Vale Ian Robertson
[ UniNews Vol. 13, No. 2
23 February - 8 March 2004 ]
Ian Robertson (1935 2004) taught generations of history students at the University of Melbourne and, on the wider international scene, was known as a scholar of Renaissance Rome. He was born in Brighton, educated at Wesley College (a prize pupil of celebrated critic and English master, AA Phillips) and graduated with first-class honours in History at the University of Melbourne.
A scholarship took him to Magdalen College, Oxford, where under the mentorship of distinguished historian John Hale he took out a B Phil often regarded more highly in those days than a doctorate. Ian launched on the first of his sustained stints in Italy as a British Scholar at Rome in 1959-60. He recalled being guided around the city in his early days by Anthony Blunt, famous scholar and connoisseur, later infamous for other things.
Appointed in 1961 to a lectureship in his old department, Ian returned to Melbourne his institutional base for the rest of his life. He was promoted to a senior lectureship in 1966, and from 1982 to 1984 served as chairman of the department, ever judicious and consultative in the public controversies which embroiled the department at that time.
Periods of study leave drew him back to Rome, particularly to the Vatican Library where much of his research was located. From 1973 to 1975 he was Assistant Director of the British School at Rome. His work on the administration of the Papacy and the Papal State in the 15th century culminated in his book on Pope Paul II and Bologna, Tyranny under the Mantle of St Peter, published in 2002.
It was as a teacher that Ian acquired his widest reputation and exercised his greatest influence. His lectures were legendary for their clarity, depth and sweep. His tutorials could be intimidating, but if you stayed the course they proved deeply inspiring.
Ian was instrumental in establishing a vibrant culture of research, especially among those he guided toward postgraduate studies. It was in large part his energies, generosity, passion and judgement, that paved the way for the field of Italian Renaissance Studies becoming one of the most renowned areas of research by Australians in the international arena.
Ian took early retirement at the end of 1997, disillusioned by the impact of the Dawkins era on universities. He continued as a Fellow of the department, a generous yet exacting supervisor, mentor and friend to many.
Charles Zika and Ian Britain
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