Vere Gordon Childe

Vere Gordon Childe was an Australian-born British historian, linguist, and archaeologist who specialised in the study of European prehistory. He spent most of his life in the United Kingdom, working as an academic for the University of Edinburgh and then the Institute of Archaeology, London. He wrote twenty-six books during his career. Childe was born in Sydney to a middle-class English migrant family. He studied classics at the University of Sydney before moving to England to study classical archaeology at the University of Oxford. He became involved in socialist politics and pacifism during his time at Oxford, and was under surveillance by MI5 for his views. He returned to Australia in 1917 and worked as a tutor, a secretary for a labour politician, and a journalist. He was dismissed from several positions for his political opinions and left Australia for good in 1921. Childe moved to London and became a freelance writer and lecturer. He published several books on European prehistory, such as The Dawn of European Civilization (1925) and The Danube in Prehistory (1929). He also developed an interest in Marxist theory and applied it to his archaeological studies. He argued that human history was driven by economic and social changes, such as the Neolithic Revolution and the Urban Revolution, which transformed human society from hunting-gathering to agriculture and from villages to cities. In 1927, Childe was appointed as the first Abercromby Professor of Prehistoric Archaeology at the University of Edinburgh. He taught there for nineteen years and conducted fieldwork in various parts of Europe and Asia. He excavated the Neolithic site of Skara Brae in Orkney, Scotland, and revealed its remarkable preservation and sophistication. He also visited the Soviet Union several times and admired its archaeological achievements. In 1946, Childe became the director of the Institute of Archaeology, London. He continued to write prolifically and influence generations of archaeologists with his books, such as Man Makes Himself (1936) and What Happened in History (1942). He also promoted international cooperation and communication among archaeologists, especially after World War II. He retired in 1956 and returned to Australia. He committed suicide by falling from a cliff in the Blue Mountains on 19 October 1957. He left behind a letter explaining his decision and expressing his disillusionment with the world. Childe is widely regarded as one of the most influential archaeologists of the 20th century. He was a pioneer of culture-historical archaeology, which traced the diffusion of cultural traits across regions and periods. He was also the first exponent of Marxist archaeology in the Western world, which analysed the material conditions and class relations of past societies. His work stimulated debates and controversies among archaeologists and historians, and inspired many scholars to follow his footsteps or challenge his views. His legacy is still evident in the fields of prehistoric archaeology, ancient history, and social theory.