Kenyon was born in Sheffield where he attended
King Edward VII School, Sheffield and then
University of Sheffield before going to Cambridge to take a doctorate as a pupil of
John H. Plumb. He obtained his doctorate in 1954 and was appointed a fellow of
Christ's College, Cambridge, before going on to become Hull's history professor for 19 years, followed by six years at St Andrews. From 1987 to 1994 he was Distinguished Professor of early modern British history at the
University of Kansas. For many years he was a regular reviewer for
The Observer. ==Works==