printed copies of his works, together with letters from British and German politicians and journalists. The collection is a valuable source for German life and politics before 1939

Administrative/Biographical History

William Harbutt Dawson (1860-1948), publicist. Education: Skipton (Ermysted) School; Private; Berlin University. Work: engaged in social and educational work; early books were written to interpret German life and institutions to the English. Publications: The German Empire , 1867-1914, 2 vols, 1919; Evolution of Modern Germany , 1908; German Socialism and Ferdinand Lassalle , 1888; Prince Bismarck and State Socialism , 1890; Germany and the Germans , 2 vols, 1894; Social Switzerland , 1897; German Life in Town and Country , 1901; Matthew Arnold and his Relation to the Thought of his Time , 1903; Protection in Germany (A History) , 1904; The German Workman: A Study in National Efficiency , 1906; School Doctors in Germany 1906; The Vagrancy Problem , 1910; Social Insurance in Germany , 1883-1911, 1912; Industrial Germany , 1913; Municipal Life and Government in Germany , 1914; What is wrong with Germany; (the causes of the War) , 1915; Problems of the Peace , 1917; South Africa: People, Places, and Problems , 1925; Richard Cobden and Foreign Policy , 1926; A History of Germany , 1928; The Future of Empire , 1930; Germany under the Treaty , 1933; Cromwell's Understudy: the Life and Times of General John Lambert , 1938; History of Skipton , 1882; editor of After-War Problems , 1917; has contributed to Cambridge History of British Foreign Policy , 1922, Encyclopedia Britannica , the Palgrave-Higgs Dictionary of Political Economy , 1926, and the Columbia University Encyclopedia of Social Sciences ; also to various journals.

Reference: Who was who, 1941-50 ( London. A&C Black ).

The letters are arranged chronologically within the following series: correspondence; manuscripts, typescripts and presscuttings. Additional letters arranged alphabetically by correspondent.

Access Conditions

Open. Access to all registered researchers.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The W.H. Dawson Papers were presented to the Library in 1955 by Dawson's daughter.

Finding Aids

See full catalogue for more information.

Existence of Copies

The collection contains some photocopies of letters

Permission to make any published use of any material from the collection must be sought in advance in writing from the University Archivist, Special Collections. Identification of copyright holders of unpublished material is often difficult. Special Collections will assist where possible with identifying copyright owners, but responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material.