George Bull (journalist)
George Bull (23 August 1929 – 6 April 2001) was an English translator, author and journalist. Education. Bull attended Wimbledon College before reading History at Brasenose College, Oxford. Career. Journalism. Bull worked for the "Financial Times", McGraw-Hill "World News" and for the "Director" magazine, of which he was editor-in-chief until 1984. He was appointed Director of the Anglo-Japanese Economic Institute in 1986. He was a director of Central Banking Publications and the founder and publisher of the quarterly publications "Inside Japan" and "International Minds". Translations. He translated six volumes for the Penguin Classics series : Benvenuto Cellini's "Autobiography", "The Book of the Courtier" by Castiglione, "Lives of the Artists" by Vasari (two volumes), "The Prince" by Machiavelli (1961), and Pietro Aretino's "Selected Letters". His translation of "The Prince", though discontinued by Penguin, continues to be praised as the "most stylistically elegant" in English. He was also Consultant Editor to the Penguin Business Series. Authorship. His other books include "Vatican Politics"; "Bid for Power" (with Anthony Vice), a history of take-over bids; "Renaissance Italy", a book for children; "Venice: The Most Triumphant City"; "Inside the Vatican" and "Michelangelo; A Biography". Honours. Bull was  elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1981 and a Vice-President of the British-Italian Society in 1994. He was awarded an OBE in 1990. George Bull was made Knight Commander of the Order of St Gregory in 1999, and was awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold rays with Neck Ribbon (Japan) in 1999.