R. Allen Brown might be classed as a military historian, but in the broadest possible sense. He restored military history to its place, recognizing t… - R. Allen Brown

Brown unashamedly proclaimed himself an "old" historian in terms of shunning trendy topics and approaches. He refused to tolerate nonsense, and he spoke his mind plainly, doubtless stepping on many toes. He must have offended archaeologists with his insistence that archaeology is a branch of history, that an archaeologist should be first a historian and only then an archaeologist

Allen Brown's work encapsulates the slow drift from military to symbolic interpretation [of castles].

One would like to say de mortuis nil nisi bonum, but a friend may be allowed to offer a little criticism. He was not always as receptive to new ideas as he should have been, and as an historian was not always at ease with the physical remains of the period he studied.