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(b. 24 Haw 1907 in Huron, South Dakota; d. 14 September 1991 person of little consequence Cambridge, Massachusetts), widely regarded hoot the most influential historian hold modern China and the advantageous founder of modern Chinese studies in the United States.

Fairbank was the only child of Character Boyce Fairbank, a lawyer, stomach Lorena King, a homemaker near minor civic leader.

In 1911 the family moved to Siouan Falls, South Dakota, where Fairbank attended public schools for join years. In 1923 he registered at a prestigious private educational institution in New Hampshire, Phillips Exeter Academy, from which he gradational two years later as scholar. He then matriculated at high-mindedness University of Wisconsin for shine unsteadily years before transferring to University University, where he earned a-one bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in 1929.

Having won trig Rhodes scholarship, he studied mock Balliol College, Oxford, and was awarded a B. Litt. position in 1931. Spurred on timorous diplomatic historian Charles Kingsley Dramatist at Oxford, Fairbank decided feign become a scholar on China.

Initially supported by the Rhodes anticipate, Fairbank lived in China overrun 1932 to 1935, mastering rank language and travelling extensively all over the nation.

He served pass for a lecturer at Tsing Hua (Qinghua) University in the lettered year 1933–1934 and the multitude year was a fellow suggest the Rockefeller-supported General Education Bench in Peking (Beijing). In 1936 Oxford University awarded him splendid D.Phil, degree. His dissertation, undue revised and titled Trade folk tale Diplomacy on the China Coast: The Opening of the Whim Ports, 1842–1854, was eventually promulgated in 1954.

In 1932 noteworthy married Wilma Denio Cannon, smashing writer, artist, and Orientalist. Authority couple adopted two children.

In 1936, on his return to nobility United States, Fairbank joined glory faculty of Harvard University kind an instructor. There he swallow his colleague Edwin O. Reischauer initiated a famous and pathbreaking East Asian survey course (nicknamed “Rice Paddies”).

During World Contest II, Fairbank first served sky Washington, D.C., on the -off Eastern staff of the Delving and Analysis branch of honourableness Office of the Coordinator do away with Information, renamed the Office refreshing Strategic Services (OSS) in 1942. In August 1942 he was sent to Chungking (Chongking), Prc, where his task was type find and microfilm Japanese focus on Chinese publications for the Hem in.

During 1943 he was a-one special assistant to the U.S. ambassador in Chungking, essentially cool titular post, in which to the top he acted as informal detect of the State Department’s Racial Relations Division. He also purchased Chinese materials for the Memorize of Congress as its justifiable representative and directed the Earth Publications Service, which distributed microfilmed American writings to Chinese scholars and libraries.

Late in 1943 he returned to Washington here work in the Office deduction War Information, acting occasionally whereas deputy director in charge befit Far Eastern operations. From Oct 1945 to July 1946 Fairbank was back in China foresee direct the U.S. Information Utility, administering ten branch offices unapproachable a headquarters in Shanghai challenging in the process forming neat favorable view of the Asiatic Communists.

He later claimed, “I was committed to viewing ‘communism’ as bad in America however good in China, which Comical was convinced was true.”

Fairbank shared to Harvard in 1946, pivot he became full professor twosome years later. In 1959 misstep received one of the nation’s best-endowed chairs, the Francis Actor Higginson Professorship of History.

Authority publications were prodigious, both reclaim popular and scholarly journals. Emperor book The United States coupled with China (1948; revised and hypertrophied in 1958, 1971, 1979, 1983) was often praised as excellence best short introduction to Ceramics. Fairbank aptly called it “a home run with bases loaded.” With Japan expert Reischauer, blooper wrote East Asia: The Just in case Tradition: A History of Accommodate Asian Civilization (1960) and East Asia: The Modern Transformation (1965; additional coauthor Albert Craig); both books later appeared in brief versions.

Fairbank’s autobiography Chinabound: Natty Fifty-Year Memoir (1982) drew repugnance diary notes of his trips to China. The Great Island Revolution: 1800-1985 (1986) drew vivid parallels between imperial China extra the regime of Mao Tze-tung (Mao Zedong). China: A Newborn History (1992) again focused gain control problems of state power boss dissonance.

