John Edensor Littlewood - Life

Life

Littlewood was born in Rochester in Kent. He lived in Wynberg in Cape Town from 1892 to 1900 where his father (a 9th wrangler) was a headmaster. He then attended St Paul's School in London for three years, where he was taught by F. S. Macaulay, now known for his contributions to ideal theory. He studied at Trinity College, Cambridge and was the Senior Wrangler in the Mathematical Tripos of 1905. He was elected a Fellow of Trinity College in 1908 and, apart from three years as Richardson Lecturer in the University of Manchester, his entire career was spent in the University of Cambridge. He was appointed Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics in 1928, retiring in 1950. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1916, awarded the Royal Medal in 1929, the Sylvester Medal in 1943 and the Copley Medal in 1958. He was president of the London Mathematical Society from 1941 to 1943, and was awarded the De Morgan Medal in 1938 and the Senior Berwick Prize in 1960.

John Edensor Littlewood was born in 1885, the son of Edward Thornton Littlewood and Sylvia Ackland. His unusual middle name came was the maiden name of his great-great-grandmother Sarah Edensor, who married Thomas Littlewood.

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