Christopher Pugsley

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Pugsley, Christopher (1947 – ) is a historian who specialises in military history.

Christopher Pugsley was born in Cardiff, Wales and migrated to Greymouth, New Zealand with his parents in 1952. He has a doctorate from the University of Waikato. From 1966 he worked for the New Zealand Army, retiring in the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in 1988. Since then he has worked as a historian and has lectured in history at Waikato, Massey and Victoria universities. In 1994, he was the Victoria University Writer's Fellow, subsequently was a Senior Lecturer in war studies, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, United Kingdom, and is currently Senior Research Fellow in the Humanities Research Institute at the University of Buckingham.

Significant among the numerous books that Pugsley has published are his histories on New Zealand involvement in World War One. His research on New Zealanders at Gallipoli is critically regarded as seminal work on this campaign. His first book, Gallipoli: The New Zealand Story (1984), has been reprinted four times and was shortlisted for the Goodman Fielder Wattie Book Award in 1984. His most recent book on this subject is The Anzac Experience: New Zealand, Australia and Empire in the First World War (2004).

Pugsley writes that ‘I am very conscious from my own military experience and from teaching at military institutions and universities in New Zealand and Australia that New Zealand’s history must be seen in the context of the wider events of the time and in parallel with the experience of other dominions or Commonwealth members; a monocultural, national view rarely tells us anything other than to consolidate existing mythology.’

Christopher Pugsley was named an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services as a military historian in the 2015 New Year Honours list.

MEDIA LINKS AND CLIPS

• Royal Military Academy Sandhurst bibliography