Richard William Barber FRSL FSA FRHistS (born 30 October 1941) is a British historian[1] who has published several books about medieval history and literature.

His book The Knight and Chivalry, about the interplay between history and literature, won the Somerset Maugham Award, a well-known British literary prize, in 1971.

A similarly-themed 2004 book, The Holy Grail: Imagination and Belief, was widely praised in the UK press,[2][3][4] and received major reviews in The New York Times[5] and The New Republic.

[8] He was visiting professor in the History department at the University of York from 2013 to 2016, and was awarded an honorary doctorate there in 2015.

Barber has long specialised in Arthurian legend, beginning with the general survey, Arthur of Albion (1961).