Richard Pipes, the Frank B Baird, Jr Professor of History, Emeritus, at Harvard University, born July 11, 1923, died this morning, May 17, in the Boston area.
Born in Poland, Professor Pipes arrived in the United States as a refugee from the Nazis in 1940. He served in U.S. Army Air Corps, where he learned Russian, and entered Harvard as a graduate student in 1946, staying at the university until his retirement in 1996. His speciality was imperial Russian history and the Russian Revolution; he trained thousands of undergraduates and dozens of doctoral students. He was also active in policy toward the Soviet Union, heading the CIA's Team B in 1976 and serving for two years, 1981-83 on the White House National Security Council.
He is survived by his wife, Irene, two children, and four grandchildren.
A Memorial will be scheduled at a later date. Check the History Events Calendar for details.