Sir David Cannadine, FBA is a known for a number of ground-breaking books, including The Decline and Fall of the British Aristocracy, The Rise and Fall of Class in Britain, Ornamentalism and most recently a celebrated biography of Andrew Mellon. He is also noted as a regular public commentator on British public life. He serves as the general editor of the Penguin History of Europe and is Chair of the National Portrait Gallery. From 1992-1998, he was Moore Collegiate Professor of History at Columbia University in New York.. In 1998 he became director of the Institute of Historical Research at the University of London and in 2003 he was selected for the prestigious Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Professor of British History fellowship at IHR. He is currently a Professor of History at Princeton University.