Historians from United Kingdom

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary British Historians of all time. This list of famous British Historians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of British Historians.

1. #1

   

   Thomas Babington Macaulay

   1800 - 1859

   HPI 76.2948 langs
2. #2

   

   Arnold J. Toynbee

   1889 - 1975

   HPI 74.7858 langs

   Arnold J. Toynbee is most famous for his 12-volume work, A Study of History, which is a detailed analysis of the rise and fall of...Read moreShow less

   Arnold J. Toynbee is most famous for his 12-volume work, A Study of History, which is a detailed analysis of the rise and fall of civilizations.

3. #3

   

   Bede

   672 - 735

   HPI 74.7068 langs

   Bede is most famous for his work, "The Ecclesiastical History of the English People." In this book, he tells the story of the English people...Read moreShow less

   Bede is most famous for his work, "The Ecclesiastical History of the English People." In this book, he tells the story of the English people from the time of the Roman conquest to the time of King Alfred.

4. #4

   

   Edward Gibbon

   1737 - 1794

   HPI 74.4475 langs

   Edward Gibbon is most famous for his book, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.

5. #5

   

   Bernard Lewis

   1916 - 2018

   HPI 69.4141 langs

   Bernard Lewis is a historian of the Middle East and Islam. He is most famous for his book "The Crisis of Islam: Holy War and Unholy Terror."

6. #6

   

   Kenneth Clark

   1903 - 1983

   HPI 68.3629 langs
7. #7

   

   Frances Yates

   1899 - 1981

   HPI 65.5421 langs
8. #8

   

   Arnold Toynbee

   1852 - 1883

   HPI 65.4522 langs
9. #9

   

   W. Montgomery Watt

   1909 - 2006

   HPI 65.2523 langs
10. #10

    

    Peter Burke

    b. 1937

    HPI 65.0221 langs