William David McIntyre (4 September 1932 – 11 September 2022) was a British-born New Zealand historian, known for his expertise on the military and constitutional histories of the Commonwealth of Nations and British Empire.
Early life and family Born in England on 4 September 1932, McIntyre was the son of Rev. J. McIntyre, a congregationalist minister. He was educated at Caterham School and went on to study at Peterhouse, Cambridge, and the University of Washington, earning a Master of Arts degree, and the School of Oriental & African Studies at the University of London, where he completed a PhD. His 1959 doctoral thesis was titled British policy in west Africa, the Malay peninsula and the south Pacific during the secretaryships of Lord Kimberley and Lord Carnarvon 1870–1876.
In 1957, McIntyre married Marion Jean Hillyard, an American he met while at the University of Washington, and they went on to have five children.
Career McIntyre was a teaching fellow at the University of Washington from 1955 to 1956. After completing his PhD, in 1959 he became an assistant lecturer, and later lecturer, in Commonwealth and American history at the University of Nottingham. In 1966, he was appointed a professor in history at the University of Canterbury, in Christchurch, New Zealand, where he remained for the rest of his career. A notable student of McIntyre at Canterbury was politician Allan Peachey. He retired in 1997, and was awarded the title of professor emeritus. He continued to write and research. An expert on the constitutional and military histories of the Commonwealth of Nations and British Empire, McIntyre published and advised governments. He served as consultant to the Committee on Commonwealth Membership, and compiled its report which was accepted by Heads of Government at Kampala in 2007.Report of Committee on Commonwealth Membership, London, Commonwealth Secretariat, Sept 2007
In the 1992 Queen's Birthday Honours, McIntyre was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, for services to historical research.
Later life and death McIntyre married his second wife in 1993. He died in Lower Hutt on 11 September 2022, aged 90 years.
Works
Books written 1966: Colonies into Commonwealth 1967: The Imperial Frontier in the Tropics, 1865–75 1969: Neutrality, Non-alignment, and New Zealand 1969: Britain, New Zealand and the Security of South-East Asia in the 1970s 1970: Britain and the Commonwealth since 1907 1973: The Commonwealth: Its past, present, and future 1977: The Commonwealth of Nations: Origins and impact, 1869–1971 1979: The Rise and Fall of Singapore Naval Base, 1919–42 1988: New Zealand Prepares for War: Defence Policy 1919–39 1991: The Significance of the Commonwealth, 1965-90 1995: Background to the ANZUS Pact: Policy-making, strategy, and diplomacy, 1945–55 1998: British Decolonization, 1946–1997: When, why, and how did the British Empire fall? 2001: A Guide to the Contemporary Commonwealth 2002: When, if ever, did New Zealand become Independent? 2006: Shifting starr: A Presbyterian drama: St Andrew's at Rangi Ruru 1956-2006 2007: Dominion of New Zealand: Statesmen and status, 1907-1945 2009: The Britannic vision: historians and the making of the British Commonwealth of nations, 1907-48 2014: Winding up the British Empire in the Pacific Islands
Books edited 1971: Speeches and Documents on New Zealand History 1980: The Journal of Henry Sewell, 1853–7
References