Memorial Minute for Thomas Noel Bisson, 94 - Harvard Gazette

"A distinguished historian and teacher of medieval Europe, he focused on institutions, the transpersonal structures of governance that emerged painfully and fitfully from the doings of those in service to the great and the powerful, particularly in the portentous 12th century C.E."

"He came to Harvard in 1987, where he was the Henry Charles Lea Professor of Medieval History from 1988 until he retired in 2005. He chaired the Department of History from 1991 to 1995 and, at both great institutions, trained as graduate students many of the next generations' leading medievalists, of whom he was justifiably proud."

Thomas Noel Bisson, born in New York City in 1931, was a renowned medieval historian who specialized in European institutions and governance structures, particularly during the 12th century. His early life included schooling in China, where his father studied Japan and China. Bisson earned his B.A. from Haverford College and Ph.D. from Princeton University under Joseph R. Strayer. He taught at Amherst College, Brown University, and Swarthmore College before joining UC Berkeley for 20 years, then Harvard University from 1987 until his retirement in 2005. As Henry Charles Lea Professor of Medieval History and Department of History chair, Bisson trained numerous leading medievalists and made significant contributions to understanding medieval institutions.

Read at Harvard Gazette