Alan Sked

Alan Sked (born 22 August 1947) is a British Eurosceptic academic. He founded the Anti-Federalist League (in order to oppose the Maastricht Treaty) and its successor the UK Independence Party (UKIP). He is Professor Emeritus of International History at the London School of Economics and has stood as a candidate in several parliamentary elections. Early life Sked was educated at Allan Glen's School in Glasgow, before going on to study Modern and Medieval History at the University of Glasgow, followed by a DPhil in Politics at Merton College, Oxford. Academic career Sked's doctoral supervisor at Oxford was A. J. P. Taylor, who was a major influence on him. In particular, Sked's writings on the Habsburg monarchy owe much to Taylor, although their interpretations are very different. He has also written texts on British political and European history. His books have been translated into German, Italian, Czech, Portuguese, Japanese and Chinese. At the London School of Economics (LSE) he taught courses on US and modern intellectual history, and on the history of sex, race and slavery. He retired in 2015, and as of January 2018 is an Emeritus Professor in the LSE's Department of International History. Sked is a member of the British-American Project, which exists to promote Britain's political ties to the US.