The Benson Medal is a medal awarded by the Royal Society of Literature in the UK.
It was founded in 1916 by A. C. Benson, who was a Fellow of the Society, to honour those who produce "meritorious works in poetry, fiction, history, and belles-lettres". The medal has been awarded several times to writers in other languages, and is occasionally awarded to those who are not writers, but who have done conspicuous service to literature.
The medal is awarded at irregular intervals for lifelong achievement. Recipients include:
Stella Benson (no relation), Edmund Blunden, Anita Desai, Maureen Duffy, E. M. Forster,E. M. Forster from the Tiscali UK web portal. Christopher Fry, John Gawsworth,Two Kings of Redonda: M. P. Shiel and John Gawsworth, from a University of Iowa website. Nadine Gordimer, Philip Larkin, R. K. NarayanNarayan's author biography from the Penguin Books website. A. L. Rowse, George Santayana, Wole Soyinka,Biography of Wole Soyinka from the website of the Echo Foundation. Lytton Strachey, SuAndi, J. R. R. Tolkien, Helen WaddellBiography of Helen Waddell , from the online Dictionary of Ulster Biography. and Rebecca West.
In November 2020, the new design for the medal by Linda Crook was unveiled. The design includes books on one side, and people on the other.
Recipients All recipients are listed on the Web site of the Royal Society of Literature. New recipients are added as required.
2025: Richard Ovenden 2024: SuAndi 2022: Sandra Agard 2021: Alastair Niven 2020: Boyd Tonkin 2019: Susheila Nasta"Queen Mary academic receives prestigious Royal Society of Literature Award", Queen Mary University of London, 25 June 2019. 2018: Liz Calder 2017: Margaret Busby, Carmen Callil, Mary-Kay Wilmers 2016: Christopher MacLehose 2015: Nancy Sladek 2014: Deirdre Le Faye, Valentina Polukhina 2013: Wm. Roger Louis 2012: David Pease, Jenny Uglow 2011: Diana Athill, Francis King
Earlier recipients
1917: Gabriele d'Annunzio; Benito Pérez Galdós; Maurice Barres 1923: Lytton Strachey 1925: Gordon Bottomley; George Santayana 1926: Percy Lubbock; Robert Wilson Lynd; Harold Nicolson 1927: Frederick Arthur Simpson; Helen Waddell 1930: Edmund Blunden 1931: Stella Benson; Siegfried Sassoon 1934: Edith Sitwell 1938: E. M. Forster; G. M. Young 1939: F. L. Lucas; Andrew Young 1940: Christopher Hassall;Dictionary of National Biography. John Gawsworth"Benson and hedging: James Fergusson reveals a high profile dispute over the RSL Benson Medal", The Royal Society of Literature. 1941: Christopher La Farge 1952: Frederick S. Boas 1966: J. R. R. Tolkien; Rebecca West; E. V. Rieu 1969: Cecil Woodham-Smith 1975: Philip Larkin 1979: R. K. Narayan 1981: Sir Sacheverell Sitwell; Odysseas Elytis 1982: A. L. Rowse 1989: Anthony Burgess; Nadine Gordimer 1990: Wole Soyinka 1993: Julien Green 1996: Shusaku Endo 2000: Christopher Fry 2003: Anita Desai; David Sutton"University archivist wins top international prize", from the University of Reading website, 19 October 2006. 2004: Maureen Duffy; James Parkeri.e. Dr James Parker, Co-ordinator of the International Public Lending Right Network (IPLR). 2005: Edward Upward 2006: Ronald Blythe; Joan Winterkorn – manuscript expert 2007: Nadine Gordimer 2008: John Saumarez Smith; Douglas Matthews 2009: Mark Le Fanu; Kay Dunbar 2010: Al Alvarez
References
External links "The Benson Medal" at The Royal Society of Literature website.