Staff profile

Philip Williamson is a historian of twentieth-century British politics, and aspects of religion and the monarchy in Britain and the British empire since the sixteenth century. His publications on interwar British politics, political culture and government range across the Labour, Liberal and Conservative parties, trade unions, big business, and financial, economic and imperial policies. His most recent work includes studies of the Church of England and politics since 1900, and anniversary thanksgivings under Elizabeth I and James I. He is chief editor – with Natalie Mears and Stephen Taylor – of the project on British state prayers, fasts and thanksgivings, published in four volumes, and co-investigator for the project on ‘Church, state and nation: the journals of Hensley Henson, dean and bishop of Durham’, published online.

• British politics and government 1900-1960
• the churches and special worship in the British Isles and the empire since 1530
• the modern British monarchy

• Britain and Continental Europe
• Modern
• Political Cultures
• Theology and Religion

• British state prayers, fasts and thanksgivings, 1540s to 1940s
• Church, State and Nation in Britain: the journals of Hensley Henson, 1900-1939
• Royalty and religion in the British Isles since 1689

• 2016: Royalty and religion in the British Isles since 1689(£127569.00 from The Leverhulme Trust)
• 2007: BRITISH STATE PRAYERS, FASTS AND THANKSGIVINGS(£330172.14 from Arts and Humanities Research Council)

Authored book

• Williamson, Philip (1999). Stanley Baldwin. Conservative Leadership and National Values. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Williamson, P (1992). National Crisis and National Government. British Politics, the Economy and Empire 1926-1932. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Chapter in book

• Grimley, Matthew & Williamson, Philip (2020). The Church of England, the British state and British politics during the twentieth century. In The Church of England and British Politics since 1900. Rodger, Tom, Williamson, Philip & Grimley, Matthew Boydell & Brewer. 1-35.
• Williamson, Philip (2020). Archbishops and the monarchy: leadership in British religion, 1900–2012. In The Church of England and British Politics since 1900. Rodger, Tom, Williamson, Philip & Grimley, Matthew Boydell & Brewer. 57-79.
• Philip Williamson (2010). The Conservative party, fascism and anti-fascism 1918-1939. In Varieties of Anti-fascism. Britain in the Inter-war Period. Nigel Copsey & Andzrej Olechnowicz Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. 73-97.
• Philip Williamson (2010). Maurice Cowling and modern British political history. In Philosophy, Politics and Religion in British Democracy: Maurice Cowling and Conservatism. Robert Crowcroft, S.J.D. Green & Richard Whiting London: I.B. Tauris. 108-152.
• Williamson, P. (2007). The monarchy and public values, 1910–1953. In The Monarchy and the British Nation, 1780 to the Present. Andrzej Olechnowicz Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 223-257.
• Williamson. P. A. (2004). The City of London and government in modern Britain: debates and politics. In The British Government and the City of London in the Twentieth Century. Ranald Michie & Philip Williamson Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 5-30.
• (2004). ‘Margaret Bondfield’, ‘William Bridgeman’, ‘James Cecil, 4th marquess of Salisbury’, ‘Charles Cripps, 1st baron Parmoor’, ‘William Graham’, ‘Sir Ernest Harvey’, ‘Robert Horne’, 'Peter Howard','Sir Donald Maclean’, ‘Montagu Norman’, ‘Ian Percy, 8th duke of Northumberland’, ‘Lord Eustace Percy’, ‘Vivian Phillipps’, ‘Noel Skelton’, ‘J.H. Thomas’. In Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press.
• Williamson, Philip (2003). The Conservative party 1900-1939: from crisis to ascendancy. In A Companion to Early Twentieth-Century Britain. Wrigley, Chris Oxford: Blackwell. 3-22.
• Williamson, P. (1993). The doctrinal politics of Stanley Baldwin: essays in British history presented to Maurice Cowling. In Public and Private Doctrine. Michael Bentley Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 181-208.
• Williamson, P (1984). Financiers, the gold standard, and British politics 1925-1931. In Businessmen and Politics: Studies of Business Activity in British Politics, 1900-1945. John Turner London: Heinemann. 105-129.

