Alvin Jackson

Alvin Jackson is Sir Richard Lodge Professor of History at the University of Edinburgh, where he has held this prestigious chair since 2005. He previously served as Dean of Research and Deputy Head of the College of Humanities & Social Sciences (2014) and Head of the School of History, Classics & Archaeology (2010-2013). His academic journey includes professorships at Queen's University Belfast (1999-2004) and Boston College (1996).

Professor Jackson's research focuses on union states and union movements, modern British and Irish history, and political history. His work examines the complex interplay between constitutional structures, national identities, and political movements across the British Isles, with particular attention to the historical development of unionism in Ireland and Scotland.

His recent publications reveal a consistent scholarly trajectory examining the historical foundations of contemporary constitutional arrangements, with particular emphasis on comparative analyses of union states. The articles demonstrate methodological sophistication blending political, constitutional, and social history approaches, often drawing connections between historical developments and current political challenges facing the United Kingdom.

• Honorary Membership, Royal Irish Academy (2014)
• Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship (2014)
• British Academy Senior Research Fellowship (2008)
• British Academy Research Readership (2000)
• John Burns Visiting Professorship, Boston College (1996)
• British Academy Post-Doctoral Fellowship (1986)

Professor Jackson has supervised numerous doctoral candidates and received significant research funding supporting his investigations into British and Irish constitutional history. His major projects include the Leverhulme-funded research that contributed to his influential book 'The Two Unions: Ireland, Scotland and the Survival of the United Kingdom, 1707-2007' (2012). He has also contributed to major reference works including editing 'The Oxford Handbook of Modern Irish History' (2014).

As an active member of the historical research community, Professor Jackson participates in numerous academic networks focused on British and Irish history, regularly presenting at international conferences and contributing to public history initiatives related to constitutional development in the British Isles.