Antony Beevor
Antony Beevor
Antony James Beevor, FRSLis an English military historian. He has published several popular histories on the Second World War and the 20th century in general...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionHistorian
Date of Birth14 December 1946
across chapter file material relevant round skeleton work
I read round the subject, I make a skeleton outline, and then I start work in the relevant archives. During the marshaling of the material, I copy the material from each archive file across to the relevant chapter in the skeleton outline.
bit context experience overall realised
When I started to write, I realised that you need a bit of both: the overall context as well as the individual's experience.
emphasized history influence reason took
The reason that 'Stalingrad' took off was because it emphasized the influence of history on the individual.
cross despite shot whom
The greatest heroes of the Normandy battlefield were the unarmed medics, whom snipers often shot at despite their Red Cross armbands.
adding code conduct material paintings pottery work
Restorers of paintings and pottery follow a code of conduct in their work to distinguish the original material from what they are adding later.
history weapon
Politicians are often tempted to deploy history as a weapon against each other.
history love
I love 'Blackadder,' but history it certainly ain't.
historical industry needs remain truth
Historical truth and the marketing needs of the movie and television industry remain fundamentally incompatible.
denied history novelists people voice
Some novelists want to give people in history a voice because they have been denied it in the past.
easily history though
Of course history is easily manipulated - though that makes it even more important for us to know what actually happened.
army bored camp ended life planning posted stay training wales wrote
I was planning to stay in the Army all my life, but I ended up being posted to a training camp in Wales and was so bored there, I wrote a novel.
both expect proved reviewers worst
I expect the worst both from reviewers and sales and then, with any luck, I may be proved wrong.
country perspective surprising war
Every country has its own perspective on the Second World War. This is not surprising when experiences and memories are so different.
perhaps perverse
I'm often reassured in a bizarre - perhaps perverse - way when I find in the archive stuff that contradicts what my assumptions have been. That's interesting and exciting.