Title: Protean paradox
Description: "Cory's unpublished recollections provide a strong foundation which Dr Shell has managed to supplement with substantial additional primary sources in private hands and elsewhere. Much f the interest of the book derives from the human drama of his struggle against adversity from a very early age. Unlike Kipling, however, he seems never to have doubted the values of an Empire which ultimately rewarded him quite richly for his diligence and pluck. Nevertheless, he made a substantial contribution to South African historiography, more especially in the fields of oral history, public history and professional association as Dr Shell records. She never attempts to downplay Cory's racial attitudes or political shortcomings, but rather places them in the correct context which illuminates not only Cory but the context itself. - Professor Jeff Peires."--Back cover.

"George Edward Cory, one of South Africa's pioneer historian was a man of paradoxes. Though abandoned and neglected throughout his childhood, with chutzpah and unceasing hard work he secured a decent schooling for himself and eventually reached his scholarly goal: a place in Cambridge University. His chosen field was science, primarily chemistry. With his degree secured, he sought a position, finding an unexpected opportunity to teach in a school in far-off Grahamstown, South Africa. Assuming the Chair of Chemistry in the newly founded Rhodes University College, he laid the foundations for the study of chemistry, but devoted his spare time to an exploration of the history of his adopted country. This hobby became a consuming passion resulting in his multi-volume The Rise of South Africa. He envisaged the professionalisation of the historian's profession, was a pioneer of oral history and promoted the rôle of the public historian. Gathering documents to preserve them for the use of future scholars, he moved, as retirement loomed, into the role of archivist at national level. Cambridge awarded him a doctorate in 1921 and he was knighted in 1922. This biography follows Cory's paradoxical life, exploring what drove him, what he achieved, the tensions between chemistry and history, his contribution to South African historiography and his enduring legacy, culminating in the founding of the Cory Library for Humanities Research at Rhodes University, Grahamstown. This engrossing story delivers a strong message of the importance of self-belief and self-determination. This protean man trod a path less trodden, as this biography demonstrates in vivid detail. - Professor Christopher Saunders."--Back cover.
Subjects: History, Chemistry, Study and teaching (Higher), College teachers, Cory Library for Historical Research, Rhodes University
Places: South Africa, Grahamstown
People: George Cory (1862-1935)