John F. Richards (November 3, 1938 – August 23, 2007) was a historian of South Asia and in particular of the Mughal Empire.
He was Professor of History at Duke University in North Carolina, and a recipient in 2007 of the Distinguished Contributions to Asian Studies Award.
[2] Richards graduated from the University of New Hampshire as valedictorian in 1961 and on the same day he married his high school sweetheart, Ann Berry.
He was also in the vanguard of establishing the American Institute of Afghanistan Studies, the first meeting of which took place at Duke University in 2003[1] and of which he was the founding president.
[3] Richards died of cancer at home in Durham, North Carolina, on August 23, 2007, days before he was due to retire.