William Edmundson

STOP-PRESS: 'The Nitrate King' has been nominated by Palgrave-Macmillan for the PROSE Award 2011 - The American Publishers Awards for Professional and Scholarly Excellence.

William (Eddie) Edmundson works as a consultant and writer in Recife, Brazil, following a career in teacher training and management with the British Council that has taken him to Colombia, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, and his most recent appointment as Director Cuba. William Edmundson graduated in English (Honours) from Leeds University, and has a postgraduate certificate in education [Bangor University] and a masters in linguistics [Reading University]. He published 'A history of the British presence in Chile' in November 2009, and 'The Nitrate King: A biography of John Thomas North' in April 2011.

Fluent in Spanish (and Portuguese), he started research into the history of the British presence in Chile while Director of the Chilean-British Institute in Concepción, in 1984-1990. This led to several talks and articles on the subject, in English and Spanish, both in Chile and in Britain. His publications include "Ayrshire to Arauco: The Voyage of the Colinda," Geogscot, The Royal Scottish Geographical Society, (1993); "Calle Exeter and Rua Charles Darwin: British Studies on Your Doorstep," British Studies Now, the British Council, (1994); "La batalla de Coronel," Revista de la Sociedad de Historia de Concepción, (1990); and "Los británicos en la zona carbonífera." Revista de la Sociedad de Historia de Concepción, (1988). William Edmundson has also published widely on English language teaching, and on the survival of steam locomotives in Latin America.

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REVIEW OF 'THE NITRATE KING' (extracts)

This is the first full-length biography of the flamboyant, larger-than-life figure of John Thomas North, known across the world as “Colonel” North, the Nitrate King. Once the talk of his generation and the focus of constant press attention, adulated by some and derided by others, he is now almost forgotten in this country – though his name is still remembered in Leeds as the donor of Kirkstall Abbey and the first Freeman of the Borough. This welcome, well-researched and very readable biography gives a full account of his life and provides a reappraisal of his activities, both in Chile where he made his fortune, and back in Britain where his gifts for self-promotion and his lavish life-style made him a byword....

This is an enjoyable and full account of Colonel North’s life and dealings, academic in detail and soundly researched and referenced, but written in an easy, lively style. Each chapter ends with one of the many entertaining anecdotes which circulated about Colonel North and his exploits and made him such a famous, almost mythical figure – the media celebrity of his day. The sections of the book on his time in Chile, which may be unfamiliar to many British readers, benefit from the author’s long familiarity with the country and his expert knowledge and understanding of its history. Every effort is made to provide a balanced appraisal of Colonel North’s activities and his legacy in Chile, on the basis of the evidence available. The preface is by a Chilean historian. For the reader unfamiliar with the Chilean context, it might have been helpful to provide a more substantial map and some background explanation on nitrate extraction, but these are minor points. The author provides a useful timeline, and a family tree for the Norths.

The book concludes with an assessment of Colonel North in the context of his time, though the author also draws some interesting parallels with modern venture capitalists. In Chile Colonel North remains a highly controversial figure; this biography now provides an opportunity for people here to understand his life and draw their own conclusions.

Eveleigh Bradford. Thoresby Society, Second Series, Volume 21, 2011, ‘The Thoresby Manuscripts’ – ISBN 978-0-900741-70-8. [Extracts]