Born in Glasgow, Professor
Sir Niall Ferguson is a renowned Scottish historian, author, and Senior
Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University and a Senior
Fellow at the Belfer Center of Science and International Affairs at
Harvard. A prolific commentator and consultant on contemporary economic
and political issues, Sir Niall is known for his ability to connect
historical insights with current global trends.
The intellectual rigour
of his childhood helped to shape his values. Sir Niall’s father,
Campbell, was a doctor and his mother, Molly, taught physics. His father
gave him a copy of Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations to read in his
formative years. His maternal grandfather, a journalist, encouraged him
to write.
After completing school
at Glasgow Academy, Sir Niall received a demyship (the highest
scholarship) to Oxford. His first two years were challenging and, in his
own words, he “failed in student journalism, politics and acting,” but
fell in love with history. Two years later, he graduated with
first-class honours in history. A self-proclaimed believer in Max
Weber’s Protestant work ethic, Sir Niall isn’t happy if he hasn’t done
10 hours of work a day.
Sir Niall, who was named
to Time Magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in 2004,
gained prominence through his bestselling books, 16 to date. These
include: The Pity of War, The House of Rothschild, Empire, Civilization
and Kissinger, 1923-1968, The Ascent of Money, and The Idealist, which
won the Council on Foreign Relations Arthur Ross Prize. His latest book,
Doom: The Politics of Catastrophe, published in 2021, was shortlisted
for the Lionel Gelber Prize. He is currently writing Kissinger,
1969-2023: The Player and serving as a visiting professor at the London
School of Economics.
Sir Niall is also an
award-winning filmmaker. In 2009, he received an international Emmy for
his PBS series The Ascent of Money. Another New York Times bestseller,
The Square and the Tower, was also adapted for television by PBS in 2018
as Niall Ferguson’s Networld. Sir Niall writes regularly as a columnist
for the Free Press. He is the founder and managing director of
Greenmantle, a New York-based advisory firm, a co-founder of the Latin
American fin tech company Ualá, and a co-founder of the new University
of Austin. Sir Niall was knighted by King Charles III in June 2024 for
his contributions to literature. With old-fashioned Scottish humility,
he said when the honor was announced: “Anything I have achieved is in
truth the achievement of my grandparents; my parents, Molly and
Campbell; my school, the Glasgow Academy; my college, Magdalen, Oxford;
and all the family members, teachers, mentors and friends who encouraged
and supported me.”
He is married to author
and activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali. He has five children.
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Historian Discuss the End of the World
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