King's History PhD student wins Royal Historical Society Prize for her first published article

History PhD student Naomi Lloyd-Jones has won the Royal Historical Society's David Berry Prize for her article 'Liberalism, Scottish Nationalism and the Home Rule Crisis, c.1886–93'.

The judges praised Lloyd-Jones for an "elegantly written" article that contained "an impressively wide range of sources".

They said: "She challenges the orthodox theses about this period and questions the consensus that the idea of ‘unionist nationalism’ can be used to explain the activities of Scottish home rulers in the late 1880s and early 1890s.

"As the relations between the constituent parts of the United Kingdom are debated Lloyd-Jones reminds us why deep historical research and clear argument is vital if the historical context of these important issues is to be heard amidst the cacophony of short-term simplicities.”

Lloyd-Jones is a fourth year PhD student at King’s College London using a four nations framework to analyse reactions to the Home Rule crisis.

"I am chuffed to bits for my first published article to be recognised in this way by my peers," she said. "In the wake of the Scottish independence referendum and with plans for further United Kingdom devolution continuing apace, I think it's vital to remember the historical context. I also have to say a huge thanks to my supervisor, Dr Paul Readman, and my fellow PhD students in the History Department for reading and commenting on drafts of the article."

The David Berry Prize is awarded annually for the best essay addressing an aspect of Scottish history. The Prize was endowed by David Anderson-Berry in memory of his father the Reverend David Berry.