The Board of Trustees

David Austin

...

Howard Simmons

I joined the Battlefields Trust when it was originally set up and became a Board Member in 2012. I have worked in the public, private and voluntary sectors and helped to set up and run a variety of charitable and campaigning groups. Having originally worked in adult education I became a Chief Officer in 5 Local Authorities responsible for Cultural Services (Libraries, Museums, Galleries, Tourism, Sports and Parks) and Regeneration before becoming Deputy Chief Executive of a London Borough and most recently moving on to the national Audit Commission and then Boundary Commission. I am passionate about History and in a personal capacity am an accredited Heritage Guide leading walks and talks. I am also very interested in military history and archaeology and a member of the Arms and Armour Society, Lance and Longbow Society, Pike and Shot Society, Society of Friends of the National Army Museum and the International Company of Military Historians.

Chris May

I joined the Trust in 2011 and very quickly became an active member in the south-east region. I was a member of the project team of the Trust's First Blitz project to commemorate the Zeppelin and Gotha bombing raids on Britain during the First World War. I was also involved in elements of the Magna Carta 800 project. I have assisted at, and helped to organise, various events across the region and also nationally, helping to promote the Trust to the wider public. Becoming a member of the Trust has allowed me to rekindle my interest in military history, which had lain dormant during my working career. Since 2015 I have co-edited - with Harvey Watson - Battlefield magazine, during which time the number of pages in the magazine has doubled. Before joining the Trust I spent 30 years working in various roles in local government corporate finance, and I hope that my previous experience can be of value to the Trust.

Kevin Winter

After 34 years in the Royal Navy, I was looking for a new challenge when I retired at the age of 50. I had always been interested in history and in my final years in the RN I undertook an Open University BA (Hons) History degree, graduating the year after I left the RN in 2009. I began to look at a second career in the museum sector. I volunteered at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth during my final two years service and spent three months work experience in the oral history department there. I applied for a job as a Museum Assistant with Newark & Sherwood Museum Service and began work there in December 2009. I also began an MA in Museum Studies at the University of Leicester which I completed in 2011. After a variety of different roles in collections and learning I am currently the Collections and Exhibitions Officer at the National Civil War Centre - Newark Museum.

At a conference in Leeds about 11 years ago I was recruited into the Battlefields Trust and became Chair of the East Midlands Region about 10 years ago. In 2018 I successfully fundraised for the installation of interpretation panels for the Battle of Stoke Field (1487) . I am also the Vice Chair and Secretary of Newark Civic Trust and the Chairman of Newark Heritage Forum, which brings all of the heritage organisations in Newark together. In this role I have been the organiser of Heritage Open Days in Newark for the past few years. I have had a lifelong interest in T E Lawrence (of Arabia) and I am currently Chair of the T E Lawrence Society.

Julian Humphrys

After reading History at Emmanuel College, Cambridge and completing a postgraduate course at the Polytechnic of North London, I spent 12 years at Chelsea's National Army Museum, setting up special exhibitions, liaising with the British Army, and acting as spokesman to the media on all matters of military history. I'm a qualified blue-badge guide and in 2002 I left the museum to set up and lead English Heritage's Battlefield hikes and tours programme. I now lead a wide range of historical tours both in the UK and overseas. In 2009 I joined the Battlefields Trust as Development Officer and over the years I have helped established the Trust's national coverage, served as editor of the Trust magazine, and developed the Trust's online presence. I lecture, write and broadcast on many aspects of British history - I'm a regular contributor to BBC History Magazine and History Revealed Magazine and my published books include The Private Life of Palaces (for Historic Royal Palaces), Clash of Arms: Twelve English Battles, and Enemies at the Gate: English Castles under Siege (both for English Heritage).

Anne Curry

I joined the Trust in 2011, becoming a member of the Board soon afterwards. I was already involved as historical consultant in the Bosworth Battlefield project, funded by the HLF and run by the BT for Leicestershire County Council, and was subsequently co-author with the archaeologist Dr Glenn Foard of Bosworth 1485. A Battlefield Rediscovered (2013). My main research interest is the Hundred Years War and especially the armies which served in it, and the battle of Agincourt in particular. I have published many books and articles in both English and French. I was chair of the Agincourt 600 charity charged with the commemorations of the 600th anniversary of the battle in 2015 and a consultant for the new museum at Azincourt which opened in 2019. I have also been responsible for three on-line projects: medievalsoldier.org, which lists all soldiers known to have served the English crown at war between 1369 and 1453; gascon rolls.org, dealing with English Gascony 1327-1453; and normanrolls.org, covering Henry V's conquest and occupation of Normandy 1417-1422. I was President of the Historical Association from 2008 to 2011, and a Trustee of the Royal Armouries. I retired in 2019 as Professor of Medieval History at the University of Southampton butam still doing lots of research on both sides of the Channel. I am passionate about communicating my research to as wide an audience as possible through my writing, talks and web projects. I was appointed Arundel Herald Extraordinary in May 2022.

 

Bruce Logan

I've had a long-term interest in medieval history, in particular the Wars of the Roses which was my specialist subject at Cambridge University. I first encountered the Battlefields Trust when I went to a conference on the rediscovery of the Battle of Bosworth in 2010 and felt this was very much a charity worth supporting. Since then, I have attended a range of events, talks and walks from this period. Other hobbies include target rifle shooting at Bisley and I've recently taken up medieval longsword fighting.

In my professional life I'm a programme manager with a financial services firm in the City of London focusing on implementing business and IT solutions to meet regulatory requirements including entity set up and new governance structures. I'm very much a person who 'Gets Things Done' and get immense personal satisfaction ticking things off my To Do list.

I also support a number of other charities and aim to bring to the trust my experience of strategic planning, financial management and project implementation. I have volunteered to take on the trust's Company Secretary and Board and Governance officer roles.

