Uwe Kitzinger CBE, 1928-2023
It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Uwe Kitzinger CBE, Emeritus Fellow of Nuffield College, on 16 May 2023 at the age of 95.
Uwe first came to Oxford as an undergraduate, during which time he was elected President of the Oxford Union. After graduation he became the first British economist of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, a post which he held between 1951 and 1956. In his own words, it then “became very clear that Britain wasn’t going to… integrate economically, politically, socially with the French and the Germans, who needed very badly not to be fighting each other. When that became clear I thought: ‘well I’d better go back to Britain and tell them what’s happened, and tell them why it’s happened.’” Uwe did exactly that, via a Fellowship at Nuffield.
He remained at Nuffield for 20 years, playing key roles beyond his academic work including that of Investment Bursar. During this time, the College’s endowment quadrupled in value, thanks at least in part to some bold investment decisions. He was part of Nuffield during many crucial moments for both the College and the wider world, including the official opening of the College; the death and legacy of Lord Nuffield; the first European referendum (on which he wrote a very highly-regarded book with another Nuffield Fellow, the late Sir David Butler); and the rise and fall of numerous political leaders on the national and international stages.
In 1976 he moved to Fontainebleau, France to become Dean of INSEAD (the European Institute for Business Administration), before returning to Oxford to champion Management Studies as a discipline. He was appointed the first President of Templeton College in 1980, where he was later made an Honorary Fellow. In 1980 he was also appointed a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, for services to British academic interests in France.
Uwe remained in close contact with Nuffield throughout his retirement. In an interview with the Warden in 2017, he stated: "I can only say that Nuffield became my academic home in 1956 and that emotionally I’ve never left it. It doesn’t pay me any more, but it feeds me! And it feeds me ideas too."
Uwe will be greatly missed by the Nuffield community.
Obituaries have been published by The Times and The Telegraph.
Tributes have also been published by Green Templeton College, New College and Asylum Welcome.