Edited book

• Rodger, Tom, Williamson, Philip & Grimley, Matthew (2020). The Church of England and British Politics since 1900. Boydell & Brewer.
• Philip Williamson & Ranald Michie (2004). The British Government and the City of London in the Twentieth Century. Cambridge University Press.
• Williamson, P. & Baldwin, Edward (2004). Baldwin Papers. A Conservative Statesman 1908-1947. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Williamson, P. (1988). The Modernisation of Conservative Politics: The Diaries and Letters of William Bridgeman 1904-1935. London: Historians' Press.

Journal Article

• Williamson, Philip (2023). Baldwin and a united nation. Revue Française de Civilisation Britannique 28(1): 65-78.
• Williamson, Philip (2023). Hensley Henson and the appointment of bishops: state, church and nation in England, 1917–1920 and Beyond. The Journal of Ecclesiastical History 74(2): 325-348.
• Williamson, Philip (2023). The Church of England and constitutional reform: the Enabling Act in British politics and English religion, 1913–1928. Journal of British Studies 62(2): 445-475.
• Williamson, Philip (2022). Special acts of worship in Anglo-Jewry 1700-1970. Jewish Historical Studies 53(1): 1-33.
• Williamson, Philip (2021). The Prayer Book and pandemics. Faith & Worship 88: 6-17.
• Williamson, P. & Mears, N. (2021). James I and Gunpowder treason day. Historical Journal 64(2): 185-210.
• Williamson, Philip (2021). Winston Churchill and ‘ye men of valour’ sources and corrections. Notes and Queries 68: 359-361.
• Mears, N. & Williamson, P. (2020). The ‘holy days’ of Queen Elizabeth I. History 105(365): 201-228.
• Hardwick, Joseph & Williamson, Philip (2018). ‘Special worship in the British Empire: from the seventeenth to the twentieth centuries’. The Church and Empire (Studies in Church History) 54: 260-280.
• Williamson, Philip (2013). National days of prayer: the churches, the state and public worship in Britain 1899-1957. English Historical Review 128(531): 324-366.
• Philip Williamson (2008). State prayers, fasts and thanksgivings: public worship in Britain 1830–1897. Past and Present 200(1): 121-174.
• Williamson, P. (2004). Baldwin's reputation: politics and history, 1937-1967. Historical Journal 47(1): 127-168.
• Williamson, P (2000). Christian Conservatives and the totalitarian challenge 1933-40. English Historical Review 115(462): 607-642.
• Williamson, Philip (1991). 1931 revisited. The political realities. Twentieth Century British History 2(3): 328-338.
• Williamson, P (1991). The Labour party and the House of Lords 1918-1931. Parliamentary History 10(2): 317-341.
• Williamson, P (1984). A ''bankers' ramp''? Financiers and the British political crisis of August 1931. English Historical Review 99(393): 771-806.
• Williamson, P (1983). 'Party first and India second': the appointment of the Viceroy of India in 1930. Bulletin of the Institute of Historical Research 56(133): 86-101.
• Williamson, P (1982). 'Safety First': Baldwin, the Conservative party, and the 1929 general election. Historical Journal 25(2): 385-409.

Newspaper/Magazine Article

• Williamson, Philip (2021). Churchill and the churches. Finest Hour (191): 12-16.
• Williamson, Philip (2020). Stanley Baldwin and Winston Churchill: a study in contrasts. Finest Hour (188): 22-27.
• Williamson, Philip (2020). Wars, famines - and pandemics. Church Times (3 April 2020).

Scholarly Edition

• Williamson, Philip, Taylor, Stephen, Raffe, Alasdair & Mears, Natalie (orig.) (2020). National Prayers: Special Worship since the Reformation. Volume 3: Worship for national and royal occasions in the United Kingdom, 1871-2016 . Woodbridge: Church of England Record Society / Boydell & Brewer Ltd
• Williamson, Philip, Raffe, Alasdair, Taylor, Stephen & Mears, Natalie (orig.) (2017). National Prayers: Special Worship since the Reformation. Volume 2: General Fasts, Thanksgivings and Special Prayers in the British Isles, 1689-1870 . Woodbridge: Church of England Record Society / Boydell & Brewer Ltd
• Mears, N, Alasdair Raffe, Williamson, P & Taylor, S (orig.) (2013). National Prayers: Special Worship since the Reformation. Volume 1: Special Prayers, Fasts and Thanksgivings in the British Isles, 1533-1688 . Woodbridge, Suffolk: Church of England Record Society