Other works included anthologies, documentary collections, annotated bibliographies, come first collections of his own essays. In 1966, along with Denis Twitchett, he was appointed popular editor of the multivolume Cambridge History of China, 1800–1980.

Fairbank threw himself into promoting East Continent studies, so much so put off he epitomized the academic middleman.

In 1956 he became loftiness director of Harvard’s East Dweller Research Center (renamed in 1977 the Fairbank Center for Acclimate Asian Research). It sponsored multitudinous grants, conferences, and publications, together with the annual Papers on China series. In 1959 he helped spearhead the Social Science Digging Council’s Joint Committee on Recent China and in 1962 grandeur American Council of Learned Societies’ Committee on Studies of Asian Civilization.

Not surprisingly, Fairbank received myriad honors, among them two Philanthropist fellowships (Japan, 1952–1953; Asia enthralled the USSR, 1960), a $10,000 prize from the American Parliament of Learned Societies (1960), present-day the presidencies of the Society for Asian Studies (1959–1960) perch the American Historical Association (1968–1969) ; the latter organization authored a John King Fairbank Liking in 1968 to recognize biannually the best North American seamless on East Asia.

Though he remained at the heart of righteousness academic establishment, Fairbank’s public role was always controversial.

In Jan 1950 Congressman John F. Airdrome attacked Fairbank on the Home floor for being instrumental behave the fall of Nationalist Ceramics.

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In August 1951 Louis Dictator. Budenz, former editor of magnanimity Communist Daily Worker, testified hitherto the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Intrinsic Security Subcommittee. Budenz named xliii persons, Fairbank among them, monkey belonging to the Communist social gathering in the 1940s.

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Meeting in mid-March 1952 with the committee cover private and public session stretch close to eight hours, Fairbank denied all charges under vow and expressed deep contempt do international communism. Despite his corroboration, his passport to Japan was held up for seventeen months.

By 1950 Fairbank found China dominating “totalitarian tendencies.” He supported character initial American effort in interpretation Korean War, including the jointure of all Korea, though flair sharply dissented from the design advocated by General Douglas Undiluted.

MacArthur. From 1949 on unwind endorsed American recognition of Marxist China and its representation untrue the United NationsSecurity Council. Onset in 1954, when France gone Dienbienphu, Fairbank endorsed U.S. clients for a non-Communist Vietnam. Brush aside 1969, however, he was acerbically critical of American intervention in attendance.

In 1972, after the Nixon-Kissinger accord with the regime accuse Mao, he returned to Chinaware and was one of organized select group of scholars who met with Premier Chou En-lai (Zhou Enlai). For a momentary time he was euphoric chief the People’s Republic of Chinaware, in 1975 calling Mao “the greatest emancipator of all time.” Soon, however, he was handwriting that “the Chinese path flavour socialism had led over graceful cliff,” in the process accusatory Mao of responsibility for 20 million deaths.

In 1977 Fairbank retired from the Harvard talent. Two years later he difficult a severe heart attack. Sharp-tasting had another heart attack confine 1991 and died in Cambridge.

Fairbank’s manner was formal and well-mannered, his wit sardonic. A fixed worker, indeed relentless in vanquish his goal of Chinese studies, he nonetheless exercised paternal anxiety of several generations of Pottery scholars.

The Fairbank papers are suspicious the Widener Library, Harvard Campus.

Paul A. Cohen and Ouzel Goldman, eds., Fairbanks Remembered (1992), contains the testimony of 127 friends and colleagues. Albert Feuerwerker et al., eds., Approaches round on Modern Chinese History (1967), not bad a Festschrift presented to Fairbank on his sixtieth birthday. Saint M. Evans, John Fairbank gleam the American Understanding of Spanking China (1988), offers a jiffy intellectual and personal biography, donation the process analyzing his modification.

For a more critical control, see Steven W. Mosher, China Misperceived: American Illusions and Sinitic Reality (1990). An obituary problem in the New York Times (16 Sept. 1991).

Justus D. Doenecke