Abstract

Peter Russell was King Alfonso XIII Professor of Spanish Studies at the University of Oxford 1953–81. He was recruited into the secret service in the mid-1930s and was sent to Spain during the Civil War. On returning to Oxford, Russell joined Military Intelligence and among other duties was responsible for seeing that the Duke and Duchess of Windsor reached the Bahamas safely. He resumed his academic career after the war and quickly established himself as a scholar of exceptional range and dynamism. Influential publications included ‘Don Quixote as a funny book’ MLA 64, 312–26. Russell was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1977. Obituary by Bruce Taylor.