Leading historian Sir Martin Gilbert has died of a heart condition which he had suffered since 2012.

He was 78.

Sir Martin, the official biographer of Winston Churchill and author of 80 studies on subjects including Israeli and Jewish history, was a member of the Iraq Inquiry panel.

Inquiry chairman Sir John Chilcot paid tribute to the Sir Martin and told MPs at the Foreign Affairs Committee the inquiry had benefited from his "wisdom and insights".

He said: "Can I say with great sadness that I have to tell the committee that Sir Martin Gilbert died peacefully last night after a long and serious illness."

Sir Martin was born in London in 1936. Nine months after the outbreak of the Second World War he was one of many children to be evacuated to Canada as part of the British efforts to safeguard them.

After graduating from Highgate School, he completed two years of National Service in the Intelligence Corps before going on to study at Magdalen College, Oxford. He graduated in 1960 with a first-class BA in modern history.

He previously told the JC his most significant Jewish moment was “sitting in the then-Soviet city of Leningrad in the winter of 1982-83 at a clandestine Hebrew class, and realising the extraordinary courage of the Jewish people, and the strength of Jewish unity".

Sir Martin, who regularly attended Highgate Synagogue, was awarded the $1 million Dan David prize in Israel in honour of his achievements of outstanding scientific, technological, cultural or social impact in 2012.

He married fellow Shoah historian Esther Goldberg in 2005. He has one daughter with first wife Helen Constance Robinson, and two sons with his second wife, Susan Sacher.

On Israel Sir Martin said: “It is the country I have lived in, taught in, played in, seen my children grow up in — and hold in the highest esteem, for all its faults, which are in my view far outweighed by its virtues.”

His books included Never Again: A History of the Holocaust published in 2000 and The Story of Israel published in 2008.

The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust tweeted a tribute: “Saddened to hear that eminent Holocaust historian Sir Martin Gilbert died last night after a long battle with cancer.”

Emeritus Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks paid tribute to the historian.

He said: "Sir Martin Gilbert was one of the world’s great historians, but for us he was also the voice of Jewish memory in our time.

“He spoke for Soviet Jews when they were unable to communicate with the world.

“So that the Holocaust could not be denied he recorded the facts in irrefutable detail.

“When the right of Israel to exist was being challenged, he told the story of its search for peace. One of his later works was a history of the Jewish people originally written on postcards to an Indian lady he had adopted as an aunt.

“As with his monumental biography of Churchill, he wrote with quiet authority and an astonishing mastery of the facts. He was always conscious of the biblical imperative of Zakhor: memory as religious duty.

“Many years ago, when we bestowed a series of Jewish communal awards, I was given the privilege of naming an individual who, in my view, represented to the world all that was best in Jewish life. Unhesitatingly I chose Martin Gilbert.

“He was a great scholar, a great man and a great Jew. He had more friends throughout the world than anyone I know, and he kept in touch with them all. He was the ‘connector’ par excellence.

“During the long ordeal of his last years he was tended with the most loving care by his wife Esther, for whom we all feel at this time.

“We will miss him deeply but as the sages said, ‘his words will be his memorial’ and they will last forever. Baruch dayan haemet."

Israel’s ambassador to Britain, Daniel Taub has written a tribute which will be read at his funeral which takes place in Israel February 5th.

He said: “If modern Jewish history has a voice, it is the voice of Sir Martin Gilbert.
“It is hard to think of anyone who has done as much to document, to educate and to inspire, with passion and authenticity, the history of the Jews in modern times, the tragedy of the Shoah, the struggles of Jews in Arab Lands and the Soviet Union, and the inspiring return of the Jewish people to statehood in the land of Israel.

“These were but a part of his extraordinary corpus of 80 works, which not only brought him recognition as a world class historian in many different fields, but enabled him to see and describe Jewish history against the canvass of world events.

“In one of his last books, Sir Martin combined his two greatest historical passions, Churchill and the Jews.
“Winston Churchill’s description of his vision of the role that could be played by a Jewish national home could not be more appropriate for Sir Martin himself ‘a blessing to the whole world, to the Jewish race and to Great Britain’.

“Today, as Sir Martin is lowered into the earth of the land he loved, is Tu Bishvat, the day when youngsters throughout Israel are planting trees.

“Like them, planted in this fertile ground, Sir Martin will continue to bring forth fruit as future generations continue to be educated and inspired by his extraordinary legacy.”

Karen Pollock, chief executive of The Holocaust Educational Trust, said: “Martin Gilbert was one of the most respected historians of his generation, as well as a close friend and supporter of the Holocaust Educational Trust.

"His seminal works on the Holocaust and related topics have provided a priceless contribution to our knowledge and understanding of what happened during that dark period of our history.

"His great humility and the incredible warmth with which he engaged with Holocaust survivors truly set him apart. We will miss him dearly and our thoughts are very much with his family.”