Andrew Jeffrey

I rejoined the Battlefields Trust in 2020 and am big fan of the online lecture series that began during the pandemic. I have always had a keen interest in English history and living on the Warwickshire/Oxfordshire/Northamptonshire border I am fortunate to be close to locations of that have driven my interest in the English/British Civil War and War of the Roses. However, becoming a member of the Battlefields Trust has allow me to explore other conflicts and associated history.

While my academic background doesn't extend beyond a degree in ancient history I am the Chief Finance Officer of an academy trust in Oxfordshire and a Trustee at another local schools Trust. I am qualified chartered accountant who specializes in not for profit and charity sector and I would look to bring his financial and governance experience to the Board.

Gregg Archer

I joined the trust in 2005 and in 2009 took on a committee role as Branch Secretary with the newly re-founded Mercia Region. In 2020 I became the co-chair of the region. Along with my regional activities I am also a member of the Zoom Tech Group, helping to deliver the Trusts series of online talks and the Social Media Group where I regularly post about Civil War battles. I also run the Trusts 'MailChimp' program sending out communications to members such as events and newsletters.

I have had a passion for history from a young age and my current research is on the Civil Wars of the 17th Century. My fascination is for the smaller, lesser known battles and skirmishes and I currently researching a number of engagements within the Mercia Region. My research on the Battle of Radcot Bridge was published in volume 1 of 'Battalia' the Trusts journal and I have recently authored 'The Battle of Middleton Cheney, 6th May 1643' published jointly by the Northamptonshire Battlefields Society and the Trust.

Having served in the hospitality industry for 28 years I believe that I can use my customer based knowledge to look at the Trust from a members perspective, both to improve our offer to members and to look at new ways to attract more members in order to help the Trust grow further.

Dr Ismini Pells

I am a Departmental Lecturer at the Department for Continuing Education at the University of Oxford. I am a military historian of the early modern period with a particular interest in the British Civil Wars. My recent areas of research include military medicine, war trauma and children in conflict. I have published several articles and chapters in edited collections on these topics, and also a biography of the commander of the infantry in the New Model Army, Philip Skippon: Philip Skippon and the British Civil Wars: the 'Christian Centurion' (Routledge, 2020). My work on Skippon was based on my PhD thesis, which I completed at University of Cambridge. Since leaving Cambridge, I have worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Universities of Exeter and Leicester, before moving to Oxford.

Alongside my academic work, I am passionate about public engagement. I regularly give public talks, I have acted as an academic advisor to a number of museums (including the National Civil War Centre, Cromwell Museum and National Army Museum) and have been involved in developing educational resources for schools. I am the project manager of the Civil War Petitions project which has made images and transcriptions of all the petitions and accompanying certificates for military pensions awarded to wounded soldiers, war widows and orphans from the Civil Wars freely available online (www.civilwarpetitions.ac.uk). I am also a contributing editor of The World Turned Upside Down project, which is producing podcasts and education materials on the Civil Wars for schools, universities and the public (https://www.worldturnedupsidedown.co.uk/).

I have been involved with the Battlefields Trust since 2021, when I joined the Trust's Battlefields Panel as an advisor for the early modern period. I am also involved in a number of other similar societies: I am a trustee of the Cromwell Association, a Council member of the Army Records Society and have recently joined the Society for Army Historical Research's Templer Medal book prize committee.

Dr Rachael Whitbread

I have been a member of The Battlefields Trust since 2021 and have served as co-chair of the Yorkshire Region since 2023. I am also a member of the Trust's social media and education subcommittees, and a convening editor of Battalia, the Trust's forthcoming academic journal.

History has been my lifelong passion, fuelled by visits to Yorkshire's battlefields and battle re-enactments since childhood. My particular interests lie in the medieval period, especially the Hundred Years' War and Wars of the Roses as well as conflict between England and Scotland. These interests also draw on my research for my doctorate (on later medieval tournaments, completed at the University of York) and Masters degrees (from the University of St Andrews on medieval chivalric culture). I am currently researching a number of smaller battles located within the Yorkshire region, with a view to publishing the first monograph dedicated to the Battle of Myton (1319). My publications include the publisher- and Amazon-bestselling Battle: Understanding Conflict from Hastings to Helmand and the forthcoming Duel: Single Combat in Medieval England.

I am also highly invested in communicating the past to wider public audiences. I have over a decade of experience teaching History in universities and, more recently, schools, and I find encouraging interest in, and enthusiasm for, historical study highly rewarding. Alongside organising battlefield tours and lecture days for students, I have also presented public lectures on myriad historical subjects from the medieval to the modern. I am a frequent contributor to online magazines and podcasts and have been a historical advisor to the BBC and programming with HBO. I am also an Associate Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

Anthony Rich

My professional background is in law and public administration, including over 20 years service as an Honorary Legal Adviser to various national and local charities. My Master's in Public Administration Degree centred on my research project on improving governance in a national, volunteer led, charity.

I have been a member of the Trust since around 2012 and am now joint Chair of the Marches & West Midlands Region, the co-ordinator of the Zoom programme of presentations for members, and a member of the Events Team. I was elected a Trustee in 2022. Coming from a diplomatic family I lived overseas for much of my youth, acquiring a fascination with military history of all eras, British & Foreign. My service as a reservist officer with both the British Army and in NATO posts, mainly during the Cold War, gave me a broad insight into how armies in the field actually work, and the daily problems of life in the field. Battlefield Walking and Guiding is a particular hobby: I have been a badged battlefield guide with the Guild of Battlefield Guides since 2016, leading tours and giving presentations to groups as diverse as local church groups to civic and public service dignitaries to veterans. If necessary I can deliver these in any combination of English, French & German.